There were so many big album releases last year that it felt like there was a new album of the year contender each week, this year it’s been a bit more of a slow build into the year. We’re now already halfway through 2025 and I thought I’d look at some of my personal favourites for the year so far.
Floodlights have released a few good albums in the past and I’ve been a fan of all their work, this time though they have released a great one. A nice step up in songwriting and production, you can really hear a band that are comfortable and confident within their sound.
Surprise Chef are an Australian outfit doing big things internationally and while I’ve been a passive listener to their previous work, this is the first release of theirs that really hit me as an exceptionally piece of work from start to finish. Give this repeat listens and you’ll find plenty more in this record with each listen.
Last year was loaded with exceptional pop records from some of the biggest names but also some new upstarts. Addison Rae was one of the fresh names that emerged with the the infectious Diet Pepsi single and this year she released her debut full length. It is a really great body of works that jumps from more tender moments that recalls Lana Del Rey through to up uplifting tracks that almost are a nod to when Madonna and Kylie hit dance mode in the late 90’s/early 00’s.
It would be easy to just lump the latest Hotline TNT album in with the mass of shoegaze revival bands out there and while there is a lot of that sound happening here, there are elements of new wave especially in the vocals that makes the songs slightly catchier and more memorable than the aforementioned masses.