Top Albums 2025

As January settles in, it feels like the right moment to gather my thoughts on what I believe are some of the best LPs you could have picked up in 2025. Last year marked my first attempt at a list like this, and the goal remains largely the same: there’s always plenty of buzz surrounding great music, but in my time running Frequency Illusions, I’ve learned that even truly special records can slip past the mainstream conversation.

While I wholeheartedly believe every band I photograph deserves household-name status, buzz doesn’t always arrive on schedule. This list is my small effort to shine a light on artists whose work may have flown under the radar, but whose records deserve to live loudly and proudly in your collection.

To borrow a line from the legend himself, Iggy Pop once said, “A good LP is a being, it is not a product. It has a life force, a personality.” These albums embody that idea completely, and I have no doubt they’ll continue buzzing in people’s ears for years to come.

Honorable Mention

LUX – Rosalía

Released November 7, 2025 (Columbia Records)

LUX feels genuinely cutting-edge—an album that challenges what pop music can be.

Every album on this list feels deeply personal—transformative work that bends genre and breathes new life into the medium. No record embodied that more clearly than Rosalía’s fourth studio album, LUX. This album is staggeringly good. Smarter people than I can break down exactly why, but from where I stand, there’s a power and presence in Rosalía’s performance that feels unmatched by any major-label artist working today.

She is vulnerable and passionate, displaying an extraordinary command of her craft while pushing pop music into new, unfamiliar territory. LUX feels genuinely cutting-edge—an album that challenges what pop music can be. Rosalía soars over complex arrangements, employing hyper-modern vocal techniques and multilingual delivery to explore themes of divinity and human desire with confidence and grace.

Number 7

Eat This – Bite Me Bambi

Released February 14, 2025

“Eat This channels the unmistakable Orange County sound—reminiscent of No Doubt and Save Ferris—while updating it for today’s audience.”

I once described Bite Me Bambi as a band that is “screaming self-love through a glitter cannon,” and I still stand by that statement. Their live shows feel like joyful community gatherings, steeped in the classic traditions of ska and punk while remaining refreshingly modern.

Their second album captures that energy perfectly. Eat This channels the unmistakable Orange County sound—reminiscent of No Doubt and Save Ferris—while updating it for today’s audience. It’s a record built for long drives, house parties, and moments when you just need to feel good. Put this band on your radar and enjoy a group of friends who are unapologetically themselves—and inspiring others to do the same.

Number 6

Bleeds – Wednesday

Released September 19, 2025

While Hartzman has described Bleeds not as a “dark record,” but one with a “Southern Gothic attitude”—something a little scary with a heart of gold underneath—that tension is exactly what makes the album resonate so deeply.

There truly isn’t another band like Wednesday. Entirely themselves, deeply tied to their sense of place, the group continues to evolve with their sixth studio album, Bleeds. Building on the success of their previous work, this record feels like a fully realized statement—confident, expansive, and emotionally rich.

Wednesday seamlessly blends the softness of country with shoegaze, punk, and noise, all anchored by Karly Hartzman’s powerful voice and painfully vivid lyricism. While Hartzman has described Bleeds not as a “dark record,” but one with a “Southern Gothic attitude”—something a little scary with a heart of gold underneath—that tension is exactly what makes the album resonate so deeply. In a year where genre-bending has been a recurring theme, Wednesday carves out a striking new path for sounds emerging from a part of the country I wish we heard from more often.

Number 5

Stockholm Syndrome – Fishbone

Released June 27, 2025

There may not have been a more important album released in 2025 that so clearly captures what this era of U.S. politics felt like for those of us outside the cult.

The first full-length LP in nearly twenty years from true veterans and innovators, Stockholm Syndrome finds Fishbone erupting with clarity, purpose, and urgency. Independent, outspoken, and fearless, Fishbone remains a shining example of counterculture at its best—diverse, defiant, and unmistakably American.

“Last Call in America,” featuring funk pioneer George Clinton, channels old-school funk energy, while standout tracks like “Suckered by Sabotage,” “Secret Police,” and “Love Is Love” showcase the band’s versatility and unwavering commitment to truth-telling. This record proves that legacy isn’t static—it expands, evolves, and sharpens with the right message. There may not have been a more important album released in 2025 that so clearly captures what this era of U.S. politics felt like for those of us outside the cult.

Number 4

DAMNAGE – Damnage

Released June 1, 2025

Damnage drags punk—kicking and screaming—into 2025, stripping away polish to let power, rage, vulnerability, and passion bleed through every downbeat.

Three outstanding musicians. Three compelling stories. Fueled by raw talent and decades of lived experience, Damnage drags punk—kicking and screaming—into 2025, stripping away polish to let power, rage, vulnerability, and passion bleed through every downbeat.

I was lucky enough to receive a vinyl pre-release while the band was on tour with the legendary Fishbone, which should tell you everything about where these guys come from—and where they’re headed. While the first half of the record is driven by snarling guitars and shout-along hooks, the closing tracks drift into haunting, almost ghostly territory. Across ten tracks, DAMNAGE takes you on a full emotional journey and leaves me excited—and honestly impatient—to hear what comes next from this trio.

Number 3

Blood on the Silver Screen – SASAMI

Released March 7, 2025

Flooded with cinematic production, revitalized synth-pop textures, and a vulnerability that mirrors the emotional chaos of modern love.

Genre-defiant to its core, SASAMI’s third studio album finds her leaning further into pop without abandoning her shoegaze or metal roots. Blood on the Silver Screen has been in steady rotation for me since its release. Tracks like “Slugger” and “Honeycrash” are immediate standouts, while songs such as “The Seed” and “Possessed” feel like pivotal evolution points—bridging her heavier foundations with an ’80s synth-pop dreamscape.

This is SASAMI confidently moving between genres to carve out a sound entirely her own, flooded with cinematic production, revitalized synth-pop textures, and a vulnerability that mirrors the emotional chaos of modern love. It’s bold, fearless, and deeply human.

Number 2

Miller’s Garage – Strawberry Fuzz

Released May 16, 2025

The record is structured and deliberate, telling a story of self-discovery and artistic growth through what feels like beautifully controlled chaos.

For better or worse, I found myself deeply relating to Miller’s Garage. The second LP from this Southern California punk outfit feels like a defining moment—not just for the band, but for the scene itself. Full of tears, blood, sweat, and love, Strawberry Fuzz is rapidly becoming a band too big to keep tucked away as a personal secret.

The record is structured and deliberate, telling a story of self-discovery and artistic growth through what feels like beautifully controlled chaos. Hazy, fuzzed-out, and handled with care, Miller’s Garage hits hard—and their live shows somehow hit even harder. Do yourself a favor and follow Strawberry Fuzz now.

Number 1

Heartache in Room 14 – The Altons

Released February 14, 2025

The Altons so singular. They defy easy genre labels, crafting a soul record with a punk-rock heart.

I don’t know if I heard anything more authentic, more personal, or more soaked in soul than Heartache in Room 14 this past year. Fully realized and novelistic in its structure, the album tells a story not just of an individual, but of a people.

This feels like the work of four immensely gifted musicians, each bringing a deep sense of musicality that allows the record to breathe effortlessly. Everything sounds intuitive—as if the harmonies fell into place naturally, the arrangements revealed themselves in real time, and the lyrics flowed like instinctive poetry.

The 2025 Club Heartache tour, featuring both The Altons and their sister band Thee Sinseers, delivered some of the most immersive and transportive live performances I experienced all year. I was lucky enough to photograph the band twice, and each time I left in deeper awe of the talent and passion on display.

The most surprising moment on Heartache arrives with “Del cielo te cuido,” a romantic Spanish-guitar bolero. Its light, Euro-tinged melody is intoxicating, recalling the emotional pull of Eydie Gormé y Los Panchos’ “Sabor a Mi.” It’s this willingness to take risks—paired with an unapologetic embrace of their Latino roots—that makes The Altons so singular. They defy easy genre labels, crafting a soul record with a punk-rock heart.

There is nothing I felt more deeply than this album in 2025. It belongs in every collection.