It’s the most wonderful time of the year. No, not the man piping hot presents down your chimney, nor even the gluttonous feast of meat and potato-based-snacks. No, it’s year end list time! I have to admit, I’m an absolute sucker for reading the lists of other people’s favourite music, films, telly, books, etc. I make playlists on albums that sound interesting, I make a note of things to check out and then January rolls around and I promptly forget them all, but hey, I had fun, and so did they, and isn’t having fun something of a rare commodity these days?
So, in that spirit, here’s my favourite stuff from the year of the Great Satan, 2025.
I really struggled to keep it to a top 20 this year, but I managed it, just about. There’s a lot of stuff that didn’t make the list that might have on a different day. Looking at the list it’s fair to say my tastes haven’t been hugely broad this year, save for a few outliers. But if you like post metal, sludge, and other noisy shit, then you might find a few treats in there. I can’t say that it’s been the greatest vintage ever, but there’s a hell of a lot of good stuff out there if you look hard enough.
The Callous Daoboys - I Don’t Want to See You in Heaven. My most listened to album by a country mile, this mixes the most obscenely technical mathcore with emo-pop choruses that will absolutely never leave your head.
Eyes - Spinner. Absolutely pounding party metalcore that straight up bludgeons you around the head. They were in my top three with their last album and this absolutely doesn’t drop the quality from Congratulations. And they absolutely mashed my head at ArcTanGent this year.
Conjurer - Unself. Jesus Christ this is heavy, both sonically and thematically. If their second album was a step back in terms of the songwriting and heft from Mire, this brings them back to being one of the greatest metal bands in the UK now.
Psychonaut - WorldMaker. If The Ocean have been the preeminent post metal band of the last five years, WorldMaker might just auger in a shifting of the tides. As prog as a bag of smashed crabs, as heavy as a really heavy thing, this is phenomenal.
Idle Heirs - Life is Violence. Sean Ingram from Coalesce’s new project is not quite what you might expect from the king of Bludgeoncore (hey I just invented a new genre) but it’s arguably up there with anything he’s done previously, taking in a much wider palette from post metal to elements of folk and hardcore.
Turnstile - Never Enough. I wasn’t sure about this on first listen but boy do those pop hooks get in deep. I really need to see this band again live. I really kept pretty solidly to the dark and heavy this year (can’t imagine why) but this was always a nice bit of light to throw into the shade.
Zatokrev - …Bring Mirrors to the Surface. But then I always come back to the dark. Yet another incredible album from Pelagic records. If anyone wants to send me a vinyl subscription to that label please feel free, because they simply don’t miss. Can’t wait to catch these at ATG next year.
Faetooth - Labyrinthine. Absolutely gorgeous folk/doom metal with one of the loveliest guitar tones I’ve ever heard.
Deftones - private music. I know, I know, where do I find these obscure bands, eh? This is probably the best thing the band has done in a decade, and it’s absolutely joyous seeing them truly cementing their place in the history books this year. The kids love Deftones, so the kids must be alright.
Pupil Slicer - Fleshwork. I always kind of liked PS, but on this album they’ve taken a huge leap forward in terms of the complexity and craft of their songs, while remaining every bit as grimy and nasty as their name suggests.
Geese - Getting Killed. Yes, I know, everyone loves Geese. But for once the hipsters have it right. This reminds me of 90’s Deus, which is obviously a good thing.
Dimscûa - Dust Eater. Catapulted into a very niche level of stardom by a very niche podcast (we go again), this is just incredibly solid post metal.
Chat Pile & Hayden Pedigo - In the Earth Again. What if Chat Pile, but gentle? And by gentle, I do mean ‘bugs are crawling gently under your skin.’
Blessings – Blodsträngen. Oh look, it’s another absolutely incredible post metal band on Pelagic Records!
Higher Power - There’s Love In This World If You Want It. Essentially inhabiting a world somewhere between Deftones, Turnstile, and Hundred Reasons, one suspects they might be a lot bigger if they were from Sacramento rather than Leeds.
Barren Heir - Far From. ENOUGH JOY, MORE BLEAK! Christ this is heavy.
Messa - The Spin. Absolutely crushing, beautiful, soulful doom.
Trudger - Void Quest. Pure sludge, but sluiced through multiple time signatures.
Big Thief - Double Infinity. Absolutely gorgeous, laconic folk music with an ear for a pop hook.
Indifferent Engine - Speculative Fiction. Veering between old school emo, screamo, and massive post hardcore riffs, this is a fitting end to the list, because there’s arguably a bit of everything above it in there. Gutted I messed them at ATG this year, I only really discovered this after the fact.
As is customary, I’ve also made a couple of playlists for this year’s stuff, including loads of stuff that’s not on this list. One heavy, one not, both starting with a Callous Daoboys song. You’ll just have to hit play to see which is which.
As per usual I’ve not read nearly as much as I’d like to have done, but a couple of new books I can definitely recommend:
Pyres, by Kev Harrison - A tale of two sisters, one a political activist, the other a ‘spirit painter’ who claims to commune with the dead. But when the paintings take a dark turn that’s then echoed horribly in the news, both will be thrust into a battle against evil. Extremely political, very dark but utterly compelling, and BOY ISN’T THAT COVER NICE?
The Invisible Doctrine: The Secret History of Neoliberalism by George Monbiot, Peter Hutchison. This completely rewired my way of looking at the world, and seemed to tie together a lot of thoughts I’ve had about the way the world utterly fails to work.
I’ve really gotten back into watching films this year, ironically by cutting ties with every streaming service. I’ve also seen a lot more current films than I usually would. I’m also on Letterboxd, so if you’re a fellow movie nerd why not follow me there?
My top ten films of the year aren’t exactly earth shattering picks, but all of these will go on to be future classics in their own way:
Weapons - This feels like it’ll be an all timer in a few years.
Sinners - Music is magic, kids.
28 Years Later - Danny Boyle can make the fuck out of a film, can’t he?
Companion - A.i. for the AI generation.
Caught Stealing - Like being transported back to the cinema of the 90s.
The Long Walk - Like being transported back to the cinema of the 80s.
Mission Impossible: The Final Reckoning - Fair fucks, they stuck the landing on this one.
The Materialists - Incredibly bittersweet film about modern dating that makes me, once again, thank whatever deity is closest that I’ll never have to go through that shit again.
Dangerous Animals - Sharks and serial killers, together at last.
The Lost Bus - Maybe we should address climate change, eh?
Oh, I haven’t seen One Battle After Another yet, so just assume that’ll take its place on here somewhere once I do.
As a result of getting a lot more into movies, I’ve watched a lot less telly this year, but when the nights are cold and bleak, what else is there to do? Here’s some of the best stuff I’ve seen this year.
Severance - Watched all the way from season one, and what a joy it is.
Alien: Earth - Consider me very pleasantly surprised.
Poker Face - Columbo but hot.
The White Lotus - Another one I watched all the way from the start this year, and absolutely adored.
Slow Horses - I saw the latest season getting a lot of stick but I thought it was great.
So, that’s the year in review. Feel free to sound off in the comments if you want to argue about putting Weapons above Sinners, or not including the Deafheaven or Agriculture albums, or even just to say hi!
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