We’re into July now, so 2025 is half over, officially.
If only that were of any comfort.
The catastrophe carries on, and so should we. Thankfully, good music makes for great copium.
Albums On Deck
We’re finally through with all of the albums that released in Q1! (Just in time for the start of Q3…)
My backlog basically consists of all of Q2, so there are 21 albums waiting here. I’ll get to them all eventually.
Elvenking - Reader of the Runes — Luna
Epica - Aspiral
The Man-Eating Tree - Night Verses
Bon Iver - Sable, Fable
Messa - The Spin
Julien Baker & Torres - Send a Prayer My Way
Eluveitie - Ànv
Wu-Tang Clan - Black Samson, the Bastard Swordsman
Ghost - Skeleta
Lights - A6
Eric Church - Evangeline vs. The Machine
Sleep Token - Even in Arcadia
Maren Morris - Dreamsicle
VNV Nation - Construct
Miley Cyrus - Something Beautiful
Lil Wayne - Tha Carter VI
Katatonia - Nightmares as Extensions of the Waking State
Marina - Princess of Power
King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard - Phantom Island
Alestorm - The Thunderfist Chronicles
Lorde - Virgin
We’ve still got some exciting albums on the backlog to get to. I’ve only jumped the queue for one — Sleep Token’s last album blew my mind, so I’ve been very excited for their next outing, and the only reason I didn’t have them on this year’s Most Wanted list was because I wanted/expected them to cook for another year.
They still need to wait their turn for a full review, but I have listened a couple of times already.
One artist who WAS on that Most Wanted list and is now in my backlog: Marina. 2021’s Ancient Dreams in a Modern Land ranks very high on my all-time Pop album list, and 2015’s Froot is also an outstanding record. She’s just a fun artist.
But there’s another Pop artist here who ranks among my absolute favorites for the genre: Lights. I’m stoked to get an album from her, as well as Marina in such a short span. Toss in Maren Morris for some Pop Country twang, and there’s a trio of Poppy albums that I will consider disappointments if they rate below an 8. My opinion of these artists is just that damn high.
Miley Cyrus, on the other hand, is great, but I don’t expect a great album. I’m only really following along for the day that she hopefully pivots to rock. And Lorde’s last album was a stinker. She’s on the list purely out of name recognition and one last shot at maybe hearing something that lives up to the promise of her debut.
On the Rock and Metal side, Messa should give us some good droney Doom; Eluveitie should be a stunning mix of Celtic Folk and MeloDeath; Ghost’s heretical antics1 are eternally amusing (and catchy); King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard are a phenomenal and stupidly prolific Psychedelic act; and this will actually be my first Alestorm album, so I’m late to that party.
What else is new?
I’m also late to the Lil’ Wayne and Wu-Tang parties, but my ability to appreciate Hip-Hop has been a long-term project. Maybe I’ll be able to actually do them justice in my reviews now.
And Eric Church is one of the few Country artists who I still wholly love and support.
June Release Radar
7/11
Ciara
Kokoroko
Noah Cyrus
7/18
Fletcher
Joe Bonamassa
Lord Huron
Trisha Yearwood
7/25
Indigo de Souza
The Band Camino
Tyler Childers
The summer is really heating up now, with eleven releases for the last three weeks of July (nothing remarkable dropped on the 4th), and August and September looking like they’ll be stuffed full of good music.
We’ll be kicking off the 11th with R&B artist Ciara, who has been active since the aughts (though I’m not familiar with any of her work). I don’t know if she’ll match the quality of recent record from Jamila Woods or Ravyn Lenae from the last few years, but I’m willing to take a chance because good R&B is always worth it.
Kokoroko is another act I’m trying out for the first time. They’re a London-based septet playing Jazz-Fusion and Afrobeat. I’m expecting richly layered compositions and dense technicality with a hearty African flair, just from the genric labels (and the fact that they’re a septet). And they’ve won awards, so I’m confident that they’ve got serious talent.
And then there’s Noah Cyrus, whose 2022 debut album blew my goddamned mind (and made my top ten). The epitome of sad-girl Pop infused with a Country-Soul twang; it was a stellar album and I’m looking forward to seeing what this followup entails.
Fletcher also made my top ten that year with her own debut album, and her third outing releases on the 18th. Her sophomore effort came out last year and, frankly, was a bit of a disappointment in comparison. So the fact that this one has only had a year to cook worries me.
I’m a little more excited for releases from Joe Bonamassa and Lord Huron that day. Bonamassa is a top-tier Blues guitarist. He has collaborated with Beth Hart several times, and those records are nothing but fireworks. Lord Huron, on the other hand, is typically a moody sort of Indie Folk-Rock.
If you’re looking for something poppier or more upbeat, The Band Camino should have you covered.
But I’m more excited for a new Tyler Childers album — his forthright style and the way he pours himself into his vocals has made him my absolute favorite Country artist of recent years. His last album’s lead single was a love song, and the music video for it pissed off the bigots by showcasing two men, coal miners, having deep and sincere romantic feelings for one another.
Q1 Breakdown
I would normally make this its own post, but seeing as we’re into Q3 and I’ve only just finished Q1, I’m gonna keep this brief and get back to finding time and energy for the more important things.
To date, I’ve covered 31 albums for 2025 (for comparison, Q1 2023 was 35 albums deep, while 2024 was only 28). And it hasn’t been an awful start to the year, with seven of those clearing the Blue bar (8+/10), with five more straddling the fence in the Teal bucket.
But, I’ll be honest, January and February were a huge bust. All seven Blue-rated albums came out in March, and considering that March accounts for 14 of the 31 albums; on the other end of the score-sheet, five of the six Yellows and one of the two Orange albums were among the 17 albums covered in January and February.
It’s wildly disproportionate.
February and March were rough for my family, and the dearth of top-tier albums did not help my mentality at the time.
But now we have, at minimum, seven serious contenders (and five potential additions) for AOTY honors. If you missed them, please see the links to those reviews below.
Blue
Teal
Beyond July
The full radar is always available, and lists offerings which are still months away. Here are five things to expect in the coming months:
Currently, I have 12 albums earmarked for August, with four apiece for the 15th and the 29th.
One of the most notable releases (from my perspective) is Auri’s third album; it’ll be the second album from my Most Wanted list for 2025. It releases 8/15.
Most will be much more excited by the new Sabrina Carpenter album on the 29th. I mean…fair.
Arjen Lucassen is releasing a solo album on September 12th. Which is…what??? If you’re familiar with the man, that is just not how he typically works.
There’s still no news for RTJ5. And no news is not good news. :(
I love Ghost because they enrage Christians with their theming and Metal elitists with their poppy Heavy Metal compositions.