My Favorite Albums of the Year

In under the wire, it’s my favorite albums of the year list! I’m saying “favorite” because I generally hate “best” as a descriptor. I didn’t listen to every album that came out this year, so how do I really know these are the best? As a grizzled media professional, “best” is such an SEO word at this point that it’s meaningless. “Favorite” allows me to say what an album meant to me, and I don’t have to make sweeping statements about how it stood above everything else unless I just want to. 

And yes, I know there are millions of “best of” lists at this time of year on every different topic, and while that can be annoying, I do find them useful for helping me find things I overlooked, which I hope this list can do for you. For example, Pitchfork’s pop albums of the year list mostly pissed me off, but it also introduced me to a couple of new artists I’d never heard of and alerted to me a Tyler, the Creator album that I didn’t even know existed (and now like a lot, to my own shock). 

Quick note: I participated in a best of the year list for my day job, but I only got to write five blurbs for that one. Those albums are here too, as are some of the ones that my colleagues picked that I voted for but didn’t get to write about. Onward!

Neko Case, Neon Grey Midnight Green 

Outside of my pop holy trinity (Beyoncé, Madonna, and Lady Gaga), there’s no artist I love more than Neko Case, so I’m not surprised by how much I love her latest album, but there are always such long gaps between her new releases that I always forget how much she challenges herself to do something different each time. “Winchester Mansion of Sound” is my favorite example of this on NGMG. The first time I heard it, I thought it was a love song until I got to the line, “If you think I’m talking about romance, you’re not listening.” Clocked! Then I found out the song is actually her tribute to a friend who died last year, and that fully unlocked it for me. She sings through all these recollections of him until the end, when the tempo changes and she goes into the children’s rhyme “Down Down Baby,” at which point you feel like you’re inside the memory with her. Then on the title track she goes feral, exploding into a near-scream as guitars crescendo around her voice, which, true story, I once wrote a poem about in high school. 

Perfume Genius, Glory 

I’ve loved Perfume Genius since his debut, but I really think Glory might be his best work. It’s just so pretty, which I actually think is something few artists aspire to these days. To channel my old man audiophile persona for a second, it’s all about distortion and experimentation and blah blah blah. This is not to say that Glory isn’t innovative (and it does have some distortion!), but it’s stuck with me because of how much it showcases Mike Hadreas’s voice, which I assume is what biblical angels would sound like if they were real. Also, please, I dare you, listen to “Me & Angel” and try not to cry. 

Chaparelle, Western Pleasure 

This album slipped through the cracks for me when it first came out, but I discovered it later while catching up on my favorite country music newsletter and got hooked. It has everything I want from a country album: copious pedal steel and plenty of old-school two-step vibes, plus two lead singers who are also romantic partners and had unbelievable chemistry on stage when I saw them a couple months ago. Every time I need to feel like I’m sitting in a honky-tonk drinking whiskey when I can’t actually be doing that, I put on “Playing Diamonds Cashing Checks” and sail away.  

Lady Gaga, Mayhem

Obviously. My coworker wrote about this one for our list, but this was unquestionably my top album of the year both in spirit and data, as borne out by Spotify Wrapped. (Ask my friend Kate about how I made her wake and bake with me to watch Gagachella on my couch when she was literally visiting from another state.) Anyway, I don’t know that I have anything astute to say about Mayhem except that it’s perfect. Most importantly for those of us with parasocial relationships to fabulous women we’ve never met, Gaga sounds like she’s having fun again, but these are also just incredible pop songs. “Abracadabra” and “How Bad Do U Want Me” are among the best work she’s ever done, and I am coming very close to making my fiancé let me pick “Die With a Smile” for our first dance. (On the off chance our wedding DJ is reading this, please plan to play most of Mayhem during the reception.) 

Kelsey Waldon, Every Ghost 

I’ve written about Kelsey here before, but six months later, this album is on its way to becoming an all-timer for me. I typically hate the idea of “authenticity” as a measure for anything, because what does that even mean, but it comes to mind a lot when I listen to Every Ghost. It feels so steeped in real emotion and showcases a deep love of country music that can’t be faked. That opening fiddle lick on “Tiger Lilies,” lord above! Take my soul right out of my body, why don’t you? 

Rosalía, Lux

I wrote about this one for work, but I’ll add that I’m very excited about spending some more time with this album this winter. One of my favorite things to do when I love an album is sit at home alone and listen while following along with the lyrics like I used to do when I was a teen, but I haven’t had time to do that with this because it only dropped last month, and I need to 1) read all the words in their original languages 2) listen again with a translation and 3) research all the saints she’s referencing. It’s a lot of work and I can’t wait to do it! 

Clipse, Let God Sort Em Out

Another one I did for my job, but one thing I left out is that this kicked off a renewed appreciation of Clipse’s past albums for me, and I love it when that happens. It’s simply delightful when a long-dormant artist comes back and their new work is not only great but reminds you why you liked them in the first place. (I truly can’t believe how much “Grindin’” still slaps. See also the Girl Talk remix of Grizzly Bear’s “Knife” that samples “Wamp Wamp,” which I had totally forgotten about until Let God Sort Em Out.)

Justin Bieber, Swag

Another day job entry, but if you know me, then you know I’m a longtime Belieber and I’m unashamed to say it. I am simply overjoyed that he is back and serving. Also, I’m sorry, but “That’s my baby, she’s iconic / iPhone case, lip gloss on it” is so funny. 

Snocaps, Snocaps

Several months before Waxahatchee released Tigers Blood last year, I went to a press event where Katie Crutchfield’s twin sister, Allison, moderated a conversation about the making of that album. At one point, someone in the audience asked Allison, who was working in A&R, whether she’d ever return to music (her 2017 solo album has never made it far out of my rotation). It was a question I was too afraid to ask myself because the event was supposed to be about Katie, but Allison answered graciously — and kind of hinted that it wasn’t in the cards. So imagine my surprise when she and Katie reunited as Snocaps (with MJ Lenderman and Brad Cook) with almost no warning. The resulting album is pure joy. It’s so lovely to hear these two singing together again, and you can hear how much fun they had making this in every note. That carried over to their live show, which I saw earlier this month at Bowery Ballroom. Gorgeous harmonies, catchy melodies, and glee all around. 

Carter Faith, Cherry Valley

My first encounter with Carter Faith happened last year when she opened for Yellowstone’s Luke Grimes, who I went to see for work at Webster Hall. He was fine, but she was amazing, and I spent most of 2025 eagerly awaiting her debut album, which came out the same day as another major release by a very famous blonde woman. That might be one reason she’s gotten less attention than I want her to, or it could be the old adage that only one country woman can be famous at once and it’s Lainey’s time right now. Faith’s lyrics are clever without being corny, and her vibe is part ’90s country queen, part honky-tonk, without ever taking itself too seriously. It is very important to me that she becomes a superstar in 2026 and I’m counting on the readers of this newsletter to help me make that happen! 

Margo Price, Hard Headed Woman

Margo Price is constitutionally incapable of making a bad album, but this is a fantastic return to her classic country sound after she ventured into psych rock on 2023’s (still very good) Strays. I also got to interview her for the third time, and she was as forthcoming and insightful as ever. Plus I saw her live again for the approximately 10th time and she was incredible. If you haven’t yet seen her “Maggie’s Farm” cover with John C. Reilly and Jesse Wells at Newport Folk, rectify that now. 

Japanese Breakfast, For Melancholy Brunettes (& Sad Women)

I had a magical day in the spring where I got up early on a Saturday, went to the Met alone and walked around the Caspar David Friedrich exhibit while listening to this on my headphones, because Michelle Zauner said Friedrich was one of her inspirations for the album. I will be trying to recreate this day for the rest of my life.

Jade, That’s Showbiz Baby! and Addison Rae, Addison

My last two from work. I’m out of steam, you have to click over there to read my thoughts. 

Bonus Music Movie: Mitski: The Land

This is the filmed version of Mitski’s most recent concert tour, which I did attend in real life, but seeing it on the big screen helped me notice things I couldn’t see from my balcony seats. She puts so much care and thought into her live performances, which is sort of a rarity for musicians at her level. No judgment, live shows are expensive! But it’s so fascinating to see an artist who doesn’t have a Beyoncé budget incorporate choreography and set design on a smaller scale and still produce something that punches you in the gut. You also get to hear countrified arrangements of songs like “I Don’t Smoke,” and yes, I am still kicking myself for not buying the limited-edition live LP.   

Other Stuff I Loved in No Particular Order But This Is Already So Long

• Bad Bunny, Debí Tirar Más Fotos

• Lily Allen, West End Girl

• Demi Lovato, It’s Not That Deep

• Florence + the Machine, Everybody Scream

• KPop Demon Hunters soundtrack (not just for kids!)

• Hayley Williams, Ego Death at a Bachelorette Party

• Noah Cyrus, I Want My Loved Ones to Go With Me

• Hot Chip, Joy in Repetition (this is basically a greatest hits but it brought me right back to 2007) 

• Zach Top, Ain’t In It for My Health

• Charley Crockett, Dollar a Day and Lonesome Drifter

• Cult of Venus, Algorithm

• Tami Neilson, Neon Cowgirl

• Yola, My Way

• Blondshell, If You Asked for a Picture

• I’m With Her, Wild and Clear and Blue

• Karol G, Tropicoqueta

• Tyler Childers, Snipe Hunter

• Alison Goldfrapp, Flux

• S.G. Goodman, Planting by the Signs

• Austra, Chin Up Buttercup

My Clippings:

I recently interviewed Kesha’s mom, Pebe Sebert, about her new solo album, which was recorded in the ’80s but is only seeing the light of day now. Her story is so interesting and her music is great!