The vibes were weird in 2025, both musically and otherwise. My listening habits come and go in phases, and between that and really not feeling like there were very many extremely strong releases this year, this list became a tough one to narrow down. Rather than delving into a large number of brand new releases, I largely gravitated towards older music and deep-diving artists I was previously only a casual listener of. However, I’d be remiss not to give credit where credit is due to the outstanding releases of 2025 that did dominate in my headphones and playlists. Now that the new year is well underway, many of these releases are growing increasingly imprinted in my brain.
As always, I’d like to begin with a few honourable mentions:
BITE ME by Reneé Rapp - After the success of Snow Angel’s cheekiest tracks, Rapp’s countless hilarious public moments, and her iconic roles in The Sex Lives of College Girls and Mean Girls, I fear she’s being pigeonholed into this messy lesbian stereotype. While I love her sassiness endlessly, I don’t necessarily want an album filled almost exclusively with songs that reiterate that messiness. With a little more range, BITE ME could’ve been so much more memorable. It already is a great album - “Kiss It Kiss It” and “I Think I Like You Better When You’re Gone” are among Rapp’s best entries into her discography thus far. “Leave Me Alone” and “Mad” were riveting, action-packed singles and remain highlights on the album after its complete release. I love to hear Reneé Rapp bare her soul; I think she’s a really interesting artist and human with some great stories to tell. But, on her next release, I’d love to hear a little more depth than what was featured on BITE ME. Rapp is at her best with zero filters, but that also includes commercial pressures to not fall into a sophomore slump. Her career is still so fresh and I’m at the edge of my seat to see where it takes her. In the meantime, BITE ME was just barely shy of making my top ten list.
Who’s The Clown? by Audrey Hobert - Not to get all “I’m not like other girls” here, but when I first heard Audrey Hobert’s name, I was reluctant to look into her music. I’ve hated so many of the recent gen-z, TikTok-oriented music trends, and I was so certain this was just another one of those. I finally sat down and put this album on from front-to-back and was instantly charmed by the oddity of the album’s opener, “I like to touch people.” “Bowling alley” remained on my heavy rotation for weeks, its quirkiness and relatability being the perfect formula for an earworm. Later, I fell heavily in love with “Chateau,” “Wet Hair,” and “Sue me,” and I still find myself revisiting and becoming hooked on some of the album’s other tracks. “Chateau” deserves a massive shoutout for the guitar riff and the lyrics poking fun at tendencies of A-listers, all the while capturing the feeling of being overwhelmed in a place where you don’t feel like you belong. I believe strongly that the world will continue to hear great things from Audrey Hobert, and if this is the first time you’re hearing her name, it won’t be the last.
THAT’S SHOWBIZ BABY! by JADE - This was another very close runner up for my top 10 picks. While her album was truly phenomenal, the place where I struggled most was that it felt like a collection of singles more so than an album. Every time I revisited a song after a while without listening, I grew more and more fond of it, each earworm lodging itself in my head one at a time. “Natural At Disaster,” “Midnight Cowboy,” and “FUFN (Fuck You For Now)” have recently creeped back into my heavy rotation, serving as three of the album’s many huge standouts. While I never paid much mind to Little Mix when they were around, I knew JADE would become a new obsession of mine when “Angel of My Dreams” reached my ears shortly after its release. So many excellent tracks are housed within this debut release, and there’s nowhere JADE can go from here but up.
Breach by Twenty One Pilots - Clancy got me re-hooked on Twenty One Pilots after falling off for a little while, so the release of Breach just a year later was highly anticipated by me. I loved the continuation of exploration deeper into the rock genre, but this record didn’t serve to capture my attention quite as effectively as its predecessor. I also have personal beef with the band after the horrendous, poorly executed and money-wasting events of their second Toronto show last summer, which was unfortunately the evening I chose to purchase a ticket to. Even still, Breach is a highly rated pick from me, with earworms like “Tally” creating blockbuster moments to become some of the band’s best songs yet, even if not widely recognized. By leaning further into their niche that they once strayed away from, Twenty One Pilots have managed to build fantasy worlds, all the while bridging the world between their life and the fans’ lives. “Garbage,” “The Contract,” and “One Way” are high-stakes moments that let us into lead singer and songwriter Tyler Joseph’s brain in an intimately revealing manner. “Drum Show” is also an outstanding pick, featuring rare vocals from drummer Josh Dun. Breach is bound to be a sentimental, heartwarming listen for past and present fans of Twenty One Pilots.
MAYHEM by Lady Gaga - I felt like this album was one of the highest acclaimed all year. While everyone raved about its beauty, I agree that many songs are superb, but the record as a whole just fell a little flat to me. The album has six phenomenal, unforgettable tracks in my opinion, but even within those songs, many lyrics felt less like the level of individualism that Gaga’s work usually contains, but rather an effort to cling to the themes that have sold well in her past. A lot of the record was well-produced, but just didn’t feel authentic in any capacity. The prime exceptions are “Abracadabra” - obviously, a career highlight, “Disease,” “Die With A Smile,” “How Bad Do U Want Me,” “Garden Of Eden,” “Vanish Into You,” and “Perfect Celebrity,” another of my all-time top Gaga picks. I was lucky enough to finally see the pop icon live for the first time this year, where she performed undoubtedly one of the most memorable concerts I’ve ever had the pleasure of witnessing. It gave me a new appreciation for many of these songs and breathed new life into her complete discography. This was a close cut for me, but given the fact that I only ever revisit about half of MAYHEM, even the brilliance of those songs wasn’t quite enough to push it into my top ten.
What No One’s Thinking by AJR - Though only an EP, What No One’s Thinking is a phenomenal new entry into AJR’s discography. I have never understood why people are so nasty towards AJR. Sure, some of their older music and radio hits may have some cringe lyrics. But they’re seemingly good people who write about the real, gritty, unpretty aspects of life, and they aren’t afraid to experiment with non-conventional composition and instrumentation. So much of their music feels like it’s been derived straight from my brain, and that’s exactly the relationship I have with this EP. What No One’s Thinking serves not only as a follow-up to the band’s fifth studio album, released in 2023, but it’s also a sister EP to the band’s 2016 release, What Everyone’s Thinking. The 2025 EP is complete with five brand new songs, including “The Big Goodbye” and “The Plane That Never Lands,” which are scarily accurate to some of my innermost anxieties. “Betty” and “A Dog Song” go hand-in-hand for me; while “A Dog Song” is about the special relationship between a pet and its owner, but my cat’s name is Betty, so I can’t help but listen to that song and connect it to the other. “I’m Sorry You Went Crazy” is sad, relatable, and mellow. In the most complimentary way, it hurts to listen to. With so many full-length releases to choose from, I felt that it wasn’t fair to include a short EP in my top ten. However, AJR’s latest makes it a real close call.
DON’T TAP THE GLASS by Tyler, The Creator - Tyler, The Creator is an artist who I’ve admired for quite a while, but I’ve only ever listened to singles here and there. I respect his art big time, but not all of it is for me. When DON’T TAP THE GLASS released, I heard nothing but praise, and I checked it out almost immediately. “Big Poe,” “Sugar On My Tongue,” and “Ring Ring Ring” are utterly phenomenal tracks, especially the latter, which has hardly left my head for months. Admittedly, the whole record didn’t stick with me, but I can confirm it’s jam-packed with earworms. Rather than taking himself too seriously, Tyler has reached a point in his career where he can create a brief album full of danceable tunes in the span of a few months, putting his creative capabilities on full display to the world and further cementing his longevity. He has been on a 3-year streak of back-to-back album releases, and I only hope to continue seeing his vision flourish through 2026 and onwards.
The Life of a Showgirl by Taylor Swift - Swift’s latest is, by far, the blandest collection of work the artist has released in her 20-year career. It feels a little cheap to even give this a runner-up nod, but I must admit that songs from this album stuck in my head for much longer than I’d necessarily like. “The Fate of Ophelia” and “Ruin The Friendship,” while certainly not lyrical masterpieces one would expect from Taylor Swift, are the album’s obvious highlights. They are excellent, enjoyable pop songs that compliment her catalogue nicely. Songs like “Honey” and “Wood” may be lyrically abhorrent, but man, do they have a nice tune and impressive vocal arrangements. This album is relatively devoid of the creativity and originality that makes the remainder of her discography so addictive, and as a longtime fan, it’s been extremely disappointing to watch the pipeline she’s been going down as of late. She’s still capable of making catchy music, and though I find myself rather disconnected from Swiftie-ism, I do look forward to her next project. I mean, we can’t lose the plot much further than with songs like “Eldest Daughter” and “CANCELLED!”... can we?
10. The Crux - Djo
I feel like I’m cheating by writing this review, because this album didn’t become a top ten for me until well after my deadline to finish this article. I didn’t discover Djo until this year, but man, have I ever fallen in love with The Crux. Rarely has there emerged such a multi-talented figure as Joe Keery, who not only captured audience’s hearts as Steve Harrington in Stranger Things, but also continues to put out his own phenomenal, experimental indie music. I dug into Djo’s discography earlier this year, and my ultimate allegiance still lies with DECIDE - there’s something so special about that record, it sounds unlike anything else I’ve heard. But, The Crux is an utterly phenomenal follow-up release that adds spectacular depth to the band’s developing discography. Keery possesses a unique talent and charisma that shines through each and every track on this record. Even the most mainstream oriented tracks still hold onto an edge that makes them so distinctly Djo.
Starting off with The Crux at its absolute finest, “Charlie’s Garden” and “Gap Tooth Smile” are my two biggest highlights. Both tracks contain delightfully memorable refrains and headbanger instrumentals. “Charlie’s Garden” even features a cameo appearance from Stranger Things’ Charlie Heaton, one of Keery’s closest friends. If you were to conjure an image of modern indie-pop perfection, the super catchy “Basic
Being Basic” and “Delete Ya” would be instant choices - they combine all the best elements of the genre and stick in the listener’s head long after playing. That’s not to mention the outstanding opening track “Lonesome Is A State of Mind,” which takes on a mellow tempo as it eases in, but ultimately evolves into something undeniably enjoyable. In the best way possible, these songs will stick in your brain for eons after you hear them.
At no point during this record will you know exactly what to expect next, and that feeling of being kept on your toes is what makes The Crux such a memorable listen. In the midst of sun-soaked melodies are softer hidden gems, like “Fly,” which has quickly become one of my top picks, most notable for its chord progressions alongside a major tonal shift in the first pre-chorus and a chopped second pre-chorus that adds infinite depth to an already beautiful song. Underrated deeper cuts include “Potion” and “Back On You,” a delightful ode to friendship, much like the aforementioned “Charlie’s Garden.” Like so many of Djo’s songs, little adlibs scattered throughout “Back On You” make the track abundantly more enjoyable - it’s a masterclass in charm. Also deserving a shoutout is “Egg” - when I first heard this album, I wasn’t immensely fond of it, but the more I’ve listened, it’s become a real favourite. It’s got a more niche sound than much of the rest of the record, but complete with flawless vocal delivery and production, this track combines so many of the best elements from the album. Immersive production really is The Crux’s calling card; “Egg” and so many more of these tracks take listeners through a musical and emotional journey, leaving us feeling like we exist inside the world of the song. In a world where so much music is catered to quick clicks and views, the respect I hold for artists like Djo who evidently put their all into their work is massive. The care shows up in the quality of the music.
Later in 2025, Djo released a deluxe edition of The Crux. Rather than a typical deluxe album with 3-5 new songs, The Crux Deluxe was a whole new twelve song collection, of which “T. Rex Is Loud” and “Purgatory Silverstar” are my top picks. The deluxe collection both sonically and visually (through the album cover) represents a shift from AM to PM, highlighting an array of moodier music to complement and build on the world established in the original release. The deluxe edition is great, but it’s no match for the original album. Maybe it’s a blessing that it took me so long to complete this piece, because it led me to discover this Djo project in the process. Joe Keery is an artist who I feel I will be fascinated by for quite a long time to come. The Crux is a must-listen.
9. It’s Not That Deep - Demi Lovato
Another late addition to this list that’s totally a cheat to have on here, but whatever. It was on the brink of #10, but had previously been beaten out by Reneé Rapp’s BITE ME. Sorry, Reneé, I adore you, but seeing Demi Lovato’s It’s Not That Deep live was a life-altering experience. I already had a great appreciation for this album, but Lovato’s concert really helped me realize just how excellent it is. Where many pop albums released this year failed to really stand out, a 2000’s/2010’s pop queen managed to break through it all with a comeback very much worth listening to. It’s Not That Deep is a glorious statement of freedom and healing, something Demi Lovato has openly been searching her whole life for. This record is packed with back-to-back carefree, fun-filled anthems. It baffles me why this album remains a relatively hidden gem rather than garnering mainstream success - even at its weakest points (which there aren’t any, really), it’s extremely memorable and sounds fresher by the day. Much of Lovato’s most widely adored work sees her at her most vulnerable, so perhaps folks have come to associate her sound with a certain sadness. But, I think happiness after a long period of misery certainly deserves celebration, especially when it produces some damn good music.
There are so many truly excellent tracks to be found and acknowledged within this release. “Let You Go” and “Before I Knew You” are soft, sentimental standouts that get a little lost in the sea of dance-pop jams. The latter, in particular, is one of my all-time favourite Lovato tracks. Its lyrics possess an admirable vulnerability, all the while maintaining a high enough tempo to still be considered ‘not that deep’. “Say It” and “Little Bit” are utter perfection in the danceable department, while “Fast,” “Frequency,” and “Here All Night” reign supreme as lead singles that capture the album’s overarching theme wonderfully. And, of course, “Sorry To Myself” is a beautiful ode to all that Lovato has conquered to be where she is today.
In my opinion, the album’s strongest standout is its closing track, “Ghost.” It’s the slowest on the record, and it ends it off perfectly. Haunting melodies and heavenly vocals are a surefire formula that make this touching love song such an unforgettable listen. Lovato begs her lover to haunt her if they ever leave her behind, complete with an atmospheric instrumental that breaks down into a minute-long chopped vocal outro. I was lucky enough to see the icon live for the first time for this album’s tour, and I’d pay anything to experience “Ghost” live once again. That outro is already gorgeous enough as is, but throw an arena setting with actual on-tune flickering lights into the mix and it’s this heavenly musical ascension experience unlike any other.
It’s Not That Deep presents itself exactly as promised - a collection of lighthearted rave-inspired jams. Aside from the music itself, another spot where this album really excels is its breathtaking front cover. It’s Not That Deep is easily my favourite album cover of 2025; it’s just such an intriguing still capture, not to mention Lovato’s superb fashion choices. The music is an utter delight and it certainly deserves higher praise and wider recognition than it received. Perhaps this album’s underwhelming commercial performance could have been improved if Lovato hadn’t made a huge spectacle a few years back about killing off her old self. Besides Lovato swearing up and down she’d never make another pop record only to turn around a mere three years later and do just that, it blows my mind how this album has remained such a well-kept secret. It’s Not That Deep is pop music at its finest, a way bolder and catchier release than many more majors in the genre lately.
With the release of the album’s deluxe edition in April of 2026, supremely sexy standouts “Low Rise Jeans” and “Confetti” are introduced. “Joshua Tree” is also phenomenal, this being a bonus track that perhaps barely missed the deadline for the standard album, given its release extremely close to the initial album launch in 2025. Top to very bottom, It’s Not That Deep is stacked with songs that exude happiness. I’m so thrilled for Demi Lovato that she seems to be in a much healthier place nowadays. Her improved state of mind is evident in her latest work, and now that she’s back on her feet and she’s reclaimed her throne as pop royalty, the world is her oyster.
8. Everybody Scream - Florence + The Machine
Few artists have careers that can compare to Florence + The Machine. Having been in the industry for nearly 20 years now, she’s only actually released six albums thus far, fewer than many of her peers who debuted around the same time. Her sound evolves continually, all the while possessing that majestic, witchy edge that made Lungs such a successful breakout project. The abundance of effort that leading woman Florence Welch puts into each album is evident and admirable. Everybody Scream possesses a rare rawness and authenticity that places it high in the ranks of Welch’s discography. The record emerged from a health scare that led the singer to look at mortality from a new lens and build an elaborate new musical world. One of her musical specialties since the beginning is being so thoughtful and immersive; her songs often create an all-encompassing listening experience in which the listener is transported into Welch’s universe. Packaged together with a fittingly spooky release date of October 31, Everybody Scream is a must-listen for any new or old fans of Florence + The Machine’s work.
Appropriately setting the tone for the loose Halloween concept, the record begins with its title track, “Everybody Scream.” Melodies overlap with Welch’s vocals to sound like a witchy seance in song form. Welch cites Everybody Scream as coming from an urgent place, demanding to be written and released, detailing excruciating difficulties over the past few years of her life and sending them off into the world. Her joyous screams through the title track feel like a grand release of emotion all the while contributing to the atmosphere being built. Following “Everybody Scream” is the album’s second single, “One of the Greats,” which captures feminine anger at its finest and easily becomes one of the band’s most memorable songs ever released. Examining her relationships with fame, life, death, and the world around her, Welch paints herself as this larger-than-life character struggling through the asylum of the entertainment industry. The bridge is instantly unforgettable. Nothing is held back as she expresses her frustrations and triumphs. Given her awe-inspiring writing abilities, it’s absolutely no doubt that she will, in fact, go down as one of the greats. This song feels so monumental, like every verse paints a frail landscape. With elegance that few can muster, Welch analyzes her career and the impact it has on those around her, describing that she “killed everyone I’d ever kissed, hung them on the wall like trophies.”
The album’s biggest highlights, aside from the aforementioned leading singles, are “Buckle” and “Music by Men,” two primarily acoustic tracks featuring painstaking lyricism that’s sure to draw tears. “Witch Dance” is also a favourite - another track that brings the listener to a coven in the woods for some magical fun. “Buckle” was written with Mitski, and despite instantly, without hesitation, becoming my #1 on the entire record, Welch has stated that it barely made the final cut. If “Buckle” is a desperate plea to be loved the same way she loves, “Music by Men” explores the cracks in a relationship when both parties are putting in the work to fix it. “Let me put out a record and have it not ruin my life” is a lyric that I constantly go back to. While Welch admits that music is “the only love I could ever control,” she gets extremely vulnerable by revealing that every album cycle she goes through causes strain to her personal life and it becomes difficult to blur those lines. “Witch Dance,” which also deserves extra love for its excellence, speaks to freedom and healing. She sings about the ectopic pregnancy that nearly killed her and how much relief she found in meeting others who had experienced the same thing. Femininity and sexism are explored a lot on Everybody Scream, and I love how outward Welch has become about her presentation. She compares herself to male counterparts and questions why she has to do so much more to receive so much less praise.
Admittedly, though I think she’s an absolutely brilliant artist, I’ve yet to find myself revisiting a complete Florence + The Machine release without choosing to skip at least a few songs - Dance Fever is the closest she’s gotten to a perfect album (for my tastes). Everybody Scream is excellent, but it’s not 100% my cup of tea, albeit producing a good handful of my favourite songs to come out of 2025. I’ve been listening to several of these songs repeatedly and they’re gorgeous. The more I listen, the more I fall for new tracks and notice new details. The album is ultra-revealing and comes from a place of the deepest sincerity and human complexion. One can sense through the music that this release was extremely cathartic for Welch, and she’s gone on record to confirm how healing of a process it was to build Everybody Scream. I look forward to whatever comes next from Florence + The Machine. I wouldn’t be surprised if it’s a while until we hear another album, but I think Welch has more than earned an extended vacation.
7. Panic Pills - Featurette
I used to be excellent at keeping up with small, underground artists bubbling just under the radar, but since I gave up running Kinda Cool Magazine, I’ve admittedly fallen quite behind. There’s one artist that I discovered way back nine years ago on a small Canadian run opening for Scott Helman, that I will never grow tired of supporting, and that is a mighty little electro-pop duo called Featurette. I’ve been lucky enough to stand alongside these guys, especially front-woman Lexie Jay, as they’ve evolved through nearly a decade of music and memories. The first time I ever met them, I interviewed them in a lobby of a sushi restaurant for an interview recorded by my mom for my barely established YouTube channel. Their early 2025 album release, Panic Pills, is incredibly special to me on a personal level, as well as being just genuinely phenomenal music.
Technically speaking, I heard this album for the first time through 5+ years of unreleased tunes being played at concerts. I have a setlist hanging on the wall in my bedroom from 2022, where the entire album was played in sequential order, with liner notes about every song. Clearly, they’ve been sitting on this release for quite some time. But the first time I heard the album mastered and completed, front to back, was about a week prior to the album’s release, at a special screening in the band’s studio. I always try to make my first listen of a favourite artist’s new album a special experience, but I’ve never had such a unique indulgence into any record as I did with Panic Pills. An atmospheric room filled with the band’s closest friends and collaborators, all massive art enthusiasts, brought this album to life in such a magical, unforgettable way.
This album contains many of my favourite Featurette songs to date, songs that I spent years yearning for, living vicariously through my concert clips in the meantime. I resent the fact that these tracks haven’t reached the ears of the masses yet, and all I can hope for is that someone reads this and discovers their new favourite song. If you’re going to give Featurette a listen, without a doubt, your starting point should be “Interrogation” and “Golden Hour.” The final two songs on the album, and also two completely different sides of the same coin exploring deep, gritty aspects of the emotional spectrum. “Interrogation” is raw rage turned up to the max, a diss track that’s anything but your average diss track. Lexie Jay’s voice and lyrics cut like a knife to the throat of the man who inflicted so much pain into her life. Don’t get me wrong, this is not a break-up song. This is a detailed callout to a crooked business manager, one who spent years hindering the band’s success and using their money to partake in all sorts of scummy activities. The song picks up the pace into an epic breakdown that sees Jay screaming her frustrations into a vocoder for one of the most charged moments in the band’s already electrifying discography. To refrain from wrapping up Panic Pills with bitterness, however, “Golden Hour” shines through, focusing more on Jay’s soft voice and a mellow aura-building instrumental. It doesn’t stay that way, though. Just when you think you’ve discovered the only down-
tempo Featurette song ever made, we reach an electronic climax meant to demonstrate a bursting moment in which the body and mind is susceptible to feeling everything around it. The song takes place primarily during the wee hours of the morning when most of the world is still asleep, and it stands to capture the essence of humanness in its purest form. Backed by a beautiful music video filmed all the way in Iceland, “Golden Hour” is a soul-healing track unlike anything else I’ve ever heard.
There are, of course, many more songs that make this album a brilliant piece of work. The album’s opener, “Fires,” is a majestic and melancholy introduction to Panic Pills’ overarching themes of darkness and the light that seeps through its cracks. “Chocolate,” another oh-so pleasurable diss track much like “Interrogation,” is a cheeky and irresistible earworm about letting go of those who hold you back and spiting toxicity at all costs. “Monsters” features a scrumptiously layered vocal delivery and lots of experimental EDM sounds, all blending together to form something ultra-unique and fueled by unbridled creativity, much like “Gemini Vibes” that precedes its spot on the record. And, I’d be remiss not to mention singles like “Next Life,” “Dirty Magic,” and “Red Rover,” which are a tad more surface-level both lyrically and musically than the songs that surround them, serving the necessary purpose as easier digestible music than most of what Featurette makes; they’re fun-filled songs that one might use to ease themselves into the band’s music if they’re not all that used to such a style.
It’s tough to accurately describe Featurette’s music when I’ve yet to hear anything that sounds alike, not even their own music from one project to the next. I guess you’ll just have to listen for yourself. I’ve been singing this band’s praises for nine whole years now, and while I feel a great attachment to much of their early work as well, I firmly believe that Panic Pills is their best creation to date. I am always going to think of that little studio party setup when I think of this album, and that has become a core memory that can never be erased. Complete with perfectly eerie cover art, not one single skip, and some of the most well-executed live shows I’ve been lucky enough to see, Featurette’s Panic Pills should be on your radar, and easily clears plenty of mainstream releases of 2025.
6. Virgin - Lorde
Mine and the general public’s opinions on Lorde’s music seem to clash time and time again. It’s no Melodrama, but I adored Solar Power. For the most part, everyone else hated it and yearned for something different. So, when Virgin released, my social media feeds were flooded with people thrilled that Lorde sounded how they wanted her to once more. Meanwhile, I found myself less satisfied with this record than her last. Virgin has grown on me a fair amount, otherwise it wouldn’t be coming in at #6, but I still fail to connect with most of it in the same way I did her first three records. I’ve been a fan of hers since Pure Heroine, and the evolution of her musical eras has been a gorgeous thing to watch unfold. Even though it may not be my top pick, I hold a great fondness for Virgin and all it represents.
Virgin is, at its core, a declaration of self-love, and an ode to all the ups and downs encountered on the road to finding it. This record is vulnerable, raw, and unfiltered, as Lorde uses eleven songs to navigate her psyche and perform her own ultrasound. The era kicked off with “What Was That,” which is honestly one of the album’s weakest songs, at least in my opinion. It’s probably a large part of the reason why it took me a little bit of effort to ease into the new sound, because while it’s a danceworthy tune, the style is vastly different from the singer’s previous work, and the song also fails to capture the hard-hitting themes that Virgin revolves around. However, with the album’s second and third singles, “Man of the Year” and “Hammer,” a much clearer vision came into focus. Both of these tracks are packed with electricity and unapologetic lyricism. She touches on love, loss, and her relationship with herself, including a fluid-presenting gender identity she has come to identify with. Breezy and freeing (or at least, as much so as Lorde songs can get), “Hammer” is the perfect opening track for this album. It soundtracks her rebirth, efficiently eases into the album as a whole, and as she describes it, serves as ‘an ode to city life and horniness.’ Fascinating instrumentals and sharp-as-a-knife vocals create an atmospheric listening experience packed with repeatability potential. “Man of the Year” was another exemplary single choice, its frantic energy forming a cathartic bridge composed of beauty and a newfound state of peace. Lorde herself has described “Man of the Year” as the song she’s proudest of on Virgin, a title I feel the song is highly deserving of. The painstaking track completely lets loose, holding nothing back as Lorde explores new depths of her identity.
In fact, body image and sexuality play crucial roles in this album and Lorde’s ongoing mantra. The album’s cover image is a blue-hued X-ray of Lorde’s pelvis, with an IUD, belt buckle, and zipper identifiable. The title Virgin itself serves as a commentary on the construct of virginity, what exactly that word means, and the amount of worth our society places on women based on their virginity status. The Virgin era was preceded by the iconic “Girl, so confusing” remix by Charli XCX featuring Lorde, released in 2024. Within the lyrics of that single and the whole Virgin album, Lorde discusses her issues with self-esteem, an eating disorder, and body dysmorphia. It’s no surprise that with the confidence she has seemingly found, she reclaimed her autonomy not just through the music, but also through the album’s imagery. Lorde promised full transparency with Virgin, and transparency is what fans received, as the physical packaging includes explicit imagery of the singer’s body. Though this sparked some controversy online, I think it’s a beautiful thing to overcome your insecurities in such a strong way that you are able to broadcast the rawest version of yourself to the world. Additionally, Lorde is no stranger to using shocking imagery for her releases, as Solar Power was also covered with an explicit depiction, albeit slightly more covered. I embrace all artistic expressions - the bolder, the better. For what it’s worth, I love Lorde at her most authentic self, however that may translate through her art.
Moving into the album beyond the singles, I’m a little afraid I might get flamed for admitting that a few of the album’s tracks still sound more or less the same to me. “Shapeshifter,” “GRWM,” and “Current Affairs” are my three least played tracks on Virgin, and their compilation is similar enough that they may as well merge into one in my brain. I do still enjoy these songs, but they are far from standouts for me. Choosing one top pick out of the handful, I would for sure go with “Shapeshifter,” as the vocal delivery offers something unique to Lorde’s usual singing style, as well as painting a beautiful image of self-reflection. “Favourite Daughter” and “Broken Glass” also fall under the same category of upbeat, yet sad, yet hopeful tracks found on Virgin, but these two resonate a lot closer with me than the latter three. Both tracks tackle themes of trying to love oneself and make others love you, and the complete exhaustion and hatred spiral that comes with trying too hard. They’re attempts to acknowledge and break the cycle, all the while digging deep and creating an introspective glimpse into the root of such self-destructive behaviours. While “Favourite Daughter” leans more into the feeling of trying to make others love you and measuring up to their expectations, “Broken Glass” takes an interpersonal approach to body image. It sees Lorde opening up even further about the aftermath of her eating disorder, and the titular desire to punch the mirror until it’s just broken glass, no longer a reflection of herself.
There are two tracks on Virgin that I feel are beyond underrated - “If She Could See Me Now” and “Clearblue.” I come back to these songs time and time again with a feeling of admiration for Lorde’s honesty and musical ability. “If She Could See Me Now” starts with a punch and continues with a very boldened, abrupt production style. It speaks both to Lorde’s younger self, reflecting on all her accomplishments to date, but also to a former lover, letting them know that she’s healthy and thriving without them. It’s one of the most purely optimistic songs on the record, as well as one of the catchiest. It’s a gorgeous song packed with sentiment, and has become one of my favourite Lorde songs of all time. “Clearblue” is similarly raw and beautiful, but in comparison to the synth-packed “If She Could See Me Now,” “Clearblue” is stripped back and largely a cappella. The song is about sex in its purest, most animalistic form, and the aftermath in which Lorde is left to nervously test for pregnancy. All of her emotions about the entire affair are laid out for the listener to indulge in, and she has even admitted that this track is so emotionally dense for her that it’s tough to listen to. I’ve never heard anything quite like “Clearblue” before, a song so packed with sexual hunger, reminiscence, anxiety, strength, and womanhood all at once.
“David” bears much of the album’s emotional weight and serves as a mighty send-off as it closes the chapter on Virgin. Rightfully so, “David” became a rapid fan favourite, sparking unanimous adoration and even memed clips featuring the song’s climax. While the full meaning remains relatively ambiguous, Lorde is seemingly referencing Michelangelo’s Statue of David, an ode to how she, too, is chiseling away at herself to create a masterpiece. She sings about the soulcrushing ending of a relationship and a newfound freedom in singlehood. She references her own Pure Heroine, the album that exploded Lorde into mainstream circles, all the while a massive sonic climax is building up in the background. As the ultimatum is met, Lorde asks herself, “Am I ever gonna love again?” She also references “singing to the fountain,” both as a means of depicting her releasing her emotions to the wild, but also to create a full-circle moment with “Hammer,” the album opener, which mentioned the same fountain. Unlike many other modern records that release with plentiful deluxe content, Virgin is a simple 34-minute piece of Lorde’s heart. That’s not to say that I don’t also hugely appreciate more music from my favourite artists, but in a world full of overconsumption mania, it’s also refreshing to watch someone simply make their artistic statement and leave it alone with their listeners. Songs that hold the amount of power that “David” or “Clearblue” contain don’t need to be backed by 46 deluxe records. Virgin isn’t perfect, but it’s messy, gritty, and real, and that’s enough to make it an excellent album.
5. . - Kesha
As much as I’m a huge sucker for intricate lyricism, sometimes I crave the exact opposite. Something easy to listen to, something lighthearted that doesn’t take itself too seriously. . (pronounced PERIOD) by Kesha satisfied this craving perfectly this year, an iconic comeback in which the seasoned singer reclaims what was taken from her and brings back recession pop on her own terms. Don’t get me wrong, it wasn’t a perfect album - there were a few duller moments and a few questionable creative choices. But from a freshly free woman releasing art under her own label for the first time, it was a brilliant feat, and Kesha’s artistry can only continue to go up from here.
First and foremost, I think it’s important to acknowledge how brilliantly this album release was lined up, and the reasons why it didn’t perform as high as it had the potential to. This album era was all about Kesha finally being free from her abuser, something that the world had been anticipating for close to a decade. Is it possible that people’s empathy and attention spans are so short lived that they just gave up waiting while she struggled and fought tooth and nail? Possibly. At the beginning of the rollout, everything seemed to be going perfect. “JOYRIDE,” the album’s phenomenal, critically acclaimed first single dropped on July 4th, 2024, symbolizing Kesha’s independence and freedom. Exactly one year later, on July 4, 2025, . the album was launched - icon behaviour, if you ask me. So, where exactly did things start to go awry? The creative (if you can even call it that) decision to use generative AI for the cover of the second single, “DELUSIONAL.” When the singer finally addressed the relentless, rightful criticism of this choice, it was several months too late, she posted a completely nonsensical excuse about how she attempted to create a political statement. Though I’d love to think the best of an artist I’ve adored since childhood, the song’s content and its surrounding promo had absolutely nothing to do with any sort of political messagery. The apology comes off as completely inauthentic and a heavily delayed attempt to save face in the name of sales. For so many reasons, this left a bad taste in my mouth. I honestly have barely listened to this song as a result,
and it is also the main reason why this album didn’t ultimately rank higher for me in 2025.
That, and a couple of creative decisions regarding tracklisting and single choices. “DELUSIONAL” and “THE ONE” are the two slowest, least sonically interesting tracks on the record, and somehow, they were chosen as singles over some of the album’s other masterpieces. I love the message of self-love and resilience present on “THE ONE,” but it was a poor choice to generate hype around a comeback album. “TRASHMAN,” one of the album’s catchiest songs, was only released on the deluxe edition that dropped unexpectedly four days later. I’m assuming it wasn’t ready in time for the main album, but it’s an absolute bop that really deserved to make the cut! Similarly, Kesha released a phenomenal song called “ATTENTION!” featuring Slayyyter and Rose Gray just a short while before the album launched, only for it to not make an appearance on the album. Confusedly so, seeing as it’s home to the “tits out” lyric that Kesha has been teasing since touring her 2023 album, and was the title of her most recent tour. The version of “YIPPEE-KI-YAY” that was released on the album has an absence of the T-Pain verse found in the version that was released as a single. I loved this collab given both artists’ roots in the genre and musical era that the song captures, and though I’d normally be excited to hear more of Kesha singing, the album version just lacks the same catchiness. I’m truly not sure what went wrong here, and while I hate to dwell on negatives, with these small changes made, this easily would have ranked at least one or two slots higher for me.
Now, enough about this album’s shortcomings - let’s discuss what made it wonderful. “JOYRIDE” and “BOY CRAZY” were both spot-on single choices that showcase the best of Kesha’s capabilities. In “JOYRIDE,” she crafts a perfectly quirky pop masterpiece, complete with accordions and all. Polka hardly ever seeps its way into pop (unless I’m missing out on a whole other sub-genre I’ve yet to discover) and somehow, Kesha manages to flawlessly intertwine these sounds with modern synth-pop for a song that sounds unlike any other, in all the best ways. More than a year after its release, “JOYRIDE” really hasn’t lost its initial shine. I still can’t hesitate but smile and dance along every time I hear this one. “BOY CRAZY” should’ve been the album’s second or third single, rather than the fourth, as it ended up being. I think it’s one of the strongest tracks on the album, and definitely deserved to be one of the world’s first tastes of the album. It’s two-and-a-half minutes of nonstop pop bliss, up-tempo with memorable lyrics and a fun-filled music video to accompany it. Alongside “BOY CRAZY,” “RED FLAG” and “GLOW” reign supreme in terms of pop perfection. Both high among my favourite songs to be released this year, both such delightful and memorable melodies. “RED FLAG” follows similar themes as “BOY CRAZY,” in which Kesha describes her quests, conquers, and defeats in romance. “RED FLAG” sees her admitting to questionable dating choices, but falling in love with the thrill of an experience. This thrill is astoundingly demonstrated on the song’s completely irresistible bridge. If that wasn’t enough danceability to fall in love with, “GLOW” remains an ultimate self-love anthem, in which Kesha waves goodbye to one of the aforementioned red flags. She describes a jaded ex, cheekily calling him out with lines like “you won’t listen to this song, you’re too cool for pop shit.” We’ve all encountered a man with a massive ego, and what a great way of coping and singing your way through that annoyance.
As a freer, more evolved artist than ever before, Kesha was able to get really creative with this work, and in turn, created one of the most thoughtful tracklists of her career. “FREEDOM” opens the album and lays the ground as the thesis for this body of work and this chapter of Kesha’s life. With a runtime of six minutes and twenty-four seconds, “FREEDOM” becomes the longest song Kesha has ever released. Symbolically, she doesn’t begin singing until 38 seconds into the song, the same number as her age upon releasing her first album as a free woman. In the song, she reclaims her power and her sexuality, chanting “freedom, I’ve been waiting for you.” In all the best ways, this song simultaneously goes on forever and isn’t long enough, immersing you to the point that when it actually ends, you’re left thinking “oh shit - that was it?” It demands to be repeated, danced to, and screamed along to. According to Kesha, the reason why this song is structured so differently from others on the album is due to its purpose of bridging the gap between her last album, the intimate and raw Eat The Acid, and the completely new state of mind displayed on this album. On the other hand of the musical spectrum, “CATHEDRAL” closes . on a soft, sentimental note - though not without a major cinematic moment that momentarily uproots the peace with chaos. As Kesha reflects on her career and her life’s journey thus far, she leads herself from darkness and light, referencing moments of uncertainty and pain from her own discography, such as the 2017 hard-hitter “Praying.” You’ll start off by crying, but your jaw will be on the floor by the end of the song, without a doubt. There couldn’t be a more perfect way to end off this record and everything it represents for Kesha.
Finally, “TOO HARD” and “LOVE FOREVER” deserve a shoutout - while they may not be my top picks, they are still splendid songs. Their simplistic, yet loveably carefree lyrics are the puzzle pieces that tie everything together. As many of the album’s tracks discuss either a one-sided romance or the provocative sides of a love affair, these touching jams explore a sweeter, more emotionally vulnerable side of this topic. After putting out . and putting on one of the best selling tours of the summer, I’m beyond invested in what comes next for Kesha. Though I really did love ., I look back on the era with a looming disappointment for the tactless AI usage for an artist simultaneously speaking to the importance of artists and their ability to own their work and their voices - rights that AI is actively and rapidly attempting to take away. I can only hope that she truly learned better from the backlash that she received, and that we will only continue to see art made by real humans coming from Kesha and her team. While we await her next piece of work, she continues slaying the house down performing shows and serving looks. I hope that she can take some time to heal from her trauma and to bathe in the fruits of her intensive labour. Kesha is a force to be reckoned with - may she continue to come out as the stronger, bigger person anytime she is crossed.
4. Man’s Best Friend - Sabrina Carpenter
In a world ravaged by social media, an atmospheric boom to the top of the A-list can happen to just about anyone with an internet connection. We’ve seen it happen so many times in the past decade that it becomes tiring to keep track of so many new names. But, breaking through walls of noise and demanding to be heard by the world, was Sabrina Carpenter’s dazzling recent three album run, in the midst of which she catapulted to becoming a household name. The most interesting part of it all is that she isn’t new to this industry - she was a child actor known for a Disney Channel role past the channel’s prime (for my generation, anyways). She managed to slip through the cracks of major mainstream stardom until early adulthood. I first heard Sabrina Carpenter’s music in the midst of the internet’s ridiculous drama storm that produced the smash “because i liked a boy.” She released an outstanding record with emails i can’t send, and after a couple more hits and a tour, she kickstarted the Short n’ Sweet era, a moment of utter pop perfection that won her two Grammys and turned her into a phenomenon. With the whole world watching her, only one year later, Carpenter went on to release her marvelous, risk-taking Man’s Best Friend album.
Sabrina Carpenter’s provocative lyricism and performances instantly handed her the label of Disney darling turned adult popstar/sex symbol, a similar phenomenon of artists like Miley Cyrus and Demi Lovato. Much like those other women, Carpenter refuses to back down from staying true to herself and even leaning further into the bit. On first listen, Man’s Best Friend was far from my favourite Sabrina Carpenter project, but it has grown on me massively and houses several of the singer’s greatest works yet. It combines the best elements of bubblegum pop and indie-pop production style (thank you, Jack Antonoff) to create 12 tracks of delightful, satirical genius. Man’s Best Friend showcases Carpenter’s womanhood on all areas of its spectrum, as well as her extraordinary songwriting and storytelling talents. This album serves as an indication that these artists do hear what we’re saying about them, and rather than shrinking down under scrutiny, Carpenter puts on her adorable Barbie-type look and rocks the role. This record is sexy, sarcastic, and vulnerable all at once and in all the right ways.
“Manchild” as the album’s lead single and first track is awfully misleading when it comes to the overarching sound of Man’s Best Friend. It was an excellent song to bridge the gap between Short n’ Sweet and the current era, but it led me to expect a whole second album that sounds like SNS, which couldn’t have been more incorrect. When MBF actually released, just one year after its predecessor, Carpenter stated it came from a place of “pure inspiration and zero pressure,” which became more evident with every listen. The album simultaneously sounds like pop perfection and far from most traditional pop music, often taking on a slower and softer form or borrowing elements from other genre styles. A few songs like “When Did You Get Hot?” and “Nobody’s Son” stuck out instantly, but others took several listens until I completely fell in love. Now, though I have to admit I don’t frequently revisit “Sugar Talking” or “Don’t Worry I’ll Make You Worry,” I don’t have a single skip on the record.
Despite sounding so different from the rest of the album, “Manchild” really is the backbone of Man’s Best Friend. Its carefree attitude serves as the album’s continued mantra, leading into the sarcastic, glamorous bop “Tears.” This track was released as a single alongside the album release, and its lyrics see a provocative Sabrina Carpenter basically telling her man that the thought of him being useful, doing chores, contributing to society in any way shape or form, is all it takes to turn her on. It’s just plain hilarious, and the fun doesn’t slow until after “My Man On Willpower.” This one didn’t stand out to me on first listen, but sometime a couple of months later, it suddenly became one of my top picks. It’s addictive, especially with what’s arguably the best bridge on the album. In this song, Carpenter puts on the ‘dumb blonde’ facade, mixed with her evident intellect and sarcasm, and once again shows us exactly what Man’s Best Friend represents, a certain bittersweet, deceptive form of post-romance clarity and revenge.
“Sugar Talking” and “We Almost Broke Up Again Last Night” make for the first of a couple slowed lulls in the record. Both songs maintain powerhouse verses and vocals, but “We Almost Broke Up” excels with another phenomenal bridge and an equally tragic, melancholy, and cheeky narration. It demonstrates a perfect blend of indie-pop and bubblegum-pop, carving out a unique sub-genre of pop music just to house Carpenter’s works. Once again, Jack Antonoff’s signature production style is easily identifiable on these tracks, flowing perfectly with Carpenter’s angelic vocals. Just when you’ve begun to relax after some mellow, deeper cuts, “Nobody’s Son” ramps it right back up, standing out as one of the album’s greatest moments. It’s tough to describe some of these tracks differently than just saying “utter pop perfection” every time, but it’s true. Carpenter’s playful lightheartedness leaves room for infinite fun, even when the song’s lyrics describe a painful heartbreak. I truly believe “Nobody’s Son” is not only a career highlight, but a defining track of the 2020s. It captures all the best elements of modern pop music and ties them into a pretty little bow.
“Never Getting Laid” is also near-perfect in all ways. Smooth, soft vocals overlay with equally majestic instrumentals to extend a flawless track run. Another track I’d consider career-defining, though it’s too low-
tempo to be discovered and widely recognized as such. Mind you, if danceable pop is what you’re after, you won’t be disappointed by “Go Go Juice.” From start to finish, it’s just plain hilarious; there’s simply nothing better than a song where Sabrina Carpenter embraces messiness and the art of not taking herself too seriously. There are even some country elements integrated into this track, as well as an awesome bridge in which she drunkenly slurs her words while leaving regrettable voicemails to an ex. Sandwiched between “Go Go Juice” and another quintessential MBF track is “Don’t Worry I’ll Make You Worry.” As previously mentioned, “Don’t Worry” is my least revisited on the album - not that it’s a bad song, but there are so many more memorable songs that it gets a little drowned out. It doesn’t contain the same magnitude of cheeky lyrics that make Carpenter’s music such a phenomenon. Perhaps a large part of it also comes down to track placement, as I must admit it’s a bit jarring in the midst of “Go Go Juice” and “House Tour.” The latter of those two tracks follows “Don’t Worry” and ultimately serves as the Man’s Best Friend thesis statement. “My house is on pretty girl avenue” and its Barbie-like chant have become the record’s most quotable lyrics, as well as inspiring iconic moments in Carpenter’s live show and ultimately defining the aesthetics of the album era.
It’s a bit cheesy to have a closing track entitled “Goodbye,” but who’s better at rocking cheesiness than Sabrina Carpenter? “Goodbye” is not only a fun-filled finale sequence to the record, but it also provided Carpenter with a splendid opportunity for closing out her live shows after the album’s release. It’s a magnificent send-off to what will undoubtedly go down as one of the most memorable albums of the 2020s. I am filled with anxious excitement at what the singer might make next; her last three projects in a row have had me utterly hooked, so I know her next will have a similar effect. The release of Man’s Best Friend further cemented Sabrina Carpenter’s already-claimed throne among defining musicians of the decade, and the world is now at her fingertips.
3. West End Girl - Lily Allen
Far after her prime had come and gone, during the trenches of Covid-19 while I was going through my ‘exploring old bangers’ quarantine phase, I stumbled upon Lily Allen’s goldmine of a discography. Fascinated by her captivating voice and individualistic production style, she became one of those artists whose works I maybe didn’t know to completion, but who had several hits per album that became part of my regular rotation. Funnily enough, she crossed my mind a couple of days prior to the West End Girl album drop, when “Not Fair” came on shuffle, and I was wondering what Lily Allen was up to these days. Shortly thereafter, I was pressing play on this album from an artist no one had heard much from since the early 2010s, who released her grand comeback with almost no warning. Sparing no detail, West End Girl takes us through Allen’s tumultuous split with ex-husband David Harbour. From the very first song and onwards, prepare to be reeled in by Allen’s brutal honesty and resilience in the face of infidelity and betrayal. Shock, anger, acceptance, and everything in between are explored as Allen navigates the ending of her marriage in real time to her audience. West End Girl feels like fourteen diary entries, all illustrated and set to music. In celebration of the singer’s painful vulnerability, this record has quickly found itself a home towards the top of my favourite 2025 releases, as well as garnering grand respect from countless publications.
Brutal honesty doesn’t even begin to describe the journey Allen takes us on within the walls of West End Girl. Since bursting onto the scene in 2006 with the release of her single “Smile” at the ripe age of 21, Allen has proven time and time again that she knows how to make a pop hit, albeit spending several years out of the spotlight. The last time Allen had a charting song was with 2013’s “Hard Out Here,” which was followed by underperforming album releases and a 7-year musical hiatus, so the fact that she was able to make such a large impact with her 2025 release is truly remarkable. Though I wouldn’t typically recommend listening to an album for the first time any other way, I cannot stress how imperative it is to go front to back with West End Girl, as the album deliberately takes us through a set timeline and showcases every stage of grief as it occurs.
From the get go, it is evident that West End Girl is a work of art. I was merely a minute into the record before becoming unequivocally hooked. Pulling me in was the delicate pop melodies, the unfiltered and forthcoming nature of Allen’s songwriting, and of course, her incredibly addictive voice. Everything that made me completely fall in love with songs like “Smile” came rushing back. The album kicks off with its title track, “West End Girl,” which tells the story of the initial deterioration of Allen’s marriage, and how her excitement at starring in a play turned into a tragedy. Commenting on her husband’s attitude but her choice to turn a blind eye leads into a climax that abruptly ends with only Allen’s side of a phone conversation with her husband, in which her marriage becomes open within the blink of an eye. It is followed by “Ruminating,” a far faster paced and higher pitched track about Allen reflecting on the phone call she has received, and her attempts to force herself into being okay with the arrangement that has been made. “Why can’t you wait for me to come home? This conversation’s too big for a phone call,” is a repeated lyric, a plea for her marriage to return to its previous terms. The singer alleges that her then-husband came forward with the line: “if it has to happen, baby, do you want to know?” - a heart-shattering admission of guilt, an unrequited casual approach to such a load-bearing topic, a pathetic attempt to pretend infidelity is something that HAS to happen. The heartbreak and anger seeps through every line of this track, as Lily Allen spares no detail in discussing her pain, her voice actually cracking with her words at several points. “Ruminating” is a must-listen, and a definite contender for the album’s most quintessential track.
“Sleepwalking” is the third track, and it’s a brilliant double entendre as it tells the story of the couple’s imbalance, and Allen’s growing impatience with her husband. When looking at the lyrics, it has two main interpretations, both of them seemingly intentional. On one hand, it can be read as Allen’s husband constantly trying to initiate sexual activity, even in the middle of the night. But, it can also be read as Allen listening to his excuses for his behaviour, and his desire to shift any guilt off his conscience. “Sleepwalking” has been one of my most played tracks from West End Girl - singing along with it is completely irresistible. “Tennis” and “Madeline” follow, with one track leading seamlessly into the next. “Tennis” sets the scene for the next act of betrayal, one that is discovered in person during the pair’s first time seeing each other after the pivotal phone call. Allen grows suspicious of her husband upon him quickly grabbing his phone out of her hands, so she reads his texts and finds flirtation conversations with another woman. Rather than owning up - or hell, even feigning innocence - he allegedly shifts the blame on Allen and her absence as being the reason for him cheating. This bombshell of a track smoothly transitions into “Madeline,” which is arguably the album’s best track. During the three minutes of this song, Allen recounts her decision to confront the woman her husband has been texting, all the while airing out the details of the exact boundaries he broke regarding their open
relationship agreement. We learn that Madeline is just as much of a narcissist as her husband appears to be, as Allen reads back some of the responses she received upon reaching out. These replies read as passive aggressive and condescending, and they also blatantly contradict themselves, thus proving to be a ruse for her husband to save face. Allen’s sadness and hurt turns to seething rage, with perfectly placed gunshot sound effects during the song’s second verse and pre-chorus really driving the point home.
Track six, “Relapse,” is a look back into Allen’s past struggles with addiction, and how substances were once her coping mechanism for numbing all emotion. She yearns to return to this state and to ignore everything happening to her, despite knowing that it will ruin years of progress. “The ground is gone beneath me,” Allen sings as she describes her mental state upon acquiring all this new information. She reaches a low she didn’t know was possible, and she shares this pain with the whole world. If that isn’t admirably vulnerable, I don’t know what is. The song’s arrangement creates an atmosphere around the lyrics, creating an immersive, emotional, and therefore, phenomenal track. “Pussy Palace” has been the album’s highest performer, winning over the internet with its intimate honesty as it details Allen entering her husband’s apartment and discovering just how deep his infidelity runs. The contents of his home are strewn throughout the song lyrics for all to see, just as they were in his apartment. Allen’s anger evolves as she realizes he has a full-blown sex addiction, as depicted by those discoveries. Not only did she discover countless sex toys, long black hair, and more explicit content, but she even recalls uncovering a box of letters from various women. The actions of this man are truly unbelievable, and every time the listener may think it can’t possibly get worse, a song like “Pussy Palace” comes along. While not with these exact words, this song acknowledges that there is no longer a means to save this marriage.
One of Lily Allen’s most charming and unique musical abilities is the way she can be so soothing and seething at the same time. “4chanstan” is quite the brilliant display of this talent. It is oozing with charisma, and with rightfully vicious retorts upon her husband’s character, comparing him to the scummiest incel corner of the internet. The Spotify canvas visual for this song goes so far to seemingly depict him as a crying festival clown, a foolish man who doesn’t realize how good what he has in front of him is. It’s one of the catchiest on the record, leading into the likeminded “Nonmonogamummy” featuring rapper and producer Specialist Moss. Continuing with the upbeat, vengeance-laced theme, this song sees Allen reducing herself to the type of woman her husband seems to want her to be - a mommy figure who cooks and cleans and says yes to everything he wants. Evidently, she doesn’t align with this character, but she has some fun playing the role for another of the catchiest, yet most polarizing tracks on West End Girl. Specialist Moss’ addition breathes life into the song in a way that sounds quite different to most of Allen’s work, but is endlessly enjoyable. It seems many new and old fans alike are undecided on whether his presence is necessary, but I think it’s an excellent use of a feature.
“Just Enough” is one of the album’s rawest, a soft guitar ballad in which Allen evaluates her situation, listening to her husband talk and deciding her next steps. Though she’s well aware the situation is detrimental to her, she still finds herself in love and holding onto the slightest bit of hope that the marriage could work out. “Dallas Major,” however, follows “Just Enough” with the story of Allen’s attempt at finding her own sexual satisfaction while her husband does the same. She meets men online using her alias, and judging by the song’s visualizer which sees her yawning on a date as a myriad of old men ramble on, the experience is anything but thrilling. She repeatedly proclaims “I hate it here,” yearning for days in which she didn’t have to search for a partner. In “Beg For Me,” a new scene is painted, one in which Lily Allen is at her breaking point, standing face-to-face with leaving her husband. This complete three-track run is just lethal, and leads us straight into the mellow closing of the chapter with only two more songs to go.
These final tracks are integral to the story, as they lead us through the acceptance and closure arcs. “Let You W/In” is a beautiful song in which Allen reclaims her power and the couple’s marriage is deemed terminated. She refuses to save face on her ex’s behalf, and despite initially telling her children that the relationship ended with mutual respect, she eventually tells them and the rest of the world everything that she was put through. “I’ve already let you in, all I can do is sing. So why would I let you win?” she asks, in a tearjerker of a chorus. “Fruityloop” concludes the record with Allen quoting her own iconic album, It’s Not Me, It’s You. She makes complete peace at last with leaving her husband to clean up his own mess. She shrugs off his insults with ease and recognizes that while she’s put in work to become the person she is today, her ex will continue refusing to work on himself. The anger has ceased to linger - it’s a beautiful finale to a tragic play. In the best way, when I learned this album was made in only ten days, it just made sense to me. The rawness of it all is brought on by a certain level of authenticity that only comes out in writing if you are working through your emotions at the same time. Lily Allen takes us through the stages of grief as she experiences them, and I am so grateful for her for doing so, because West End Girl is a masterpiece. The therapeutic nature of this album is evident in every note. Every time a woman dumps a shitty man, an angel gains its wings, and Allen just simultaneously proved herself a force to be reckoned with, and inspired women going through similar scenarios to stay strong. Her vulnerability is awe-inspiring, and has created a magnum opus of a record.
2. Ego Death At A Bachelorette Party - Hayley Williams
Perhaps the most fascinating album rollout I’ve seen in any recent years has been Hayley Williams’ latest, a whopping twenty song project entitled Ego Death At A Bachelorette Party. Williams is a seasoned professional, and with nothing left to prove but plenty more creative feats to unveil, she was able to come up with a completely outside of the box strategy for releasing this album into the world. Five days after premiering the track “Mirtazapine” on a Nashville radio station, seventeen standalone tracks appeared on her website, accessible to fans who had purchased a yellow hair dye entitled “Ego” from the singer’s brand Good Dye Young. The design was brilliantly executed, with a 2000s Microsoft Windows-esque MP3 media player page appearing upon an access code being entered. The attention to detail left everyone talking, and after twenty four hours, the page was promptly wiped with a “thank you for listening” message appearing in lieu of the music. With no warning, a couple of days later, the songs launched on streaming services.
One of my favourite components of this album is its gorgeous and thoughtful artwork. The aesthetic is gloomy and vibrant all at once, so beautifully designed with each of the seventeen songs being given their own imagery to breathe new life into the music. Every song’s artwork is a greyscale image of Williams, with hand-drawn yellow details, often cartoonish in nature (comic-style lines coming from her mouth to indicate yelling, a spiked chain, a shimmering halo). Albums with visual components are all the rage these days, and rightfully so. These memorable graphics are the reason why I still find myself listening to the individual song releases, even though they are all now housed under an album release. In order to create that master release and turn Ego into a full-blown album, Williams turned to social media to encourage fans to create playlists in the tracklist order they deemed best fit. After hundreds of different interpretations and preferences flooded in, the singer chose one playlist that resonated with her the most and turned it into the official tracklisting, plus three extra tracks that hadn’t been a part of the initial reveal, which slowly released one by one at different points within the rollout. If the aesthetics and the unique release tactics weren’t enough to instate Ego’s excellence, the music is a surefire bet to making this an album of the year contender.
Twenty songs is a pretty long album during a day in age where attention spans are at their shortest. Additionally, these songs are written with absolute brutal honesty, making them an intense experience to internalize. Even now, after I’ve repeated the record over and over, I find some songs so deeply personal that they’re hardly relatable, making it so I circle back to certain tracks far less frequently than others. The ones I have the least to say about are “Blood Bros,” “Whim,” and “Mirtazipine.” I’m sure some people will flame me for this opinion, and while I do still find these songs enjoyable, they just don’t do for me what the others do. “Mirtazipine” truly is a banger, but in an album full of lyrics that cut like a knife, this one scratches the surface of depth within Williams’ capability. But please don’t get me wrong, her love letter to her prescription SSRI is an iconic bop. “Zissou” was a skip for me, but it has just begun to click more and more; that echoey reverb in the chorus is everything. To pick three highlights, I’d instantly go with “Love Me Different,” “True Believer,” and “Ice In My OJ.” The latter was chosen to be the album’s opening track, a choice that punches you in the face with harmonized vocals the instant you press play. “Ice In My OJ” interpolates one of Williams’ first ever recordings, from a group called Mammoth City Messengers that created a small array of tracks before Paramore was formed. In Williams’ new song, she subtly explores the depths of fame and misogyny with her screams of “I’m in a band!” and her discussion of “a lot of dumb motherfuckers that I made rich.” It’s a brilliantly complex song through and through, and a perfect introductory sentiment to Ego. “Love Me Different” is the most pop-oriented song on the album; a self-love anthem mixed with some drops of sadness over a wonderfully danceable beat. The song details the end of her romantic relationship with fellow bandmate Taylor York, and her ultimate choice to take care of herself above all else. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve driven through the city screaming this one as it blares through my car speakers - it’s simply irresistible. “True Believer” is a heavy hitter, tackling subjects too taboo and controversial for most artists to touch on. Williams criticizes modern Christianity and the ways in which it allows fascism to reign supreme. Not only are the lyrics jaw-dropping as absolutely nothing is held back, but Williams recently performed this track on Jimmy Fallon to make a statement to a massive audience. Her bravery in condemning racial injustice and the church as we know it today is awe-inspiring, and turns this into one of the most important releases of the whole year.
While the album is pretty much entirely drenched in melancholia, there are a good handful of upbeat, albeit depressing, songs - part of the formula that made Paramore’s last couple of albums so great, carried into Williams’ solo career. Everyone loves self deprecation and authenticity laid over an actual beat. Not that something soft and slow isn’t lovely (and we’ll get to that with how it relates to this album), but something about dancing to the mundane, vivid image of a depressive state as painted in “Glum” that just hits unlike anything else. That song is terribly sad, but an absolute earworm, an indie pop masterpiece. “Hard” and “Kill Me” may be a tad less boppy, but just as utterly addictive. Honestly, the irony of “Hard” might be one of my favourite things about this record. On Ego Death At A Bachelorette Party, Hayley Williams tests the limits of her own vulnerability, breaking walls down and letting fans into her mind more than ever before. But all the while, “Hard” speaks to the singer’s fears around opening up, and her preferred comfortability of armouring herself. It speaks to her experiences within a demanding and misogynistic music industry, and includes a nod to the symbolism behind her iconic decision to get married in combat boots in 2016. “Kill Me” has one of the most infectious compositions of all twenty songs on the album, a high stakes instrumental that blends perfectly with William’s sharp vocals. Singing about generational trauma and sampling a friend’s four-year-old
niece, Williams captures the burden of womanhood. The opening notes of “Disappearing Man” instantly identify this as a fast-paced tale of love lost, and yearning for an ex-lover to have tried harder. It’s a song that refuses to leave one’s head long after listening. Finally, of course, I would be remiss not to mention the titular track that directly calls out Morgan Wallen and any other “racist country music stars.” The song feels like being stuck in the space between dissociation and self-actualization, as she describes herself as a woman riddled with the curse of fame while going about life in her hometown of Nashville. She describes how it “can only go up from here” and an overarching longing to be elsewhere. It’s a wild journey in which her wishes and beliefs contradict themselves, leaving her feeling bigger than herself in a place she doesn’t belong. An eerily fun song to listen to, and the perfect choice to define the bigger picture painted within the album’s walls.
But then, day turns to night with the other side of the coin, where we are met with stripped down and mellow listens. We have the darker, grittier side of things with songs like “Discovery Channel,” “Dream Girl In Shibuya,” and “Negative Self Talk,” as well as a soft proclamation of undying love in “I Won’t Quit On You.” Scattered throughout the record, these tracks serve as the most realistic depiction of the scenarios described, like “Negative Self Talk” and how it speaks to being stuck in your own mind and relentlessly criticizing yourself. A challenge that most folks struggling with mental illness face, “Negative Self Talk” is an attempt to silence those inner voices rather than giving into them, but an impossibility to escape the internal dialogue while residing on one’s own. It’s gritty and raw, just like another track that lies among my top picks, “Discovery Channel.” I’ve yet to fully comprehend the message behind this track, though Williams has stated it illustrates her relationship with Paramore and her bandmates, and a need to burn it all down to build it back up again. Innuendos found in “Discovery Channel” lead me to interpret a double meaning, with the animalistic natures described pointing towards both the act of fighting and the act of sex. The genius lyricism combined with a vocal delivery and a composition that really pack a punch make this a work of unskippable art. “Dream Girl In Shibuya,” another favourite of mine, also leans into sexual undertones, while also detailing an atmospheric intimacy, a heightened sense of attraction brought on by a foreign land filled with romance and mystique. It goes hand-in-hand with the lover’s haze described in “I Won’t Quit On You,” another track filled to the brim with magic and chemistry. Both songs, though romantic in nature, are laced with the same sadness and desolation as much of the other tracks contain. This is possibly alluding to the eventual breakup with the suspected muse, or perhaps a lingering knowledge all the while that the affair would not last. Regardless, the soft strings in “I Won’t Quit On You” are a perfect conclusion to Ego, as Williams chose this as the album’s closing track.
However, it only remained the closing track for as long as those last three singles remained locked away. With “Parachute” quickly following as track eighteen out of twenty, “I Won’t Quit On You” is seemingly continued directly from its last line that claims “everything changed” within this state of adoration. “Parachute” is the fall from grace, the acknowledgement that it didn’t last, along with the reasons why. Though it sounds a tad parasocial, it’s a genuinely devastating listen for any Paramore fan. In excruciating detail, Williams describes falling in love and back out of love with bandmate Taylor York. “Parachute” is complete with jaw-dropping lyrics, such as “You were at my wedding / I was broken, you were drunk / You could’ve told me not to do it / I would’ve run.” And if that wasn’t enough sadness, “Good Ol’ Days” was released next, referencing “Hard Times” from Paramore’s 2017 record After Laughter, and how despite those times being tough to get through, they turned out to be the good old days. “You could call me Miss Paramour” and “I’m not Stevie, I won’t hex ya / But my voice may surely vex ya” are beyond iconic one-liners, and this song is a complete work of brilliance. Finally, “Showbiz” finishes things off with a November 7th release, the same date that the complete album officially became available in record stores. While I was expecting a heavier hitter with this one, it’s a fun listen, and one of the most upbeat on the album. A tad underwhelming as a grand finale - I do think “Good Ol’ Days” would have been a stronger contender - “Showbiz” illustrates, well, the showbiz of it all. At the end of the day, that’s what the life of an artist is all about.
It’s so easy to get caught up in gushing about an unbelievably good release from an artist you’ve admired for over a decade. This far into her career, Hayley Williams has absolutely nothing to prove, but she does so anyways, and with ease. Calling out scummy men in the industry with no remorse, sparing no details about the wrongdoings of someone she still works with, and making the record label Post Atlantic to publish her first release after departing from Atlantic Records are all acts of a woman much braver than I. Petals For Armor, Williams’ 2020 release, was phenomenal, and I truly thought it would be impossible to beat that. But here we are with Ego Death At A Bachelorette Party, and it grows fresher with each listen, surpassing nearly all of the artist’s former discography. I don’t know how Hayley Williams manages to never miss, but she is a once in a generation talent, and we are beyond lucky to be alive at the same time as her.
1. Something Beautiful - Miley Cyrus
By a landslide, my favourite album of the year was Miley Cyrus’ Something Beautiful. Sure, I might be a bit biased. Cyrus has been my #1 girl since some other longtime favourites of mine started to morally disappoint me, right around the same time that I deep dived Cyrus’ discography. I typically adore the popstar’s underdog work, like 2015’s Miley Cyrus & Her Dead Petz, the sleeper albums that slip under the radar. Something Beautiful proves this is no mistake. The star’s most creative, soul-bearing, magnum opus-worthy work seems to underperform commercially, and instead develop a small group of highly dedicated fans, of which I’m honoured to call myself a part of. Something Beautiful is an artistic triumph complete with high fashion, full production, a no-skip tracklist, and an accompanying visual component. Fifty-two minutes of non-stop immersion into this world Cyrus has created was the key to an effervescent soundtrack of my year. Between an aesthetically stunning film and an unforgettable thirteen songs, there was simply no competing with Miley Cyrus this year.
I greatly admire Cyrus’ dedication to unveiling such a risk-taking record in tracklist order. While it’s probably a large part of the reason why the album didn’t sell anywhere close to the number that her last album did, it displays a committed, seasoned artist putting forth a project in the way it’s intended to be heard. The rollout began with “Prelude” and “Something Beautiful,” the first of which is a spoken word track interlaced with grand orchestral moments. The musical tension and the vaguely nonsensical lyrical content set the tone for the albums’ remainder, and the song’s visual component shows Cyrus decked out in the same archival Mugler featured on the album cover. This track smoothly transitions into “Something Beautiful,” which starts soft and slow, yet turns into a rock-infused anthem. While the opening notes set an instant, vivid mood, the expectations one paints are instantly shattered and replaced with smashing guitar notes. Reminiscent maybe of Plastic Hearts meets Breakout, “Something Beautiful” yet again sets a precedent for what is going to come. The experimental track uses multitudes of paces, instruments, and vocal techniques to create the perfect formula for just enough pop and just enough rock to blend seamlessly. I recall being blown away when I first listened to this song, and honestly, I still am. This track is utterly vivacious, with Cyrus belting so loud by the end that she sounds ready for a heavy metal performance. It’s a side of pop music that we don’t get a chance to see very often, and it’s a new anchor of versatility that can be added to Cyrus’ already extensive resume of abilities.
A modern pop anthem infused with the best sounds of the 80’s and 2000’s, “End of the World” served as the album’s first single sent to radio. On surface level, this song seems perfectly joyous, almost oblivious to its own words. Its lyrics paint a picture of being so in love with someone that despite the world burning down all around you, you are content to make the most of the time you have left (it’s nice to note that Cyrus has dedicated this song to her mother). The infectious melody is bound to be stuck in the listener’s head after no time at all, making it an excellent song, and an excellent choice to ease the general public into an experimental record. Sadly, the song failed to perform as highly as expected (or, quite frankly, as deserved), and the grand era began to crumble into something of a little known secret. “More to Lose” follows, and is quite frankly the only area where the album disappoints. Though I do still enjoy the song, its rank lies miles down from the top of Cyrus’ discography game. The singer’s country accent is highly present in this track, as she sings wistfully about the highs and lows of her decade-long, on-and-off-again relationship with actor Liam Hemsworth. The song demands to be performed live in a concert hall with a full orchestra, and I think the complete lack of live performances during this album cycle has been the main reason the song doesn’t hit where it should. Or maybe it’s the stiflingly out of place lyrics like “my tears are streaming like our favourite show tonight.” But I digress.
Next, we are met with the creative delight of two interludes sandwiching “Easy Lover,” the album’s third official single. Both interludes serve as high intensity instrumental breaks, which are used to further illustrate Cyrus’ dedication to going full glamour mode for this album. Of course, any excuse to play around with fun sounds AND show off more fashionable looks has always proven to be the move for Miley Cyrus. It has paid off many times in the past, and continues to here. The first interlude abruptly leads into the groove of “Easy Lover,” a wonderfully lighthearted, danceable piece of music. In my mind, with the exception of the title track, Something Beautiful follows the formula of Cyrus’ prior album, Endless Summer Vacation, in which the first half of the album serves as an AM soundtrack, and the second half is a PM soundtrack. There are a few tracks I’d switch around to make this align perfectly - but there are on the 2023 album too, and it was the blueprint for this interpretation. On Something Beautiful, “Easy Lover” feels like the distinct divide for this concept, the last moment of light before we turn to gritty clubs and dark nights. It’s got a delightfully breezy melody, catchy lyrics and hooks (albeit simplistic in a way that should have perfectly captured the general public’s attention on TikTok and radio), smooth like butter vocals, and a carefree attitude. It’s truly the hit that got away. It was also the music video I was most excited to watch upon release, since Cyrus had been spotted filming it months prior, and some photos had been released of her gorgeous outfit.
“Interlude 2” transports us back into the primary sound of the album, that of high experimentation and deep cuts galore. But before we delve too far into the nighttime, we have the sunset of the evening on “Golden Burning Sun,” a song that instantly melted my heart in all the best ways. Dare I say it’s a better love song than “Adore You” - and that’s already among her best work! The gentle revving of a motorcycle engine, as seen in action for the music video, leads us into a mellow proclamation of absolute trust and adoration. Written for Cyrus’ partner Maxx Morando prior to the release of Endless Summer Vacation, this song came to life perfectly as a part of the Something Beautiful vision. Cyrus screams for her lover to “surrender” to this dreamlike state of romance, a grand idea of a beautiful life the pair could live. After the tumultuous love affairs of Cyrus’ past, most of which have been broadcast to and scrutinized by the whole world, “Golden Burning Sun” sees her healing, happy, and enjoying the benefits of a relationship that has bloomed in privacy and normalcy. She sings about slowing down and smelling the flowers, enjoying the wind in one’s hair and building a steady foundation. It is perhaps the most heartfelt song that resides on Something Beautiful, and it’ll surely leave you longing to listen again, and again, and again.
The album reaches its creative climax with “Walk of Fame,” a six-minute long atmospheric dance-pop song featuring vocals from Alabama Shakes’ Brittany Howard. Unlike most of the album, which seamlessly fades into each other, “Walk of Fame” begins abruptly, a sizable change in pace from “Golden Burning Sun.” Tackling the trials and triumphs of fame from a face synonymous with child stardom, “Walk of Fame” feels both like a humble, authentic ode to Cyrus’ longevity and legend status, as well as a plea for an escape from the relentless spotlight. Having lived the past few years of her life relatively sheltered from the cameras, the singer seems to have made peace with bowing out of the public eye, instead choosing to reap the rewards from her twenty years of labour in the entertainment industry. The music video sees Cyrus thrashing around the ground on Hollywood’s actual Walk of Fame, where herself and her crew had to film at 3am in order to have no disruptions or heavy foot traffic. Ironically, shortly after the release of Something Beautiful, it was announced that Miley Cyrus would be among the next superstars to be honoured with their own star on the Walk of Fame. If anything, this song and music video are all the proof needed to illustrate just how much she deserves that award. Such a track as “Walk of Fame” is tough to follow, but the ever-angelic “Pretend You’re God” does so with ease. The musical arrangement on this song is actually sent from the heavens. It’s a slow,
soft melody that is bound to instantly capture any listener’s attention and keep them locked in. During the bridge, when Cyrus begins screaming “I’m haunted,” an invitation is extended to the listener to dramatically re-enact the high stakes moment. In my experience, it’s impossible to get through this bridge and eventual breakdown without feeling the music through my whole body, a true testament to the power it holds.
“Every Girl You’ve Ever Loved” follows a similar formula to “Walk of Fame” in terms of style and production - except it’s shorter and easier for the general public to digest. It’s another absolute banger that demands to be danced to, whether that’s in a nightclub the way Cyrus likely intended, or foolishly around your own bedroom. Unfortunately, though it was made to be a single and arguably given a higher degree of promotion than the album itself, the release was overshadowed by controversy from a signing event in which Cyrus and her collaborator Naomi Campbell spent most time talking amongst themselves rather than engaging with fans. I truly don’t have a defense or explanation for this behaviour, but given all the stories I’ve heard of Cyrus at meet and greets, this seems to be a one-off experience that hopefully will not repeat itself. Despite all of this, the song remains among my favourites on the album. Campbell’s beautiful monologuing and repeating of the word “pose” adds a dramatic flair and a lovely contrast to Cyrus’ vocals. The song then leads into the deliciously gritty “Reborn,” another instant fan favourite and a career highlight for Miley Cyrus. From the moment the track begins with an actual Gregorian chant, it remains high in energy and oh-so cinematic. It focuses all its energy into setting a seductive and mysterious mood, while also drenched in emotional vulnerability. All this time later, I remain in awe of the chorus - one repeated refrain, over and over again, but somehow sounds so fresh and different each time it plays over. The sheer capacity of effort that must have gone into perfecting this once again proves Cyrus to be at the top of her game, even when it goes unrecognized.
“Reborn” slows down and fades into the gentle guitar plucks that open “Give Me Love,” which ultimately closes out the album with a real punch. Albeit far from the album’s most defining track, there couldn’t be a more fitting song to end off a wonderful piece of art. “Give Me Love” is the sunrise after the dark night - both musically and visually, as the film sees Cyrus in a golden, shimmering light while singing this track. It features some of the artist’s best writing of all time, painting a vividly abstract story with lines like the chilling outro - “So I’ll say my goodbyes to the earthly delights while my perfect Eden goes down in flames / I’m eaten alive by the mouth of a monster while fearlessly calling out your name.” She belts with all her might for one last hurrah, all while gleefully channeling the great showgirls that came before her with an extravagant feathered outfit. If you couldn’t get enough of these thirteen tracks, Cyrus later went on to release a deluxe edition of the album featuring two new tracks, both featuring pop-rock legends. “Secrets,” a song about Cyrus’ healing relationship with her father, features members of Fleetwood Mac, and thirteen-minute experimental banger “Lockdown” features David Byrne of Talking Heads. Though not a part of the initial Something Beautiful vision and film, these two songs (especially “Lockdown”) extend the universe Miley Cyrus has built, and prove that she is for the arts and not the charts. Time and time again, Cyrus has been a chameleon in her industry, mastering different genres and sub-genres with every attempt she makes. I am left amazed by how sickening every last song within this album truly is. From a Disney sweetheart to the master of her own craft, Miley Cyrus has proven the test of time by continuing to outstand with every release.