Released 15th August via R&R / Warner Records 

★★★★★

Zahra Hanif

Dijon made his grand return this year – much to the delight of his cult following –  with sophomore album ‘Baby’. The album is thematically and sonically stacked, as the singer recounts his new chapter as a father over experimental production. The result is a joyous, genre-defying masterpiece and one of the year’s best releases. 

'Getting Killed' / Geese 

Released 26th September via Partisan Records / Play It Again Sam 

★★★★★ 

Zahra Hanif

It’s impossible to discuss this year in music without mentioning New York rockers Geese. The four-piece band have had a sensational year, with their third album ‘Getting Killed’ skyrocketing them to mainstream fame. The album masterfully blends existentialism and danceability to deliver soaring musical innovation, all of course elevated by frontman Cameron Winter’s gorgeously guttural vocals.

'Night Life' / The Horrors

Released 12th March via Fiction Records

★★★★★ 

Chiara Strazzulla

The Horrors’ new studio effort sounds like a Gothic cathedral would if it was built of music rather than stone. Atmospheric and textured, its almost obsessive attention to detail never obscuring its visceral earnestness, it may be the band’s most intriguing record yet and is certainly their most mature.

‘Garden State’ / Jeremy Zucker 

Released 22nd August via Mercury Records / Republic Owned 

★★★★★

Danielle Holian

‘Garden State’ sees Jeremy Zucker delivering a poignant homecoming. Across fourteen tracks, he reflects on leaving his roots and confronting adulthood with minimalist production that foregrounds his gentle vocals. Songs like ‘hometown’ and ‘surprise!’ resonate as intimate confessions, evoking nostalgia, introspection, and an unmistakable emotional clarity.

‘Princess of Power’ / MARINA 

Released 6th June via Queenie Records 

★★★★★

Danielle Holian

‘Princess of Power’ is MARINA’s exuberant declaration of independence and self-liberation. Through playful, bold tracks like ‘Cuntissimo’, ‘Butterfly’, and ‘Cupid’s Girl’, she confronts love, desire, and empowerment. The album radiates joy and rebirth, reclaiming her narrative while celebrating a liberated, self-defined femininity with wit, courage, and unflinching honesty.

'The Clearing' / Wolf Alice

Released 22nd August via Columbia Records

★★★★⯨

Lana Williams

The quartet's fourth offering, 'The Clearing', moves away from the crunching guitar lines that catapulted them into the limelight and instead leans into softer pop soundscapes. With this record, Wolf Alice proves that consistency isn't always key - that perhaps throwing caution to the wind and completely shaking up your sound could be exactly what a band needs.

‘I’m Only F**king Myself’ / Lola Young

Released 19th September via Island Records

★★★★☆

Kai Palmer

After ‘Messy’ became globally acclaimed and appeared on almost every single TikTok and Reel in our feeds, Lola Young might’ve felt a pinch of pressure for its successor. She needn’t have worried as ‘I’m Only F**king Myself’ is teeming with gritty, gutsy hits that prove she’s a consistently solid songwriter.

‘Oh! The Ocean’ / The Wombats

Released 14th February via AWAL

★★★☆☆

Kai Palmer

The Wombats have held a wholesome place in the British scene for almost two decades: indie-sleaze without the cockiness. Their sound has always worked a charm, yet ‘Oh! The Ocean’ is the most experimental they’ve ever been, and the result is classic Wombats reimagined with electronic tension and a darker sense of wit.