Happy New Year's Eve! Nothing like waiting until the last day of the year to compile this list. It's not as though it was a difficult year to find favorite songs -- on the contrary, I really like this year's crop. So, without further ado...
My favorite song of the year:
"Spike Island" - Pulp
No surprise whatsoever to anyone who knows me well. I managed to see Jarvis and company TWICE in 12 months -- at Brooklyn's King's Theater in September of '24 and a year later at Forest Hills Stadium. And it's not every day that a legendary band can return decades later with a song that instantly belongs on the top shelf of their catalog, but "Spike Island", an homage to the iconic Stone Roses gig of 1990, does just that. Bravo.
The rest:
"The Wolf" - Witch Post
Rock made a comeback this year, and not by the measure many critics seem to think. A lot of ink was spilled over a certain Brooklyn band (Geese) who did very little for me. Instead, I gravitated to this bicontinental duo comprised of LA's Alaska Reid and Scotsman Dylan Fraser. The vocals, the riff, the energy -- it's all here. Rock lives.
"Archbishop Harold Holmes" - Jack White
Jack White turned 50 this year. Hard to believe that the iconic White Stripes/Strokes show I was fortunate to see at Radio City was half a lifetime ago. Of course, Jack never went anywhere, landing in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame while lending his rock chops to stadium chants the world over. (Seriously, let's come up with something better than endlessly singing "Seven Nation Army".) For this track he goes all in on a surprise persona: Preacher. Actually a rapping preacher, of the evangelical persuasion. Oh, and he may be insane. Either way, the man brings it. Try to resist at your own peril.
"Inept Apollo" - Nation of Language
Changing it up here from all out rock to some of the most sublime synthpop since the early 1980s. Brooklyn's Nation of Language have turned out a string of good tracks since busting onto my radar in 2023 with singles like "Weak in Your Light" and "Sole Obsession". But this cool and shimmering song totally won me over this year, and guaranteed full volume whenever it came on.
"Diet Pepsi" - Blondshell (Addison Rae cover)
Manchester's Xenya Genovese records under the name Freak Slug. And she had a couple of songs that dueled for a place on this year's list. The offbeat "Spells" is the one I chose, but I urge you to also give a listen to the less weird (but equally fun) "Liquorice".
"Aerial Troubles" - Stereolab
We started the list with a comeback, and here comes another one. It's been 15 years since we got new music from this Anglo-Gallic outfit. But they came through big in 2025, with the new album Instant Holograms on Metal Film. And "Aerial Troubles" is Stereolab at their best, equal parts French pop and English new wave, with Lætitia Sadier's divine vocals holding it all together.
"Afterlife" - Alex G
Alex G is the stage name of Alex Giannascoli, who may well be the pride of Havertown, PA. Has there been a pop song with this much mandolin since REM's "Losing my Religion"? Likely not. And unlike REM's classic, Alex G drenches this track in mandolin. "Afterlife" is at once glorious and repetitive. But it's that repetition that allows the song to build to a triumphant climax, where the mandolin fittingly is front and center.
"Down to be Wrong" - HAIM
The Haim sisters returned this year with their excellent breakup album I Quit, produced by Vampire Weekend founding member Rostam Batmanglij. The record spawned several hit singles, but for me "Down to be Wrong" was the standout. Sounding a bit like Sheryl Crow, middle sister Danielle chronicles the death of a relationship with some devastating digs at her ex.
"The Catastrophe (Good Luck With That, Man)" - Car Seat Headrest
Virginia native Will Toledo records under the name Car Seat Headrest, and while much of his material is melancholy and introspective, this song is an absolute banger. From start to finish, it's a high energy sprint with more chord changes than can easily be counted, and it's a welcome step forward for an indie artist who has traditionally traded in less bombastic fare.
"mangetout" - Wet Leg
What a year it has been for the Isle of Wight band Wet Leg. They soundly bested all expectations on their second album Moisturizer -- no chance for a sophomore slump after their wonderful 2022 self-titled debut. The new LP kicked off with the menacing "Catch These Fists", which felt like a departure from the quirky fun of their first record. But on this track, they once again use clever wordplay ("mangetout" doubles as "man get out", get it?) as Rhian Teasdale sings about just wanting to dance with her friends and not be bothered by a bottom feeding guy named Trevor who won't leave her alone.
"The Happy Dictator" - Gorillaz ft. Sparks
Damon Albarn never disappoints. Like, ever. And on the new Gorillaz album, Albarn has transformed animated lead singer Murdoc from gangster to cult leader to dictator. How appropriate in 2025, right? And as always, Albarn picks the right collaborators: LA duo Sparks are best known for a string of hits in the late 70s and early 80s (most notably "Cool Places" with the Go-Go's Jane Wiedlin), and the contribution they make here -- nearly 50 years after their formation -- is equally irresistible.
"God Knows" - Tunde Adebimpe
TV on the Radio frontman Tunde Adebimpe broke out this year with his first solo LP Thee Black Boltz. The album's upbeat first single -- "Magnetic" -- was a standout when it was released at the end of last year. But it may have been eclipsed by the majesty of this track, a hate-to-love-you ode which oddly became a favorite of both my wife and my son. Something everyone can agree on.
"Metal" - The Beths
Aukland four-piece The Beths make beautiful jangle pop, often with witty and insightful lyrics. For instance, 2022's "Expert in a Dying Field" is about the paradox of knowing an ex so well, despite having split up. The band bring the same lyrical gusto to a totally different and novel subject on "Metal", which may well be the first and only pop song about living with Graves' disease. And yet they do it with a pop sensibility second to none.
"Dancing in the Club" - MJ Lenderman/This is Lorelei
I'm going to contradict myself. Earlier I wrote that Blondshell's "Diet Pepsi" was the rare cover that was better than its original. Lightning can strike twice, and it did this year when Wednesday guitarist MJ Lenderman overhauled This is Lorelei's "Dancing in the Club". The original is an upbeat slice of auto-tuned synth-pop. In Lenderman's able hands, it becomes something altogether different: An alt-country slow burn, far more fitting given its downcast lyrical content.
Honorable mentions:
"Boundary Rider" - Tycho, Paul Banks
"The Rope" - Wunderhorse
"Enough" - Jeff Tweedy
"Dracula" - Tame Impala
"Stay in My Lane" - Courtney Barnett
"Quiet Life" - Shame
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