Dalla tua parte
Dalla tua parte Album ∙ Singer/Songwriter ∙ 2025 Francesco Gabbani
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WICK
WICK Album ∙ Hip-Hop/Rap ∙ 2025 Nardo Wick Florida rapper Nardo Wick was still at the tail end of his teens when Who Is Nardo Wick? dropped in 2021. Its songs shared his stark vision of the streets in such a way that artists older than him could’ve learned a thing or two from his pen. A little over three years later, his sophomore full-length, WICK , goes deeper into the darkness, with booming beats that recall drill and trap at their most austere ends. The chilling monologue of “Gangsta” sets the mood early on, his bars veering between direct threats and tweaked references. In his signature snarl, even the Hamburger Helper punchline on “Ain’t No Lettin’ Up” feels intimidating. No small feat, he transforms menace into macabre turn-up tracks with “I Don’t Think” and “Get on My Nerves.” Though the production dwells largely on the dour side, he switches things up on occasion, revealing a sense of humor for “Beatbox” and flirting in the glow of ATL Jacob’s subtle throwback...
Reflections (From The Vault Of Smoke + Mirrors)
Reflections (From The Vault Of Smoke + Mirrors) Album ∙ Alternative ∙ 2025 Imagine Dragons The Las Vegas pop-rockers had a legit claim to the title of Biggest Band in the World in the stretch between their debut album, 2012’s Night Visions , and its 2015 follow-up, Smoke + Mirrors . It seemed that Imagine Dragons had skipped the “humble upstart” phase and proceeded straight to full-blown arena-rock spectacle with their blend of Coldplay-esque schmaltz and Obama-era Americana of the “stomp-clap-hey!” variety, with a pinch of EDM thrown in for maximum festival appeal. Smoke + Mirrors became the Dragons’ first album to debut atop the Billboard 200, buoyed by a lead single, “I Bet My Life,” that still feels omnipresent on rock radio, and in Truck Month commercials. Ten years later, Reflections celebrates their sophomore album’s anniversary with 13 unreleased tracks from the original recording sessions, plus a folksy demo version of “I Bet My Life.” The band wro...
Pandemi, Palestina & Heartache
Pandemi, Palestina & Heartache Album ∙ Hip-Hop/Rap ∙ 2025 Daniel Adams-Ray
U2OPIA
U2OPIA Album ∙ Hip-Hop/Rap ∙ 2025 M Huncho Three months on from the November 2024 rollout of his ROAD 2 U2OPIA EP, masked rap star M Huncho arrived at his destination: U2OPIA , the sequel to 2019’s critically acclaimed debut mixtape Utopia . The intervening years saw the enigmatic talent evolving in every direction, from the personal (first-time fatherhood) to the professional (parting ways with his label to strike out independently). U2OPIA finds Huncho in a state of artistic metamorphosis, too: the “trapwave” sound he originated at the dawn of his career has been honed and cultivated, his melodic ear more finely tuned. Most telling is his description of his utopian ideal—“glorious, even though there’s imperfections,” he raps on “Duty Free (Interlude)”—turning up the contrast between ambition and fulfillment, riches and good mental health, road life and the school run. At the center of it all is an artist who has experienced the dizzying heights and ...
Critical Thinking
Critical Thinking Album ∙ Alternative ∙ 2025 Manic Street Preachers Fifteen albums in, the Welsh icons retain all their grace and incisive wit.
Oh! The Ocean
Oh! The Ocean Album ∙ Alternative ∙ 2025 The Wombats The Wombats—Matthew “Murph” Murphy, Tord Øverland Knudsen, and drummer Dan Haggis—are widely associated with the British indie-rock revival from the early 2000s. As they’ve matured in the ensuing years, though, their sound has evolved beyond the scope of that world. On their sixth studio album, 2025’s Oh! The Ocean , they update the band’s geographic influence, too. After Murphy moved to LA, the band recorded in the city’s Echo Park neighborhood. Though the album title suggests a cheery, awestruck disposition, Murphy’s writing is as biting as ever. He takes aim at “see and be seen culture” on opener “Sorry I’m Late, I Didn’t Want to Come” and wades into the murky anxiety of modern politics on “I Love America and She Hates Me.” The cultural, though, is balanced by plenty of introspective moments, like on “My Head Is Not My Friend,” in which Murphy dives into the ecstatic highs, crippling lows, and run-of-the-mill mundanities that...
Be Lucky
Be Lucky Album ∙ Alternative ∙ 2025 Louis Dunford Vulnerable, witty and honest tales of lives lived in North London and beyond.
F**k A Friendzone 2
F**k A Friendzone 2 Album ∙ R&B/Soul ∙ 2025 Jacquees & DeJ Loaf As the lines between rap and R&B have grown increasingly blurred, sometimes the only thing to do is go back to basics. Neither Jacquees or Dej Loaf are old enough to claim unc status, but both singers know the power of classic R&B. No trap beats or bells and whistles—just straight-up baby-making music. It’s been eight years since the pair released the first installment of their Fuck a Friendzone mixtape series, but their chemistry endures on sultry duets like “Favorite One” and “You Still Belong to Somebody Else,” which nod to the sexy, sincere radio R&B of the 2000s. Amid all that velvety-voiced crooning, there’s just enough drama to keep things interesting, like Dej’s sly admission on the slinky “Myself”: “Thought I had a man, whole time I had a lady.”
Mi Vida Mi Muerte
Mi Vida Mi Muerte Album ∙ Música Mexicana ∙ 2025 Neton Vega Neton Vega’s rise in música mexicana has been an auspicious one. The Baja California singer effectively stormed the genre in 2024, both via singles and his notable placements on two of the year’s biggest albums—Peso Pluma’s ÉXODO and Tito Double P’s INCÓMODO . Benefitting from those wins, his full-length debut, Mi Vida Mi Muerte , aims to plant his proverbial flag as a soloist while bringing prior collaborators and newer ones along for the proverbial ride. Indeed, those aforementioned acts come through with strong appearances on salacious corridos in the tumbado tradition, the former on “Morena” and the latter on “Chiquita.” The stacked guest list also includes Gabito Ballesteros, Óscar Maydon, and Chino Pacas, not to mention two features from Luis R Conriquez. Those names suggest a certain genre purity, something Vega excels at on solo moments such as “Chrome Corazón” and “M&M.” Still, he branches o...
Kansas Anymore (The Longest Goodbye)
Kansas Anymore (The Longest Goodbye) Album ∙ Pop ∙ 2025 ROLE MODEL Even in the throes of heartbreak, ROLE MODEL’s Tucker Pillsbury can’t help but write golden, luminous hooks. On his sophomore full-length, Kansas Anymore , he sings of love, sometimes, but mostly of love lost. He’s a broken spirit, looking for a way forward, and this angst is perfectly opposed by the sugary sweet deliveries he sprinkles throughout the project. Take opener “Writing’s on the Wall,” which finds Pillsbury nursing his wounds, unable to explain to his father that his feelings are different from the way his old man felt. “Dad’s on the phone and he’s lecturing me/’Bout a girl that he met when he was 19,” he sings a cappella, before pulsing drums and crunching acoustic guitar chords transport the singer to the rolling hills of Laurel Canyon circa 1970. On “Superglue,” Pillsbury finds himself in the middle of a fling turned serious, employing stripped-back instrumentation that allows him plenty of room to ou...
OIL MONEY - EP
OIL MONEY - EP Album ∙ Country ∙ 2025 Graham Barham On his second EP, the Louisiana singer pushes country-rap’s boundaries.
