Hey! You! It's My Favorite 10 Movies of 2025

Well, i've seen all i can see before the clock strikes midnight tonight.  It's time to pick my favorite movies of the year.  There's a lot of excellent stuff out there.  Here's what i got: a gnarly Australian horror film, a bleak neo-western from Ari Aster about the awful state of humanity, a horror master's take on an all time classic, an earnest tale about life, death, and the universe, a dystopian yarn, an over-the-top horror comedy, a Thomas Pynchon adaptation, a vampire story that's about so very much more than vampires, a stomach-churning, body-horror take on a fairytale, and a horror flick about missing children.  None of these blurbs of mine really, truly describe how excellent these movies are...you'll just have to see them for yourself.  Check 'em out.

1. Bring Her Back

2. Eddington

3. Frankenstein

4. The Life of Chuck

5. The Long Walk

6. The Monkey

7. One Battle After Another

8. Sinners

9. The Ugly Stepsister

10. Weapons

Here's to a new year of movies.

Hey! You! It's My Favorite 10 Movies of 2025 that Didn't Come Out in 2025

And now it's time for my quick annual recap of one of my favorite things to do: discover old movies i've never seen before.  My time being what it is, work and family and such, i didn't get to experience quite as many first-time viewings this year as i would have liked, but what i did get to see was wild.  These are my 10 favorites: a Japanese ghost story, a Dirty Dozen aping  Hong Kong action flick, an Australian thriller/adventure with kids in peril, a bizarre "documentary" about witchcraft that plays kind of like an educational film, a trashy John Waters classic i finally got around to seeing, a Peter Bogdanovich character study featuring Ben Gazzara as a man of integrity who also happens to be an expat pimp, a bonkers erotic thriller/sex comedy hybrid, a total fucking fever dream directed by none other than Norman Mailer, Nicolas Roeg's stunning second film, and an insane and exploitative martial arts flick with two, count 'em, two extended, completely nude fight scenes.  Yeah, it was a wild year of movies.  Check out my list below.

1. Bakeneko: A Vengeful Spirit (1968)

2. Eastern Condors (1987)

3. Fortress (1985)

4. Legend of the Witches (1970)

Couldn't find a trailer for this one.

5. Polyester (1981)

6. Saint Jack (1979)

7. They're Playing with Fire (1984)

8. Tough Guys Don't Dance (1987)

9. Walkabout (1971)

10. Women on the Run (1993)

I'll be back again on New Year's Eve with one more list for 2025, my favorite new movies.

Hey! You! It's My 10 Favorite Songs of 2025 That Didn't Come Out in 2025

Every year i discover a bunch of old songs i've never heard before that get just as much play (if not sometimes more) than all the new stuff i hear too.  This year, i've narrowed it down to my 10 favorites: a mix of prog, jazz, and neo-classical music from a French composer, some Japanese new wave, a solo effort from the guitarist of The Church, an early lo-fi, alter-ego project from a now famous Austin alt-rock musician, Swedish '90s emo, unearthed solo music from the former guitarist to Siouxsie and The Banshees, early '90s garage punk from Austin, Texas, yearning lo-fi instrumental pop from a late, great artist who never got her due, dark Japanese new age, and some Marc Bolan-produced glam and soul.  Check 'em out.

1. William Sheller - "Introit"

2. D'f - "Something in the Air (12" Mix)"

3. Marty Willson-Piper - "Lantern"

4. Drake Tungsten (Britt Daniel of Spoon) - "He Was Soon To Undergo An Experience For Which His Long Training As An Aristocrat, A Gentleman, And An Officer Had Scarcely Prepared Him"

5. Far Apart - Hazel

6. John McKay - "Flare"

7. The Satans - "Ain't Gotta Choose"

8. Q Lazzarus - "Home"

9. Shiho Yabuki - "Samadhi"

10. Gloria Jones - "Sailors of the Highway"

Make sure to put all of these on your next mix-tape or playlist, and come back once again tomorrow for my favorite first-time movie watches of 2025.

Hey! You! It's my 5 Favorite Cover Songs of 2025

To make some extra room on my favorite songs list from yesterday, i removed all the cover songs.  And now i'm posting them today.  While outdoing an original can be a nearly impossible feat, though it's been done a few times, these artists certainly give it a go.  And i love them for that.

Andy Bell (featuring Dot Allison and Michael Rother) - "I'm in Love... (Justin Robertson's Deadstock 33s Remix)"

A whole lot of people, including Ride's Andy Bell, singer/songwriter Dot Allison, Neu!'s Michael Rother and producer Justin Robertson come together for this excellent version of The Passions' "I'm in Love with a German Film Star."

Deary - "No Ordinary Love"

Shoegazy London duo Deary have been one of my favorite acts of the last couple years and this year, they made Sade's "No Ordinary Love" their own,

My Transparent Eye - "Candy Says"

Anyone who likes The Velvet Underground is okay in my book, so kudos to New York's My Transparent Eye.

Cody Blanchard - "I Don't Wanna Go Down to the Basement"

Shannon and The Clams member Cody Blanchard provided the B-Side to a posthumous Jay Reatard 7" released earlier this year.  He takes a Ramones classic and turns it into something haunting and uniquely his own.

SUSS - "This Land Is Your Land"

New York ambient country and Americana band SUSS essentially provided a soundtrack for the appalling state of things back in January with an absolutely devastating instrumental rendition of Woody Guthrie's "This Land Is Your Land."  It nails the mood completely.

And on that somber note, tune in again tomorrow for some of my favorite songs of 2025 that did not come out in 2025, though for some reason or another i just now heard for the first time in 2025.

Hey! You! It's my Favorite 100 Songs of 2025

Oh good, you're back.  It was actually kind of hard to limit myself to just 100 songs this year, though i don't believe i have an actual favorite this time around.  But i listened to the shit out of these all year long.  As per usual, these are in no particular order.  Can you imagine trying to rank 100 songs?  I mean, what's really the difference between #96 and #97?  Let's get real here.  Anyway, check out the list below and listen to a handful of them now.

1. Black Lips - "Satan (I'm Tired of You)"

2. Maruja - "Look Down on Us"

3. Dean Blunt & Elias Ronnenfelt - "1"

4. Ozean - "Streets of Chrome"

5. Whirr - "Enjoy Everything"

6. Dean Wareham - "You Were the One I Had to Betray"

7. Omilgop - "Fleetingmoment"

8. Kite (featuring Nina Persson) - "Heartless Places"

9. Chairs - "Not the Same"

10. Clipping. - "Keep Pushing"

11. BE/HOLD - "These Woods Are Haunted"

12. Dax Riggs - "Sunshine Felt the Darkness Smile"

13. The Laughing Chimes - "He Never Finished the Thought"

14. Preoccupations - "Focus"

15. Hekla - "Var"

16. Daydream Twins - "No Coming Down"

17. Glare - "Guts"

18. Ethel Cain - "Punish"

19. VOWWS - "Blood's on Fire"

20. Ciśnienie - "My childhood was a period of waiting for the moment when I could send everyone and everything connected with it to hell"

21. Black Taffy - "Pendulum Song"

22. Wings of Desire - "A Few More Years"

23. Rude Films - "Death Hex"

24. LLORA - "Forward"

25. Mark Pritchard & Thom Yorke - "The White Cliffs"

26. Set Dressing - "Valedictorian"

27. Babe Lewis - "I Don't Mind"

28. Pyramids - "Fools Gold (Mi Vida Ha Ido Pa Atras)"

29. Queen Serene - "Glitter Disco"

30. Heavy Meddo - "Le Mer"

31. Ora Cogan - "Lucille"

32. Akira Galaxy - "Hit the Ground"

33. Maria Somerville - "Spring"

34. NINA - "Till the Devil Gets Bored"

35. Factory Floor - "Between You"

36. Black Moth Super Rainbow - "All 2 of Us"

37. Graham Reynolds - "The Lost Weekend"

38. Feeling Small - "Maiden Lane"

39. KARLA KVLT - "KARMA"

40. Infinity Knives & Brian Ennals - "A City Drowning. God's Black Tears"

41. Men I Trust - "I Come with Mud"

42. Brian Ellis - "Blurred"

43. Huremic - "Seeking Darkness Pt. 1"

44. Demora - "Torpor"

45. Deer Park - "Crystal"

46. Monde UFO - "Samba 9"

47. Milkweed - "Exile of the Sons of Uisliu"

48. THiQ - "Yes/No"

49. She's Green - "Figurines"

50. Ciao Kennedy - "Foire du Midi"

51. YAANG - "Comfort"

52. Damien Jurado - "Bergamot '25"

53. Backxwash - "Wake Up"

54. Squid - "The Hearth and Circle Round Fire"

55. Charms - "Lifetime Warranty"

56. Sun Parker - "Swan"

57. Yndling - "As Fast As I Can"

58. Lazy Legs - "Rot"

59. The Pennys - "Say Something"

60. Fat Dog - "Pray to That"

61. Pulp - "Got to Have Love"

62. Smerz - "You Got Time and I Got Money"

63. Everything Else - "Two Monkeys"

64. Diiv - "Return of Youth"

65. Daphne's Demise - "Canyon of Love"

66. Mount Mural - "Pattern Fades"

67. Billy Woods - "BLK XMAS"

68. Matt Jencik & Midwife - "Delete Key"

69. Menow - Tsukinoyakusoku"

70. Lorelle Meets the Obsolete - "Regresar/Recordar"

71. Ladytron - "I Believe in You"

72. IDLES - "Rabbit Run"

73. Halloween - "Crown"

74. Indoor Voices - "Flakey"

75. Sister Ray Davies - "Aidan"

76. Romance - "We'll Always Have Paris"

77. 0XN - "Cruel Mother (DROKK Remix)"

78. Blood Cultures - "Emptylands"

79. The Giraffe Told Me in My Dream - "Glimpse"

80. Nine Inch Nails - "As Alive as You Need Me to Be"

81. Just Mustard - "Pollyanna"

82. Tony Jay - "Lose a Day"

83. Dope Purple - "Children in the Darkness"

84. Honey Radar - "Chelsea Frame"

85. Tortoise - "Night Gang"

86. Chat Pile & Hayden Pedigo - "Demon Time"

87. Geckos - "Wedding Waltz"

88. Hilary Woods - "Taper"

89. Sungaze - "Rice Crispies"

90. Optic Sink - "Construction"

91. Birds of Peace Orchestra - "Ties"

92. The Eternal Decay - "Kiss Me I'm Dying"

93. pot-pot - "Sextape"

94. The Thorn - "Fountain"

95. The Serfs - "Cold Hand in Mine"

96. Sha-La-Das - "Stop Using My Love"

97. Armand Hammer - "No Grabba"

98. Drop Nineteens - "Fools"

99. Perturbator (featuring Alcest) - "Age of Aquarius"

100. Ruth Radalet, Nat Walker, and Adam Miller - "The Wild Unknown"

There you go.  Be back tomorrow for a few of my favorite cover songs of 2025.

Hey! You! It's my Favorite 20 Albums of 2025

Here we go again.  Another year gone by, another week of best-of lists.  Like every other year, 2025 was packed full with wonderful music of every genre and style.  I listened to a lot of it.  And these are the 20 albums i like best.  Check 'em out.

1. Armand Hammer & The Alchemist - Mercy

Armand Hammer is the New York based hip-hop duo of Billy Woods (whom you'll see again later on this list) and Elucid.  Their 2025 release finds them paired once again with producer and DJ The Alchemist and plays like a surreal daydream, like slowly sinking, sinking, sinking into your seat in a haze of smoke and blurred peripheries.  There is a particular kind of hip-hop sound that i am a total sucker for, and these guys have my number.  Make a stiff drink or roll a joint and give this one a whirl.

2. Backxwash - Only Dust Remains

Canadian based rapper Backxwash channels all of her rage, inner turmoil, and disdain for the world at large into everything she releases.  It lies somewhere between emotional catharsis and a veritable explosion.  The artist's own words describe the album best: "These are the songs of a person who was brought back to life but is now haunted by death itself."  Hell yeah.

3. Black Taffy - Out Moon

Dallas artist Black Taffy made what might be my favorite record of the year with Out Moon.  Album opener "Pendulum Swing" is the sound of watching an old black and white movie's musical and dance sequence while time slows and you fall into it yourself. The rest of the album follows suit with old classical samples, subdued beats, and warbled tape hiss, a dark, surreal, and ethereal world.  I listened to this probably more than anything else this year.

4. Blood Cultures - Skate Story: Vol. 1

New York experimental indie pop band Blood Cultures give us a new album of catchy, chugging electro-pop that also serves as the soundtrack for the new Skate Story video game.  Every track is weird and slightly off kilter and will worm its way into your brain.

5. Dean Blunt & Elias Rønnenfelt - Lucre

This one might be cheating a little bit since it's really just a 16-minute mini-album, but the combination of Dean Blunt's music, the drawl of Iceage front man Elias Bender Rønnenfelt, and additional production from Blunt's longtime collaborator Vegyn make those 16 minutes an absolutely intoxicating listen.

6. Daydream Twins - Solstice for Embodiment

Austin's Daydream Twins make the dreamiest of dreampop and shoegaze, the kind of layered sound and haze that feels like a soft blanket wrapped around your soul, sugary sweet and ethereal all at the same time.

7. Deer Park - Terra Infirma

Andy Santella, AKA Deer Park, makes a hard to define style of pop music, a woozy mix of indie folk, lo-fi bedroom pop, and experimental electronica.  Like a lot of stuff i listen to, Terra Infirma plays like a melancholy daydream.

8. Ethel Cain - Perverts

Until this year, i never really paid too much attention to Ethel Cain, the music project stage name of Hayden Silas Anhedonia, but was urged to check out the artist's work after catching wind her 2025 album Perverts.  Holy moly.  The album is a droney, ambient, sprawling piece of work, full of negative spaces, darkness, barely there sounds, and a deep, deep sadness.  The whole thing is kind of overwhelming, but i have been transfixed since that first listen.

9. Geckøs - Geckøs

Three artists meet at a mutual friend's wedding and decide to get together and record a wedding album.  The end result is a cinematic mix of Spanish music and indie folk, a veritable sonic love letter from M. Ward, Giant Sand's Howe Gelb, and Irish multi-instrumentalist McKowski.

10. Halloween - Shadow House

Philly lo-fi shoegaze and psych-tinged indie band Halloween released their crowning achievement this year with Shadow House, a warbly, woozy effort that feels like fingers digging around in your subconscious and tickling your eardrums.  It's the kind of stuff i wish i could make.

11. Huremic - Seeking Darkness

Korean shoegaze artist Parannoul goes full on psychedelic noise rock with side project Huremic, the first release of which was this year's astounding Seeking Darkness.  Elements of said psych and noise combine with spacey, experimental post rock for a sprawling and often chaotic sound.  It rules!

12. The Laughing Chimes - Whispers in the Speech Machine

Ohio band The Laughing Chimes have a kind of jangle pop, college radio, post punk thing going for them with elements of goth and more.  It's like they tailor made an album for me.

13. Babe Lewis - Sunspot

Though he hails from Harrisburg, Virginia, singer/songwriter Babe Lewis's 2025 album Sunspot is practically bathed in West Coast vibes, a California psych pop record from the other side of the country.  I've been digging on the dreamy bedroom psych since it dropped back in May.

14. Maruja - Pain to Power

Manchester band Maruja put on one of the most amazing and intense shows i saw all year back in March at SXSW.  The band's pulverizing mix of post rock, post punk, jazz, rap, and noise rock combined with a very angry and political (and pro-Palestine) message left me dazed and awed.  And i was fortunate enough to run into them later that week on the street, and given a chance to express how phenomenal i thought they were.  Their Pain to Power full-length album came out a couple months later and lives up to that performance.  Here's hoping they make it back to Texas again in the future.  These socks need knocking off.

15. Men I Trust - Equus Asinus / Equus Caballus

I'm kind of cheating again here with not one, but two new albums from Montreal indie pop band Men I Trust.  Sister albums Equus Asinus and Equus Caballus ride on a blend of lo-fi bedroom folk, synth pop, R&B, French pop, and a general vibe that feels like the soundtrack to old European films  I go back and forth on which record i prefer pretty much on a weekly basis, so i've just got to include them both.  These may be the group's magnum opus.

And the other one...

16. Romance - Love Is Colder than Death

On Love Is Colder that Death, UK producer Romance uses tape loops, samples, and effects to create a fog-laden, film noirish, black and white world full of old Hollywood types, broken detectives, femme fatales, and a deep and profound yearning.  At points it feels like falling asleep while watching old movies on TCM with the sound barely audible, images and half-heard music notes invading your encroaching dreams.  This one has been on constant repeat while i'm working.  It can make it all just fade to black.

17. Rude Films - Rude Films

Another Manchester band, this time around making the kind of noisy post punk that i would have listened to at any given point in my life.  16-year old Tommy would have been just as big a fan of Rude Films' raucous sound as 46-year old Tommy is.  Some things never change i guess.

18. Sister Ray Davies - Holy Island

Speaking of things i would have liked just as much as a teenager as i do now, Alabama's Sister Ray Davies (excellent pun name by the way) bring all the dreamy, reverby shoegaze you can handle.  I listen to a lot of shoegaze music every year, and in 2025, this one is my go-to.  Floating in audio.

19. Billy Woods - GOLLIWOG

I told you we'd hear from Billy Woods again.  The New York artist has quietly become my favorite rapper over the last 3 years, each release seemingly earning a spot in my regular rotation as well annual visits to my year-end best-of lists.  GOLLIWOG does the same.  Woods is nothing if not prolific, and i find myself always wanting more, more, more.  Please keep it up sir.

20. Hilary Woods - Night CRIÚ

My first listen through the new album by Hilary Woods, my initial reaction was just..."Whoa."  My second listen through, my reaction again was..."Whoa."  A dark and haunting collection of twilight folk spattered with Morricone vibes that feels simultaneously broadcast from some alternate past and some other foreign dimension, the whole thing makes for a perfect late night or early morning listen.

And there you have it.  I truly hope you enjoy these records just as much i have this year.  Tune back in tomorrow for my favorite songs of 2025.