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The Best Music of 2025 Featured: Top of Home Page Features Lists Music Music Features PopMatters Picks

The 30 Best Rock Albums of 2025

By
Patrick Gill, PopMatters Staff / 5 December 2025

This was another noteworthy year for the best rock music. Some artists followed a debut with a stunning second LP and mainstays showed a return to form or evolved.

Features

The ‘Shōgun’ Series Is Like a Beautiful Car with No Engine
Television

The ‘Shōgun’ Series Is Like a Beautiful Car with No Engine

By
Mike Cormack / 4 December 2025
The 10 Best Global Music Albums of 2025
Music

The 10 Best Global Music Albums of 2025

By
Adriane Pontecorvo / 4 December 2025
The 20 Best Jazz Albums of 2025
Music

The 20 Best Jazz Albums of 2025

By
Will Layman / 3 December 2025
Andy Weir in the Spirit of Jules Verne
Books

Andy Weir in the Spirit of Jules Verne

By
Quentin Skrabec / 3 December 2025
The 20 Best Experimental Albums of 2025
Music

The 20 Best Experimental Albums of 2025

By
Chris Ingalls, J. Simpson / 2 December 2025
‘Red Planet’ Gets Lost in Its Own Dust Storm
Reviews

‘Red Planet’ Gets Lost in Its Own Dust Storm

By
Matt Mahler / 2 December 2025

Music Reviews

Music Music Reviews PopMatters Picks Reviews

Tangerine Dream’s Classic ‘Rubycon’ at 50

By
Chris Ingalls / 3 December 2025
Music Music Reviews PopMatters Picks Reviews

Jazz’s Kalia Vandever Steps Into the Dream House

By
Chris Ingalls / 3 December 2025
Music Music Reviews Reviews

Amy Speace Offers Stripped-Down Acoustic Intimacy

By
Steve Horowitz / 2 December 2025
Antibalas Get Back to Basics on ‘Hourglass’
Music

Antibalas Get Back to Basics on ‘Hourglass’

By
Adriane Pontecorvo / 2 December 2025
Hélène Barbier Creates Irresistible Power Pop with a Dark Edge
Music

Hélène Barbier Creates Irresistible Power Pop with a Dark Edge

By
Chris Ingalls / 2 December 2025
Danny Brown Remains Unpredictable on ‘Stardust’
Music

Danny Brown Remains Unpredictable on ‘Stardust’

By
Brian Stout / 1 December 2025
Tiberius Mix Heavy Guitars with Melody and Twang
Reviews

Tiberius Mix Heavy Guitars with Melody and Twang

By
Chris Ingalls / 1 December 2025

Music Features

The Best Music of 2025 Featured: Top of Home Page Features Lists Music Music Features PopMatters Picks

The 30 Best Rock Albums of 2025

By
Patrick Gill, PopMatters Staff / 5 December 2025
Music Feature Sub Head Featured: Top of Home Page Features Lists Music Features PopMatters Picks The Best Music of 2025

The 10 Best Global Music Albums of 2025

By
Adriane Pontecorvo / 4 December 2025
Music Feature Sub Head Featured: Top of Home Page Features Lists Music Features PopMatters Picks The Best Music of 2025

The 20 Best Jazz Albums of 2025

By
Will Layman / 3 December 2025
The 20 Best Experimental Albums of 2025
Music

The 20 Best Experimental Albums of 2025

By
Chris Ingalls, J. Simpson / 2 December 2025
The 15 Best K-Pop Songs of 2025
The Best Music of 2025

The 15 Best K-Pop Songs of 2025

By
Evan Sawdey / 1 December 2025
Rufus Wainwright’s Fascination for Kurt Weill’s Music
Music

Rufus Wainwright’s Fascination for Kurt Weill’s Music

By
Brian D’ Ambrosio / 1 December 2025
The 20 Best Metal Albums of 2025
Music

The 20 Best Metal Albums of 2025

By
Spyros Stasis, Antonio Poscic / 26 November 2025
The Best Punk and Hardcore Albums of 2025
Music

The Best Punk and Hardcore Albums of 2025

By
Brian Stout / 24 November 2025
Tom Waits’ Perfect Performance 50 Years Later
Music

Tom Waits’ Perfect Performance 50 Years Later

By
Matt Mahler / 20 November 2025

Film

Andy Weir in the Spirit of Jules Verne
Books

Andy Weir in the Spirit of Jules Verne

By
Quentin Skrabec / 3 December 2025
‘Red Planet’ Gets Lost in Its Own Dust Storm
Reviews

‘Red Planet’ Gets Lost in Its Own Dust Storm

By
Matt Mahler / 2 December 2025
Batman Returns’ Delirious Psychosexual Tension
Film

Batman Returns’ Delirious Psychosexual Tension

By
Ryan Dyer / 25 November 2025
Outland’s Labor Politics Are As Brutal as Jupiter’s Moon
Reviews

Outland’s Labor Politics Are As Brutal as Jupiter’s Moon

By
Matt Mahler / 24 November 2025
‘The Brutalist’ Delivers a Bold Revision of the American Dream
Film

‘The Brutalist’ Delivers a Bold Revision of the American Dream

By
Liam Springate-Jones / 20 November 2025
Three Robert Hossein Films Evoke Harold Pinter
Reviews

Three Robert Hossein Films Evoke Harold Pinter

By
Matt Mahler / 17 November 2025
‘Sirius’ Casts a Glittering Eye on WWII Hungary
Film

‘Sirius’ Casts a Glittering Eye on WWII Hungary

By
Michael Barrett / 13 November 2025

Books

Television Books Feature Sub Head Featured: Top of Home Page Features

The ‘Shōgun’ Series Is Like a Beautiful Car with No Engine

By
Mike Cormack / 4 December 2025
Books Feature Sub Head Features Film

Andy Weir in the Spirit of Jules Verne

By
Quentin Skrabec / 3 December 2025
Books Featured: Top of Home Page Features Music Music Features

Rock of Pages: The Literary Tradition of 1980s Heavy Metal (excerpt)

By
Jesse Kavadlo / 19 November 2025
‘Damaged People’ and the Inescapability of Intergenerational Trauma
Reviews

‘Damaged People’ and the Inescapability of Intergenerational Trauma

By
Thomas Scott McKenzie / 11 November 2025
Lemonheads’ Evan Dando Authors His Addictive Hooks
Books

Lemonheads’ Evan Dando Authors His Addictive Hooks

By
Brian Stout / 11 November 2025

Television

The ‘Shōgun’ Series Is Like a Beautiful Car with No Engine
Television

The ‘Shōgun’ Series Is Like a Beautiful Car with No Engine

By
Mike Cormack / 4 December 2025
3 Unsettling 2025 TV Shows You Shouldn’t Miss
Television

3 Unsettling 2025 TV Shows You Shouldn’t Miss

By
Ana Yorke / 1 December 2025
Video Killed the Podcasting Star
Culture

Video Killed the Podcasting Star

By
Lukas Burton / 24 November 2025
Pantheon’s House of High-Tech Mirrors
PopMatters Picks

Pantheon’s House of High-Tech Mirrors

By
Amir Segal / 20 November 2025

Interviews

Music Feature Sub Head Features Interviews Music Features

Rufus Wainwright’s Fascination for Kurt Weill’s Music

By
Brian D’ Ambrosio / 1 December 2025
Music Feature Sub Head Featured: Top of Home Page Features Interviews Music Features

Cautious Clay’s New Album Is Evening Angst Distilled

By
Colin Scanlon / 18 November 2025
Music All Things Reconsidered Feature Sub Head Features Interviews Music Features Pop Past Pop Past Music

Chubby Checker’s Unexpected Journey Into Psychedelia

By
Sal Cataldi / 7 November 2025
Take a Dose of Winterpills and See ‘How We Dance’
Music

Take a Dose of Winterpills and See ‘How We Dance’

By
Michael Bialas / 7 November 2025
Greet Death’s Depression Anthems Are Suited to the Times
Music

Greet Death’s Depression Anthems Are Suited to the Times

By
Brian Stout / 3 November 2025

Lists

The 30 Best Rock Albums of 2025
The Best Music of 2025

The 30 Best Rock Albums of 2025

By
Patrick Gill, PopMatters Staff / 5 December 2025
The 10 Best Global Music Albums of 2025
Music

The 10 Best Global Music Albums of 2025

By
Adriane Pontecorvo / 4 December 2025
The 20 Best Jazz Albums of 2025
Music

The 20 Best Jazz Albums of 2025

By
Will Layman / 3 December 2025
The 20 Best Experimental Albums of 2025
Music

The 20 Best Experimental Albums of 2025

By
Chris Ingalls, J. Simpson / 2 December 2025
The 15 Best K-Pop Songs of 2025
The Best Music of 2025

The 15 Best K-Pop Songs of 2025

By
Evan Sawdey / 1 December 2025

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