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

The 25 Best Folk Albums of 2025

By
PopMatters Staff / 15 December 2025

The year’s best folk albums transcend genre boundaries, yet each entry remains firmly grounded in the folk ethos of connection and storytelling.

Features

Dead Kennedys’ ‘Frankenchrist’ Is Sadly Relevant at 40
Music

Dead Kennedys’ ‘Frankenchrist’ Is Sadly Relevant at 40

By
Brian Stout / 12 December 2025
The 25 Best Pop Albums of 2025
The Best Music of 2025

The 25 Best Pop Albums of 2025

By
PopMatters Staff / 11 December 2025
The 25 Best Americana Albums of 2025
The Best Music of 2025

The 25 Best Americana Albums of 2025

By
PopMatters Staff / 10 December 2025
The Mountain Goats and the Evolution of Our Idols
Music

The Mountain Goats and the Evolution of Our Idols

By
Maria Lockard / 10 December 2025
Maia Sharp on Testing Her Own Truths
Music

Maia Sharp on Testing Her Own Truths

By
Brian D’ Ambrosio / 10 December 2025
The 15 Best Ambient Albums of 2025
The Best Music of 2025

The 15 Best Ambient Albums of 2025

By
Evan Sawdey / 9 December 2025

Music Reviews

Music Music Reviews PopMatters Picks Reviews

The Beatles Transformed with a Little Help From Their Friends

By
Jeremy McDonagh / 11 December 2025
Music Music Reviews PopMatters Picks Reviews

Amadou & Mariam Bid a Poignant Farewell

By
Adriane Pontecorvo / 11 December 2025
Music Events Music Reviews Reviews

The Trey Anastasio Band Shine a Guiding Light

By
Greg M. Schwartz / 11 December 2025
‘The Return of the Durutti Column’ Is Long Overdue
Music

‘The Return of the Durutti Column’ Is Long Overdue

By
John Bergstrom / 10 December 2025
Thomas Raggi Rocks Out with ‘Masquerade’
Music

Thomas Raggi Rocks Out with ‘Masquerade’

By
Eoghan Lyng / 10 December 2025
Sharp Pins Show No Signs of Imposter Syndrome
Music

Sharp Pins Show No Signs of Imposter Syndrome

By
Patrick Gill / 10 December 2025
Yves Jarvis Raises His Voice for Captivating Album
Music

Yves Jarvis Raises His Voice for Captivating Album

By
Matt Mahler / 8 December 2025

Music Features

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

The 25 Best Folk Albums of 2025

By
PopMatters Staff / 15 December 2025
The Best Music of 2025 Featured: Top of Home Page Features Lists Music Music Features PopMatters Picks

The 25 Best Electronic Albums of 2025

By
Paul Carr, J. Simpson / 12 December 2025
Music All Things Reconsidered Feature Sub Head Features Music Features

Dead Kennedys’ ‘Frankenchrist’ Is Sadly Relevant at 40

By
Brian Stout / 12 December 2025
The 25 Best Pop Albums of 2025
The Best Music of 2025

The 25 Best Pop Albums of 2025

By
PopMatters Staff / 11 December 2025
The 25 Best Americana Albums of 2025
The Best Music of 2025

The 25 Best Americana Albums of 2025

By
PopMatters Staff / 10 December 2025
The Mountain Goats and the Evolution of Our Idols
Music

The Mountain Goats and the Evolution of Our Idols

By
Maria Lockard / 10 December 2025
Maia Sharp on Testing Her Own Truths
Music

Maia Sharp on Testing Her Own Truths

By
Brian D’ Ambrosio / 10 December 2025
The 15 Best Ambient Albums of 2025
The Best Music of 2025

The 15 Best Ambient Albums of 2025

By
Evan Sawdey / 9 December 2025
The 80 Best Albums of 2025
Music

The 80 Best Albums of 2025

By
PopMatters Staff / 8 December 2025

Film

‘Route One/USA’ Drives Along History and Memory
Film

‘Route One/USA’ Drives Along History and Memory

By
Michael Barrett / 11 December 2025
‘Bugonia’ Is an Apolitical Fever Dream
Film

‘Bugonia’ Is an Apolitical Fever Dream

By
Matthew Dwyer / 10 December 2025
Michael Winterbottom’s ‘Shoshana’ and the Slow Death of the Prolific Auteur
Film

Michael Winterbottom’s ‘Shoshana’ and the Slow Death of the Prolific Auteur

By
Christian Gallichio / 8 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
‘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

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

Maia Sharp on Testing Her Own Truths

By
Brian D’ Ambrosio / 10 December 2025
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
Chubby Checker’s Unexpected Journey Into Psychedelia
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

Lists

The 25 Best Folk Albums of 2025
The Best Music of 2025

The 25 Best Folk Albums of 2025

By
PopMatters Staff / 15 December 2025
The 25 Best Electronic Albums of 2025
The Best Music of 2025

The 25 Best Electronic Albums of 2025

By
Paul Carr, J. Simpson / 12 December 2025
The 25 Best Pop Albums of 2025
The Best Music of 2025

The 25 Best Pop Albums of 2025

By
PopMatters Staff / 11 December 2025
The 25 Best Americana Albums of 2025
The Best Music of 2025

The 25 Best Americana Albums of 2025

By
PopMatters Staff / 10 December 2025
The 15 Best Ambient Albums of 2025
The Best Music of 2025

The 15 Best Ambient Albums of 2025

By
Evan Sawdey / 9 December 2025

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PopMatters Seeks Book Critics and Essayists

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