Adam Grundy’s Top Albums of 2025

Another year has come and gone, but the tunes will remain. And what a year it was! 2025 thrilled with key reunions of bands like The Starting Line, Yellowcard, and Motion City Soundtrack, while some solo albums from Hayley Williams, Luke Spiller, and Taylor Acorn all made their way onto top spots in my personal list. In this blog, I’ve hyperlinked to my past work on this site in ’25, and added in some new blurbs if I didn’t get around to writing about the record during the year. I hope everyone had a peaceful and relaxing holiday season, and 2026 seems poised to be just as strong in the music front.

Top 30 Albums

1. Hayley Williams – Ego Death at a Bachelorette Party
2. Anxious – Bambi
3. The Starting Line – Eternal Youth
4. Thrice – Horizons/West
5. Arm’s Length – There’s a Whole World Out There
6. Luke Spiller – Love Will Probably Kill Me Before Cigarettes and Wine
7. Yungblud – Idols
8. Silverstein – Pink Moon
9. Yellowcard – Better Days: The return of Yellowcard was such a great and welcomed surprise in 2023 with the Childhood Eyes EP, the appreciation of their past work with Hammock in 2024 in the re-imagined collection known as A Hopeful Sign, all leading to the biggest of pay-offs in ’25 with Better Days. Yellowcard was able to re-capture the magic with ease with key songs like “Bedroom Posters”, the title track, and the heartfelt joys of experiencing fatherhood for the first time with “Big Blue Eyes.” Not being ones to simply “mail it in” with a pure nostalgia dive, the band took their hiatus in stride and with a renewed purpose on songs like “City of Angels” that used the influence from William Ryan Key’s solo work in the best ways possible. Much like is outlined in Jason Tate’s heartfelt review, Yellowcard coming back just felt right. Let’s hope the band continues to explore the places they’ll go on even more material in the near future.
10. Silverstein – Antibloom
11. Bad Suns – Accelerator
12. Dijon – Baby
13. Spiritbox – Tsunami Sea
14. Taylor Acorn – Poster Child
15. All Time Low – Everyone’s Talking
16. Coheed & Cambria – Vaxis III: The Father of Make Believe
17. Have Mercy – The Loneliest Place I’ve Ever Been
18. Underoath – The Place After This One
19. Momma – Welcome To My Blue Sky
20. Turnstile – Never Enough
21. Motion City Soundtrack – The Same Old Wasted Wonderful World
22. Your Smith – The Rub
23. Twenty One Pilots – Breach
24. Deftones – Private Music: While I would certainly not consider myself a diehard Deftones fan, there was something utterly undeniable in noticing about the band’s new LP called private music. Was it tugging on my heartstrings of 90’s Alt-Rock bands like Incubus to peak my curiosity? Perhaps. Was it the punk rock energy and ethos that comes pouring through the speakers immediately upon pushing play? Certainly. Deftones do this type of music just about as good as anyone else in the rock game, and proved they have plenty of juice and magic left in the tank.
25. Moving Mountains – Pruning of the Lower Limbs: One of the records I discovered midway through the year was Moving Mountains’ Pruning of the Lower Limbs because of the constant chatter about the album in our forums. I’m glad I took a chance on it and wrapped my ears around it, because this one is special. “Ghosts” is an all-time great opener of a song, and is worth the price of admission alone. The other tracks that surround this song are filled with great lyrical depth, substance, and grit that showcase the band’s willingness to dive deeper into their thoughts and feelings of the world around them. Luckily, plenty of others took notice, and this record should be a great leaping off point for more prominent tour placements in the near future.
26. Pinkshift – Earthkeeper
27. Foreign Air – Such That I May Glow
28. E.R.I.E. – THE HIGHS, the lows, and Everything In Between
29. Arrows In Action – I Think I’ve Been Here Before: The boys in Arrows In Action have done it again on their vibrant follow-up to Built To Last. “Cheekbones” was an immediate smash out of the gate, while “Hello Sunlight!” embraced the changing of a new day with grace and poise. Released in two parts (Side A and B), the promotional cycle kept Arrows In Action top of mind along with key tours with The Home Team, and a recently announced stint with Boys Like Girls in ’26. The band continues to impress, and are major players in our scene.
30. Pool Kids – Easier Said Than Done: One of my favorite sophomore efforts from this year was the Epitaph Records’ release of Pool Kids’ Easier Said Than Done that led the way with its thrilling title track, and swooned from start to finish. The band’s songwriting continued to improve from their self-titled debut, and their knack for writing big hooks paired with slick guitars meshed well with the overall production found on this record. One of those unforgettable albums in a crowded 2025, Easier Said Than Done had zero chance of not making my Top 30.

Honorable Mentions:

• The Maine – Dyed (2008-2023)
• Lyn Lapid – Buzzkill
• Heartwork – Three Alley Cats and the Impossible Sky
• Wet Leg – Moisturizer
• L.S. Dunes – Violet
• Out Of Service – Devastation Awaits
• AFI – Silver Bleeds The Black Sun
• Wolf Alice – The Clearing
• Good Charlotte – Motel Du Cap
• Dayseeker – Creature in the Black Night: The dark-tinged latest effort from Dayseeker was deeply ingrained in the style of music I tend to enjoy. Dark synths paired with anthemic vocals and slick production in the style of bands like AFI and Spiritbox got my attention from the first spin, and never let up afterwards. The chokehold this record had on my year was undeniable, and it’s definitely worth wrapping your ears around it.
• Spiritual Cramp – RUDE: The speedy punk rock energy that comes through the speakers on Spiritual Cramp’s latest effort is a blast and a half. The band’s frenetic pacing never lets up, and the band get into a comfortable groove throughout this LP. After witnessing this band live last year, I was expecting big things from Spiritual Cramp, and they delivered in more ways than one on RUDE.
• The Haunt – New Addiction
• World’s First Cinema – Something of Wonder
• Sarah Rose Project – Sarah Rose Project
• JR JR – Back To The Land
• Beach Bunny – Tunnel Vision
• Superheaven – Superheaven
• Amber Pacific – All In
• Bartees Strange – Horror
• Teddy Swims – I’ve Tried Everything But Therapy (Part 2)
• The Backfires – This Is Not An Exit

Top EPs:

1. The EXOHs – Light of the Moon
2. Catbite – Doom Garden
3. TopHouse – Practice
4. Abandcalledlove – Thriving Season
5. Spanish Love Songs – A Brief Intermission in the Flattening of Time
6. The Paradox – NSFW
7. Hit The Lights – Tomorrow’s Gonna Hurt
8. Lily Meola – Postcards To Heaven
9. Ray & Paul – Fading EP
10. American Television – You Are Not Alone: American Television is one of the hardest working, active DC punk bands in today’s music scene, and their new EP, called You Are Not Alone sounds like a blend between classic punk rock similar to NoFX paired with the pop-punk songwriting of early-Green Day. The title track helps set the tone for the EP, and this band is sure to turn a few heads after getting placed on the most recent Vans Warped Tour. The sky is the limit for American Television.
11. Various Artists – Red Scare Across Canada
12. Deadlands – Seven
13. Susong – Matae
14. AJR – What No One’s Thinking
15. Zach Bryan – Streets of London: It’s really hard to find a more consistent songwriter than Zach Bryan. On his Streets Of London mini-EP, “River Washed Hair” and the title track truly shimmer out of the gate. The closer of “A Song For You” brings everything into focus, and highlights Bryan’s ability to command a song from beginning to end with veteran poise and musicianship. I’m sure we’ll hear plenty more from this talented songwriter in 2026.

My Top 50 Songs of 2025:

1. ”Soarin'” – The EXOHs
2. ”Parachute” – Hayley Williams
3. ”Some Girls” – Anxious
4. ”The Weather” – All Time Low
5. ”The Ending Is Always The Same” – Luke Spiller
6. ”Car Song” – The Ataris
7. ”Better Days” – Yellowcard
8. ”Zombie” – Yungblud
9. ”August 17″ – Have Mercy
10. ”Hey There’s My Girl” – Your Smith
11. ”Cheekbones” – Arrows In Action
12. ”Vesper Light” – Thrice
13. ”Dying Game” – Silverstein
14. ”Seein’ Stars” – Turnstile
15. ”RAWFEAR” – Twenty One Pilots
16. ”Enjoyment” – The Starting Line
17. ”Passenger Seat” – Wolf Alice
18. ”I Don’t Work Here Anymore” – Good Charlotte
19. ”Home Videos” – Taylor Acorn
20. ”Whim” – Hayley Williams
21. ”One Last Miracle” – Coheed & Cambria
22. ”Bends My Blood” – The EXOHs
23. ”Ohio All The Time” – Momma
24. ”Don’t Light The Match” – The Maine
25. ”Perfect Soul” – Spiritbox
26. ”Communicating” – Bad Suns
27. ”Yamaha” – Dijon
28. ”Put ‘Em Away” – Catbite
29. ”Royalty” – Foreign Air
30. ”Tired Of Talk” – Catbite ft. Patrick Stump
31. ”Never Enough” – Turnstile
32. ”Easier Said Than Done” – Pool Kids
33. ”Something More” – Pinkshift
34. ”Shame” – Underoath
35. ”You Know Who The Fuck We Are” – Motion City Soundtrack
36. ”Die In Denver” – Catbite
37. ”Ghosts” – Moving Mountains
38. ”The Subway” – Chappell Roan
39. ”The Giver” – Chappell Roan
40. ”Taking Inventory of a Frozen Lake” – Thursday
41. ”Bad Dreams” – Teddy Swims
42. ”Machines” – L.S. Dunes
43. ”I Want You (Fever)” – Momma
44. ”Clueless” – Beach Bunny
45. ”Up From The Bottom” – Linkin Park
46. ”The Light of the Moon” – The EXOHs
47. ”Nothing I Need” – Lord Huron
48. ”End Of You” – Poppy, Evanescence, Spiritbox
49. ”Hush” – Charlotte Sands
50. ”Milk of the Madonna” – Deftones

Top 10 Favorite Interviews I Conducted:

1. Teppei Teranishi of Thrice
2. Christo Bowman of Bad Suns
3. Will Pugh of Cartel
4. Kristopher Roe of The Ataris
5. Raine Maida of Our Lady Peace
6. Foreign Air
7. Jason Vena and Garrett Lunceford of Acceptance
8. Sarah Rose Project
9. Have Mercy
10. Pinkshift

My Favorite Concerts I Attended:

1. Hot Mulligan w/ Drug Church, Arm’s Length & Anxious @ 9:30 Club, DC – November 2nd, 2025
2. Bad Suns @ 9:30 Club D.C. – September 29th, 2025
3. Finneas w/ Bad Suns @ The Fillmore Silver Spring – February 18th, 2025
4. Catbite @ Metro Gallery Baltimore, MD – May 29th, 2025
5. Anxious @ Songbyrd DC – March 12th, 2025
6. M.A.G.S. @ DC9 – April 30th, 2025
7. Thrice @ Baltimore Soundstage – October 29th, 2025
8. Eliza & The Delusionals @ DC9 – May 27th, 2025
9. Foreign Air @ The Atlantis, DC – August 21, 2025
10. Third Eye Blind (acoustic) @ The Sound Garden, Baltimore, MD – February 4th, 2025

Top 5 Books I Read:

1. And After All: A Fan History of Oasis by Melissa Locker
2. Farenheit-182 by Mark Hoppus w/ Dan Ozzi
3. Fountains of Wayne by Fiona McQuarrie
4. Unspectacular by Zaq Baker
5. Unbreakable Rhythm by Frank Zummo w/ Jason Pettigrew

Favorite TV Shows I Watched:

1. Severance: Season 2 (Apple TV+)
2. Stranger Things: Season 5 (Netflix)
3. Andor: Season 2 (Disney+)
4. Task (HBO Max)
5. IT: Welcome To Derry (HBO Max)
6. The Last of Us: Season 2 (HBO Max)
7. Landman: Season 2 (Paramount+)
8. The Morning Show: Season 4 (Apple TV+)
9. The White Lotus: Season 3 (HBO Max)
10. Generation Z: Season 2 (Amazon Prime)

Favorite Movies I Watched:

1. Sinners
2. Weapons
3. Superman
4. Mission Impossible: The Final Reckoning
5. Wicked For Good
6. K-Pop Demon Hunters
7. The Naked Gun
8. The Fantastic Four: First Steps
9. Thunderbolts
10. Jurassic World: Rebirth