This year, l am listing just a few of the best of albums. Time management issues on my part. Honestly, there are hundreds of superlative albums from 2025.
Let’s explore them together on Nightsounds.
Hannah Cohen “Earthstar Mountain”
UK veteran Cohen issued this warm, folktronica-tinged lightweight confection. A thematically unified environmental tome, rich in subtle detail and dare I say it; it sounds ‘lovely’. It is nearer in spirt to pure folk, but burnished with rich, sometimes funky-smooth instrumental flourishes.
The album is deceptively breezy – the songs are mid-tempos with synthesizer flourishes and bright keyboards- more in the vein of synth-pop than folk, but still buoyed by echoey harmonies and environmentally-conscious lyrics. Now, that said, the lyrical content is not deep; actually, quite overt, but the soft-rock, 70’s tonal approach makes for an airy aural journey to these ears.
“Summer Sweat”, destined for Nightsounds June/Summer launch playlist, borrows from 70’s sprightly funk template, but captures the perspiration.
Kathleen Edwards “Billionaire”
Former purveyor of caffeine at “Quitter’s Coffee”, and everyone’s favorite Canadian cynic, Edwards welcome return to recording continues with a potent and relevant broadside to the social and political landscape of technocrat-zillionaire ‘Bros’ and detached political leadership.
“Little Red Ranger’ perkily chugs along annotating the adventurers of a kid brother’s exodus to LA from Canada – lamenting the aching absence while documenting the lousy state of Maple Leafs’ hockey.
“Billionaire”- NOT about money, but memory – opines that “Grief is love that makes sense; except for those of us still left”. The chorus of “if this feeling was currency, I would be a Billionaire,” captures the universality of how we look back. Much of the album is either bitter or semi-satisfied reflections. And, as in her live shows on tour, her band bangs along with crisp, cracker-jack folk-rocking ease.
The Delines “Mr. Luck and Ms Doom”
Forlorn folk-soul from the Pacific Northwest. You all know I root for the underdog/underappreciated. Sturdy, soulful vocalist Amy Boone and songwriter/novelist Willy Vlautin, something about their relaxed, horn-splashed and world-weary music hits me right.
Clean production and the sheen of reverbed horns; shimmering guitar washes – a slick combo. Songs are short stories of the desperate, lost or fringe characters; populating dusty enclaves and suffering emotionally constricting conditions.
Boone has a breathy, fatigued voice; she provides short bursts of conversational lyrics.
This is late night tonic for the downtrodden. Lamentations such as “The Haunting Thoughts” and the title track are excellent examples of their epistolary style. If you want a pick-me-up; this is not the album for you.
Molly Tuttle ”Goodbye Little Miss Sunshine”
Not sure about the title, as this latest amalgam of pop-bluegrass-folk rock is positively infectious and per usual- the instrumental acumen is flawless. Tuttle, having already conquered bluegrass and country-grass territories, exposes unvarnished emotions with a crisp pop-folk production polish and smart songwriting to burn.
There’s the shimmering “Summer of Love’ with its piano-driven pulse and Beach Boys-esque warm harmonies – perfect pop confection. And to emphasize the new her (and openly acknowledging her Alopecia Areata condition (no hair) - she states; “I got a new wig, to get you out of my hair!”(“ Old Me (New Wig)”)
To cement her reputation as a master acoustic guitarist, Tuttle torches the beginning of opener “Everything Burns” with masterful flatpicking before the tune thumps into high gear. Tuttle’s guitar features prominently throughout, imbuing the song collection with a bluegrass pedigree, amped with folk rock drive. Tuttle seems to be self-confirmational - she is arriving and will persistently explore.
I’m With Her “Wild & Clear & Blue”
From the first plucked strings of “Ancient Light” with mandolin/guitar/fiddle weaving around and in-between, Sarah Jarosz, Aoife O Donovan and Sara Watkins again strike gold with another polished and affecting collab – brilliant solo artists all. The production is diaphanous, clean- even pretty; but when those three voices thread- enchanting is not descriptive enough. Hearts-on-sleeves and studio excellence combined
Harmonically rich three-part harmonies; I’m a sucker, and I cannot recall a trio of voices more destined to join together. The three individually are unanimously lauded within the Americana music community with award-laden solo releases, but this album trumps augments and expands upon those solo efforts. And like candlelight through a fog, the softly affirming words and music are a balm; and often a challenge, in these turbulent times.
Standout tracks; “Standing on the Fault Line” and “Rhododendron”, though there is little filler.Plus, the buoying instrumental playing; filigree fiddle-lithe finger-picked guitar and fleet, precise mandolin runs.Pros at work and play.
Dar Williams “Hummingbird Highway”
Yes....Dar Williams has a signature voice and production style- and for me it is the definition of modern folk-rock. Literate, observant and sneakily emotive; plus, ever-present lyricism makes her a national treasure. Songs like “What Bird Did You See” and “Maryland, Maryland” harken back to Dar classics “The Babysitter’s Here” or her rocking anthem “Are You Out There”.
The title track thrums along with compact harmonies, shuffling drums and lyrical magic; “Columbines are coming up down by the gate; Pouring out sugar water on a broken plate”. “Olive Tree” charts the path of the entirety of civilization and interweaves nature, individual responsibility and environmental stewardship into a lyrical folk breeze.
And as she is want to do, Williams plucks a cover out of thin air- sometimes of style or substance far removed from her own oeuvre (think “Comfortably Numb-Pink Floyd or Neil Young’s “Everybody Knows this is Nowhere”) – here, she and her band country-fry and rock out Richard and Linda Thompson’s “I Want to See the Bright Lights Tonight.” Icing on the cake.
Dave Leonatti, Nightsounds
