Top 5 - VoS-related Hidden Mothers - Erosion/Aversion – All of that early promise came together for a barn storming debut album which nails everything it sets out to do (which is a lot).
Pijn - From Low Beams Of Hope - An emotional album which challenges you to experience it, not because it’s brash or showy, but because it reveals itself over time, time you must invest willingly, and you will be rewarded tenfold.
Glassing - From the Other Side of the Mirror - Having been blown away by these guys at Arctangent, I was expecting good things from this album, and yep, they blew me away all over again.
Slomosa - Tundra Rock - Stoner rock from Sweden you say? Naysayers be damned, this is top tier rock music that’s also incredibly catchy, almost pop like in its ability to get under your skin.
Bongripper - Empty - Arguably my favourite album of the year, come, worship at the altar of the riff with me, heavy enough to level mountains but deceptively melodic, I LOVE it.
Top 5 records Non-VoS:
Post Malone - F1 Trillion - One of my families most played albums of the year, so catchy it should come with a warning attached!
Blood Incantation - Absolute Elsewhere - I know this is very much a VoS record but it’s not my normal cup of tea so I’m including it, like a fungus, this thing grows on you like nothing else.
The Cure - Songs of a Lost World - A lament about the modern world, I didn’t know I needed this album until I heard it.
Crippled Black Phoenix - The Wolf Changes its Name But Not its Fur - Again, this is very much a VoS album but I’m including it as it’s more folk driven musically than my normal listening tastes. I didn’t know about this band before getting recommended it by one of the writers here (George) and I’m now mildly obsessed.
Delta Sleep - Blue Garden - I hate to say it (as it’s such a cliché) but this is a more mature album from the band, varied and a touch more melancholic maybe? It still retains their refreshing upbeat take on math rock and I love it, which is impressive as I’m not normally a fan of math rock at all.
Top 3 concerts:
Arctangent – My happy place. The best weekend of music and meeting friends old and new. The lineup was ridiculously good and highlights are too numerous to list here but getting to interview Torpor and then going to see them at 11 o’clock in the morning, making me so emotional, it took me most of the day to get over, was one for the ages. Somewhere I can honestly see myself getting a ticket for as long as I’m physically able to go.
Karnivool @ Chalk Brighton – I took 2 days off work, drove down to Brighton in the morning, walked along the beach, watched football, got drunk and met up with the legend that is Jim Hall, and the music wasn’t half bad too. Seeing Karnivool in such a small venue was something I’ll cherish for years to come.
LLNN @ Downstairs at the Dome – Everything fell into place for this one, meeting friends I’d not seen for ages, a lineup so good it was silly, catching up with Rasmus, almost getting flattened by a crowd surfing Victor whilst talking to a lady from New Zealand and of course, all that would have meant nothing had the music not been great, but as ever from the band, it was a joyous body blow of sonic brutality that was ridiculously good.
Top 3 Non-Musical Highlights of 2025:
Visiting Tennessee – Getting to walk a bit of the Appalachian trail with friends whilst touring the breweries of Tennessee was as good as that sounds.
Exoskeleton – I have never before read a book which made me squirm, this book did thanks to one passage (you’ll know what I’m talking about it you’ve read it), but more than that, it made me want to stay up until 1 in the morning so I could finish it. A terrifying, thought provoking and amazing book.
Meeting Thorsten in London – Finally getting to meet the man in charge of Veil of Sound in person having been friends for quite a few years was lovely and something which made me rather happy.
