Best of 2025 DIY’s 2025 Tracks of the Year

“This better be something great” — so opens ​‘Shells’, the song which hailed the breakthrough success that Westside Cowboy have achieved this year. From secret mailing lists to sold-out shows, the self-described ​‘Britainicana’ band have enjoyed the start any indie outfit would dream of. Following on from their debut single ​‘I’ve Never Met Anyone I Thought I Could Really Love (Until I Met You)’, this track perfectly encapsulates their off-kilter sound. Starting with gentle, hesitant vocals echoed by a fragile descending guitar melody, it encourages the listener to contemplate what could be, before confidence comes strutting in by way of a thumping kick drum, piercing guitar stabs and lilting harmonies, which transport you straight into a dive bar of their own creation. With their second EP and a UK/​Ireland headline tour on the horizon, 2026 is theirs for the taking. As ​‘Shells’ advises: you’d better sleep with a gun. (Harvey Thibault)

Read our Neu interview with Westside Cowboy here, and our full review of ​‘This Better Be Something Great’ here. 

Kevin Parker was adamant that ​‘End Of Summer’, the closer to fifth album ​‘Deadbeat’, was the first thing he wanted us to hear from Tame Impala​’s new era. Initially proving divisive — due to the notable absence of his much-loved psych-rock guitar riffs, in favour of an overt acid-house vibe — the sprawling track (which was released in July) is a slow burner for patient ears. By October and November, the lyric ​“I waited for the end of summer / But I ran out of time” evoked all the fuzzy feelings of nostalgia, closure and remembrance that seem distant dreams in those tough winter months. The extensive wilderness of the outro almost attempts to prolong the seasonal sunshine by initially refusing to let go, but eventually accepts the inevitable and strips sounds away until we’re left with the bare-naked kick drum. It may not be as blunt as the riff-work of ​‘Elephant’ and ​‘The Less I Know The Better’, but ​‘End Of Summer’ feels both adventurous and smooth, told across a seven-minute epic that utilises the particular sounds and breathing space that Kevin Parker felt it needed. And who are we to argue? (Rishi Shah) 

Pivoting away from the industrial noise-rock of their debut ​‘Dogsbody’ into a softer-edged post-punk/synth-rock universe, second album ​‘Pirouette’ allowed Model/​Actriz to explore lyrical directness, spiritual dichotomy, and existential disorientation. ​‘Diva’ embodies this spiralling, dizzying journey, as vocalist Cole Haden embraces the character of someone totally okay with causing mischief. Inspired by dates with men in Europe, embodying high camp and high society, it confronts the butterfly effect: how different could life be if one alternative decision was made? Using the ​‘Diva’ persona as a front, the song oozes confidence and sensuality whilst still grappling with underlying tensions of indecision and competing life desires. Sonically, warm tones of syncopated synth jar with metallic feedback, representing the battle between Cole’s head and heart, while layers of suave spoken responses and clear top notes further the intoxicating opposition. ​‘Diva’ is putting a brave face on a potential heartbreak, and it’s never sounded sexier. (Ciaran Picker) 

Read our full review of ​‘Pirouette’ here. 

How do you follow up a BRIT Awards record-breaking, industry-challenging, pigeonhole-defying hit of a record? That was the question RAYE was faced with after the runaway success of 2023’s ​‘My 21st Century Blues’, an album that saw her finally break free from the clutches of her ex label to deliver an astonishingly far-reaching artistic statement of intent. Her answer? ​‘WHERE IS MY HUSBAND!’ — a mic-drop of a comeback single that takes the bombast and bravado of her recent live shows (a 20-odd piece orchestra, anyone?) and dials it all up to 11, channelling old school R&B, ​‘50s Big Band, and ​‘Crazy In Love’-level pop prowess for a frankly irresistible wall of sound. It’s sassy, assertive, and a bona fide bop: an honourable inductee into what we’re dubbing the Girls Night Out Hall Of Fame. (Daisy Carter)

From a historic live debut during her secret Glastonbury set to a New York City pop-up that was shut down by police, the fanfare that arrived with Lorde​’s comeback single ​‘What Was That’ was matched only by the star quality of the song. Harkening back to the synth-pop gold she pioneered on 2017’s ​‘Melodrama’, the song is a masterclass in juggling catharsis and euphoria, opening a vivid window into the personal hardship that the New Zealand-born artist was experiencing while the world eagerly awaited new music. At times, the song feels like a visceral flashback, narrated by her breathy urgency over the subtle soundscapes we’ve come to associate with Lorde. But, after ​“fac[ing] reality” and allowing these thoughts to ​“pass through [her]”, it finishes with a message of optimism (“I can make it alright”): a message which maybe encapsulates the mission statement of self-discovery that fourth album ​‘Virgin’ took her on. She packs a shedload of emotional weight into three and a half minutes, dancing with the past, present and future while she figures out who Ella Marija Lani Yelich-O’Connor is in 2025. (Rishi Shah) 

Read our full review of ​‘Virgin’ here. 

Even following the glowing reception that greeted Pulp​’s 2023 This Is What We Do For An Encore live outing, few could have predicted that this would be the year that the legendary ​‘90s outfit would make their return proper, releasing their first new music in 24 years. Over two decades out of the game might have been daunting to some bands, but with ​‘Spike Island’ — the curtain-up introduction to June’s ​‘More’ — Jarvis Cocker and co. communicated everything we needed to know about their comeback; namely, that this reunion wasn’t some cynical cash-grab nostalgia trip, but an earnest, emotion-fuelled exercise in ascertaining where Britpop’s oddball outcasts are in 2025. Inspired by the banal refrain of some poor DJ playing The Stone Roses’ infamous 1990 gig (“Spike Island, come alive!”), this is an instant-classic entry into the annals of Pulp’s all-time great tracks, full of their sonic signatures — arch strings, anthemic dynamic shifts, ever self-aware aphorisms — but with shades of Bowie, too. A fine, fitting tribute to the late Steve Mackey. (Daisy Carter)

Read our full review of ​‘More’ here. 

Whilst there a good few tracks which could stake their claim for the title of ​‘Song of the Summer’, Olivia Dean​’s ​‘Nice To Each Other’ might just take the cake. Here, she challenges society’s need for labels in relationships, instead espousing the view that we should all be a little more present and just allow ourselves to enjoy things as they come, without the stress of that perennial question (‘so, what are we??’) or any external pressure to move too fast. Olivia’s not someone to over-complicate things, and that’s reflected here — bright and breezy, it’s the perfect soundtrack to a no-strings-attached summer of, if not love, then at least like. (Minty Slater-Mearns) 

Read our full review of ​‘The Art Of Loving’ here. 

The first single from her brilliant latest record ​‘Lotus’, ​‘Flood”s arrival revealed a whole new side to Little Simz, its concept designed to mirror her growth into the person she was always destined to be. Doused in a healthy amount of self-belief and stood firmly on the path to greatness, this year saw her retake her crown as the Queen of British Rap. ​‘Flood’ is comfortably the best statement of intent for some time, its almost tribal drumbeats and ominously stage-whispered vocals combining into a heart-bursting, blood-pumping anthem. Obongjayar’s interjections to ​“keep away from the devil’s palm” and brief cameos from Moonchild Sanelly bring together a conversation between Simz and the angels on her shoulder, ensuring she puts one foot in front of the other until she’s ready to run full speed ahead into anything and everything that dares stand in her way. A battle-cry, a call to arms — whatever you want to call it, ​‘Flood’ is proof of what’s possible when you listen to the one person that matters most: yourself. (Ciaran Picker) 

Read our full review of ​‘Lotus’ here. 

“Tell me who I am, do I provoke you with my tone of innocence?” asks Addison Rae on ​‘Fame Is A Gun’, the fifth and final single from her debut album ​‘Addison’. Her transition from TikToker to pop star hasn’t been without its hitches (in 2021, the reaction to her debut single ​‘Obsessed’ led to a planned LP being scrapped). But when she returned last year with the Lana-lite ​‘Diet Pepsi’, the world realised it was time to sit up and take notice — and ​‘Fame Is A Gun’ goes one step better, once again. The closest thing to Lady Gaga’s ​‘The Fame’ and Britney Spears’ ​‘Blackout’ we’ve seen in 15 years (and, granted, Rae certainly wears her influences on her sleeve), the track winks at Sheila E’s ​‘The Glamorous Life’ as she faces up to her desire for fame and the realities of celebrity stardom amid glossy production, a synth-pop beat, and even a chime or two. Being the last single to arrive from ​‘Addison’, it successfully set the singer up to stake her claim to a seat at pop’s top table. (Adam England) 

In the two years since releasing her powerhouse debut album ​‘The Rise and Fall of a Midwest Princess’ — and subsequently rocketing to global fame — Chappell Roan has filled her time between world tours and record-breaking festival headliners by drip-feeding us a trio of new singles. First came the eye-rolling, chart-topping ​‘Good Luck, Babe!’, followed by her country-fuelled club smash ​‘The Giver’. If those two were a reiteration of her ability to make high-energy pop hits, then third instalment ​‘The Subway’ was a reminder — for those unfamiliar with the more melancholy avenues of ‘…Midwest Princess’ — that she can also get real sad. And rock a bob, if the accompanying music video is anything to go by. The soaring, agonised hymn to heartbreak sees Chappell crying on public transport, threatening to emigrate and howling at the moon (completely understandable on all counts) as she wrestles to get over an ex. Despite the song already being a clear cult favourite, mythologised in countless fan videos from her live shows, it took some time before she was ready to share a studio version with the world — but the wait was definitely worth it. Scooping her second UK No. 1 of the year and inspiring Halloween costumes the world over, ​‘The Subway’ is further confirmation that Chappell Roan is a pop star for all weathers, and all time. (Caitlin Chatterton) 

If Lily Allen​’s triumphantly scathing ​‘West End Girl’ were a film, ​‘Pussy Palace’ would provide one of two truly jawdropping scenes. The now intricately analysed portrayal of her marital breakdown’s most pivotal moment sees Lily enter what she believes to be his martial arts dojo, only to come face to face with ​“sex toys, butt plugs, lube inside”. ​“Am I looking at a sex addict?”, she asks, having a few songs earlier uncovered the existence of mystery woman of the year ​‘Madeline’, kickstarting a powerful collapse of their already precarious open relationship. But it’s ​‘Pussy Palace’ that best cements the autobiographical nature of ​‘West End Girl’, so random and simultaneously specific that it can’t be anything but true. Its power though comes in its unassuming delivery, a catchy melody offering the backdrop to palpable heartbreak and betrayal. It’s also perhaps the first and greatest use of the word ​‘dojo’ in one of the best songs of any year, ever. (Ben Tipple) 

Read our full review of ​‘West End Girl’ here. 

There are few songs about which you can confidently say their release altered the course of popular music, but Rosalía​’s ​‘Berghain’ — a collaboration with Yves Tumor and Björk — might be one of them. The antithesis to the popular TikTok-ready soundbites that have topped the charts over the past few years, it instead has earned her comparisons to Vivaldi and other classical greats. And, while the Windmill scene and acts like Black Country, New Road have meant the resurgence of orchestral music has been bubbling under the surface for a minute now, none have hit the mainstream quite like Rosalía. Trying to describe ​‘Berghain”s genre is pretty much impossible — the moment you want to pin it down, it morphs into something else. In under three minutes, it shifts from classical to opera, to experimental art-pop to club. As the finishing touch, she sings in Spanish, English, and German, gliding between the carnal and the divine, the intimate and the grandiose. Nothing about ​‘Berghain’ feels pretentious or overstated, though. Instead, she sounds completely at ease, her classical training steering the razor-sharp precision of its composition. Following ​‘Berghain’, Rosalía may well be regarded as the torch-bearer who ushered in a new era of pop. (Sophie Flint Vázquez) 

Read our full review of ​‘LUX’ here. 

Geese​’s ​‘Taxes’ is the best (and quite possibly only) song about tax evasion to have come out in recent memory. It is in equal parts a protest song, and one of surrender; a tired acceptance of decay matched with a refusal to go without a fight. A track of three parts, it shape-shifts seamlessly from the laboured percussion of its intro to the high-shine guitar of its climax; and, when the tightness ramps up, Cameron Winter’s signature vibrato croon bends into exasperated wailing: ​“If you want me to pay my taxes / You better come over with a crucifix / You’re going to have to nail me down”. He sings like he’s got skin in the game, and with good reason: far from simply being the introduction to Geese’s third album ​‘Getting Killed’, ​‘Taxes’ was also the band’s first release following Winter’s highly acclaimed solo project, ​‘Heavy Metal’. What followed was a mammoth surge in popularity: soundbites permeated every music-based corner of TikTok and X, and ticket resale prices soared into three-figure territory. Months later, Geese is still the name on everyone’s lips. They’d been edging the mainstream for years, but ​‘Taxes’ was the final push the New York band needed to truly cross over. (Sophie Flint Vázquez)

Read our October 2025 In Deep interview with Geese here, and our full review of ​‘Getting Killed’ here. 

Social media has a lot to answer for. Yes, 2025 has perhaps been the most ​“viral” year for music, with TikTok alone being responsible for the rise of some of the past 12 months’ most unusual sleeper hits. But it’s also given unexpected space to some true masterpieces, perhaps none more so than Doechii​’s long-forgotten YouTube relic ​‘Anxiety’ — a track that has only now seen an official release thanks to a Sleepy Hallow sample and a brilliantly opportunistic rollout plan. The reinvigorated track, by all accounts, went big. And it’s no surprise, given its earworm combination of the rapper’s soft tones with the inarguably catchy Gotye sample, blended with lyrics that give an unambiguous nod to the global mental health epidemic. Its simple refrain — ​“Anxiety, keep on tryin’ me” — at once acknowledges, demystifies, and perfectly diminishes the power of anxiety, and evidently speaks to a whole new generation. Alongside other social media powerhouse performances — take PinkPanthress’ ​‘Illegal’, for example — ​‘Anxiety’ is testament to 2025 music discovery done right. (Ben Tipple) 

Acting as something of a sequel to Ethel Cain​’s 2022 cult favourite ​‘American Teenager’, ​‘Fuck Me Eyes’ is an ode to a girl who travels with mystical presence, a local legend who draws the eye as she catches the light. Equal parts external strength and internal struggle, it’s a track which runs like a Hollywood film set in a small town, with Hayden Anhedönia (aka Ethel Cain) playing the girl all the guys want – but only for the night. A song which explores objectification, misogynistic expectations, and generational trauma, it feels like a powerfully personal and viscerally vulnerable response to Hayden’s upbringing in her less-than-accepting Floridian hometown. Within the wider ambient, rumbly soundscape of ​‘Willoughby Tucker, I Will Always Love You’, ​‘Fuck Me Eyes’ is played out over crashing drums which tether a warmer, lighter synth backdrop to the hard-hitting lyricism and pinpoint-precise storytelling. It could all crumble at a moment’s notice, which is partly why the track is so enticing. More than that, though, it mirrors a character trying to put one foot in front of the other while the world around her tries its best to knock her off her stride. And it is, arguably, Ethel Cain’s best track yet. (Ciaran Picker) 

Read our full review of ​‘Willoughby Tucker, I Will Always Love You’ here. 

2025 has thrown up a myriad of musical surprises, but one that we certainly didn’t have on our annual bingo card was the transformation of classic nursery rhyme ​‘Rub-a-dub-du’b into a viral TikTok sensation. And yet, with her stand-out track from third album ​‘EURO-COUNTRY’, CMAT managed to do just that. The second single from her latest, Mercury Prize-shortlisted full-length, ​‘Take A Sexy Picture Of Me’ has all the hallmarks of a CMAT classic; witty lyricism, pop culture nous and a biting underlying message that sets its aim squarely at toxic patriarchy and the never-ending pressure that society places on female bodies. The fact that it’s also an absolute bop — more than worthy of the hype drummed up thanks to a certain dance routine — obviously only adds to the whole thing. Because who says feminine rage can’t be accompanied by some killer choreography? (Sarah Jamieson)

Buy a copy of our CMAT-covering print mag here; read the full November 2025 cover feature here; and check out our review of ​‘EURO-COUNTRY’ here. 

Arguably the king of UK rap right now, Dave brings in one of the best Brits to ever do it on ​‘Chapter 16’, as he and Kano converse over dinner backed by gentle, warm piano. The track alludes to the story of Samuel anointing David as king in the Bible, and Kano echoes this as he does the same to Dave. Their chemistry is heartwarming as they look back on when their paths have crossed before: on Netflix’s Top Boy, and when Dave supported Kano right at the start of his career. ​“Sorry I didn’t make no time back at Troxy,” Kano apologises, ​“I watched your soundcheck that day, I saw promise”. Two of the best wordsmiths out there, they’re both on top form as they poke fun at each other and explore the divide between generations: Kano, 40, one of grime’s forefathers; and Dave, 27, now at the forefront of British hip-hop. ​“I studied you since I was 14,” Dave admits, prompting Kano to tell the next generation – namely, Dave and Little Simz – to ​“go grab the accolades that they would never give me”. On this showing, Dave and Kano alike deserve all their shared flowers. (Adam England) 

Read our full review of ​‘The Boy Who Played The Harp’ here. 

Arriving with a joyous thump of riffs and drums, Cliffords’ anthemic ​‘Bittersweet’ — taken from their 2025 EP ​‘Salt of the Lee’ — feels like a technicolour surge of youthful emotion. Grungy guitars snarl beneath soaring trumpet lines and sweeping strings that lift the whole track skyward, signalling a band stepping confidently into a new era. There’s an almost theatrical quality to the song’s construction, its melodic ideas weaving through the arrangement with a kind of controlled, glittering chaos. Vocal harmonies rise around frontwoman Iona Lynch, who delivers her strongest performance to date, her voice brimming with ambition as she scales heights that would be dizzying for anyone, let alone such newcomers. Every detail feels intentional: the lead guitar echoing the central motif; the reverb shimmering in exactly the right pockets; the arrangement constantly pushing forward. As the EP’s lead single, ​‘Bittersweet’ was a thrilling statement of intent — and the remarkable thing is, the rest of ​‘Salt of the Lee’ also not only lived up to its promise, but cemented itself as one of the standout releases of the year — bar none. (Gemma Cockrell) 

Read our full review of ​‘Salt of the Lee’ here. 

For well over ten years now, Wolf Alice have kept us on our toes, but never has that been more true than when they kickstarted their latest era with ​‘Bloom Baby Bloom’. Coming off the back of the introspective, lovelorn allure of third album ​‘Blue Weekend’, their 2025 return threw open to the doors to a bolder, more brash version of the London quartet; one with their eyes squarely set on bigger stages and festival headline spots. An epic in just about every sense of the word, ​‘Bloom Baby Bloom’ feels like the most rock and roll move they’ve made so far, the track swerving from soaring sweetness to calamitous chaos and back again with barely a flicker. A pitch perfect offering that feels vital and invigorating with every new listen, this is Wolf Alice at their most intoxicating. (Sarah Jamieson)

Read our full review of ​‘The Clearing’ here. 

It’s perhaps Turnstile​’s 2023 BADBADNOTGOOD collaboration ​‘New Heart Designs’ that laid the foundations for the synth dreamscape that opens ​‘NEVER ENOUGH’, the first single to appear from this year’s evolutionary album of the same name. Then, that momentary offshoot three-track EP indicated a growing experimental desire, one that leaped far further than the jump from 2018’s comparably standard (yet still brilliant) hardcore affair ​‘Time & Space’ to 2021’s ​‘GLOW ON’. It showed, two years on from their mainstream breakthrough, that the Baltimore outfit were far from settled on a singular sound. Another two years later, they doubled down.

‘NEVER ENOUGH’ is less a reinvention, and more a masterful refinement. For a band continuously pushing against the boundaries of their founding genre, it pairs melody with increasingly considered ferocity. That it simultaneously landed itself on mainstream indie radio playlists, around frat house parties, and in thrashing hardcore pits gives credit to its crossover appeal — an appeal that, now, surpasses any other artist making the heavy alternative palatable to all. But it does so without sacrificing what fans have come to love from Turnstile, as evident from the feverish response its outing received across this year’s countless headline shows and festival appearances. Here, the band paint a hazy picture of sunkissed despair, as flowing in its bookends as it is downtrodden in its lyrics. Across the track’s near five minute runtime, vocalist Brendan Yates offers 18 opportunities for fans to scream back its unfulfilled mantra, and it’s this, with an ode to cross-generational missed opportunities and broken promises, that ​‘NEVER ENOUGH’ resonates most. It’s at once the year’s most despondent and beautiful track; and, at its very best, is cathartic as fuck. (Ben Tipple) 

Read our full review of ​‘NEVER ENOUGH’ here. 

Tags: Features, Addison Rae, Chappell Roan, Cliffords, CMAT, Dave, Doechii, Ethel Cain, Geese, Lily Allen, Listen, Little Simz, Lorde, Model/​Actriz, Olivia Dean, Pulp, Raye, Rosalía, Tame Impala, Turnstile, Watch, Westside Cowboy, Wolf Alice