Here we are again, the end of the year, I feel like we've been here before? A time for reflection many would say, so why not take a moment to look back on some shop favourites this year. As with previous lists, we'll find ourselves both near and far, with records from many a country featured, including debutants and the more seasoned artists. Let's tuck in.
Just making the cut is Eliana Glass. The lead single 'Shrine' was my introduction to her music, it's a slow, sparse, contemplative piano track, which to my ear sounds ready made for film, perhaps in a scene of turmoil for the main character, post breakdown. Listen to the opening lines and you might see what i'm getting at. It's a voice fit for a future James Bond film. Warning though, this album is not for everyone, it is -Â very - downbeat, it's not a casual listen, but the high points for me are really high, and I think they allude to big things to come. It's nice to see i'm not the only one who thinks so to, track 'Good Friends Call Me E' from the album made Pitchfork's top 100 songs of the year, and it is a gooden, but for me the standout is the track below.Â
Daniel Ogren.. Shop regulars will have seen this one coming. He's a member of the Swedish band 'Dina Ogon', and between his solo work and that of the band there is a lot of Ogren related stuff played in the shop.. You'll see him on the album cover in some fancy looking boat gliding across the water with a guitar on his back, he's nailed the album in an image to be fair. He's just a slick guy. I do like my instrumental music, but jeez there is a lot of it getting pushed at the moment, maybe we can blame Khruangbin for that. Despite this, his stuff always stands out and you'll know its him when you hear him. If you like crisp drums and shimmering crystal clear guitar with a loose bit of psychedelic twang here and there then give this one a listen.
18) Sessa – Pequena Vertigem de Amor
Dropping into Brazil at some point on the list was inevitable, in at 18 is Sessa. Like Ogren before him Sessa is a shop favourite, with this is his 3rd album. It's music only a man from that part of the world can make, easy going sun beaming down on you goodness. A lot more textures on this album in comparison to his previous two, a nice development of his sound with more keys. Gorgeous backing vocals here and there also, brazilians really nail that kind of thing.
And the sun just keeps on beaming down. Geckos, music to walk across to desert to if i ever heard it. It's a trio consisting of M. Ward, Howe Gelb, and irish multi-instrumentalist McKowski, it can even boast some John Parrish involvement for any fans out there as he mixed a few tracks. I don't really know what more to say than the desert thing, it's very 'Paris, Texas' for any film fans out there, and therefore i guess one for Ry Cooder fans to check out. Would also recommend if you like Tom Waits and/or John Lurie.
Coolest drummer around Sholto also features. He would have been a shoo-in for the 2024 list with his last album if it hadn't come out so late in the day (vinyl reached the shop in that weird bit between christmas and new year), but alas, i'm sure he's made up to have cracked the SBT top 20 in 2025. Think it says on the obi-strip for the album something like 'cinematic soul drenched in myth and mood', with which i have to agree, as it is that indeed. The album has a thematic centre in the guise of temptation and the story of 'The Sirens' hence the title, there was a really great background show on Soho Radio (linked here) where he talks about the process of making the record for anyone interested. Anyway, feel like i have said a lot there without getting into the sound too much. It's largely instrumental, with lush arrangements throughout, but the stand out for me is the opening track featuring Phoebe Coco's vocals, really stopped me in my tracks, would love to hear a full album of them working together in the future. For anyone local Sholto and his band are playing Manchester (Band On The Wall) in March, an essential gig to get down to.
15)Â Autocamper - What Do You Do All Day?
Finally some guitar music. This Autocamper record is infectious, it's the best parts of jangly, shimmering, bubblegum flavoured indie pop. Only young these lot, and being a Manchester based band i thought there may have been a little more coverage on them, a really strong debut which i think fans of Alvvays, Teenage Fanclub, Shop Assistants, or The Pastels would like, the latter in particular given the male / female vocals. For any local gig goers of Atherton's own 'The Snug', perhaps you have watched a band called 'Adam Hopper & The Wimps' there, in which case you may recognise a member of the band taking on lead vocal duties below.Â
Back to the instrumental stuff now, another highlight this year was from Lawne. Though out digitally in late 2024, we didn't have the vinyl until January this year, i've spoken to the judges and this is OK. It's a mix of dub, electronics, hip hop, psych, jazz, post-punk and Afrobeat, all done very DIY, recorded between a canal boat and a make-shift storage unit in North London. Whenever this one has been playing in the shop people always ask what it is, and based on the frequency of such occurrences, it merited the 14 spot. A good one to click listen on below.
13) Mandrake Handshake - Earth Sized Worlds
Our first psychedelic moment on the list now, a really good debut from Mandrake Handshake. They've so many members that you have to call them a collective rather than a band. I've seen them play a tiny stage at YES in Manchester a few years ago, and i still don't know how they all fit on there. For me, they're like Goat meets Shocking Blue, which is quite a combo, and a nice mix of new and old. Yeah, Goat and Shocking Blue, if that's not enough said for you to take a punt then i'm packing it in.
12) Rachel Kitchlew – Flirty Ghost
I do like harps, so when Rachel Kitchlew, a harpist, releases a record, i'm gonna have to investigate. What prompted the recording of this record was actually her involvement with the earlier mentioned Sholto, as she's played on a lot of his stuff, and was encouraged to record her own album as a result of such collaborations, Sholto even returns the favour playing throughout this record for her. Henry Mancini and Dorothy Ashby influences are evident throughout, would even sit will alongside some Serge Gainsbourg records. So if harp, crispy drums, and smokey layers sounds good, alongside those aforementioned names, check this one out.
11) Anaiis - Devotion & The Black Divine
Great modern soulful R&B record from Anaiis. If you like Sault, Yazmin Lacey, or shop favourites like Azamiah and haven't heard this yet then get to it. I think it's a bit of dark horse record this year, and one that people might look back on in a few years and say 'how did that not get more attention?', tracks like 'Deus Deus' and 'Green Juice' are as cool as it gets.
Piano, drums, bass, all it takes is that classic trio and i'm in. Okonski is no stranger to an SBT albums of the year list, featuring with his debut 'Magnolia' in 2023, i always knew he'd be back.. 'Entrance Music' is the highest ranking instrumental album here this year, it's nothing flashy or game changing, just classic sounds done well, a very good sounding record. If you want something to listen to whilst the fireplace is on (or maybe even just the radiator) whilst you hopefully have sometime to lounge around this christmas reader, this is the vibe you need. Eternally soothing and an essential one for us all to carry forward in our 2025 time capsule. A worthy 'entrance' to the top 10..
9) Annie & The Caldwells - Can't Lose My Soul
A family affair of a record, providing a big dose of out and out soul that this list has so far been missing. Pretty good time to be a soul fan at the moment, but the mix of disco and gospel on this one really make it stand out above the rest and grab you. Just a must listen if you haven't heard it yet, my words can only say so much, i'll let Annie Caldwell tell you the rest!
8) Sons Of Sevilla - Street Light Moon
Here we go, Sons Of Sevilla, 8th on the albums of the year list but 1st on my most recommended to people, I must be owed some royalties off these guys at this point ;) Anyways, if you've followed the shop for a while, you may know the background on me finding their music, but if not, read the interview/feature linked here. Brothers Henry and Reuben Smith from Featherstone (just outside of Leeds) started making music together in lockdown to pass the time, it remained 'shelved' until a friend suggest they send it to a label a few years later, Ubiquity picked it up and helped them release their home recordings as their first release 'Lullabies For A Wildcat', following that, they were given the go ahead to record their Adrian Quesada (Black Pumas) produced proper studio debut which you'll see below 'Street Light Moon'. It's a dusty, keys led, slide guitar sprinkled offering rooted in a upbringing soundtracked by the likes of JJ Cale, CSNY, and Harry Nilsson. If you like those names mentioned then give it a go. Having got to know these guys a little, i've had the privilege to have a sneak peak listen to what they have coming next. Before 'Street Light Moon' was recorded, there was essentially no live band, it was more of a home recording project, so with a year of touring now under their belt, i'm excited to hear how things develop on the brothers next release, definitely the 'ones to watch' on this list for 2026!
Soyuz is a Belarusian band formed by Alex Chumak, and the backstory is well worth reading into, i'll just give you a short bit on this album in particular, but if interested deffo read the album write up on Mr Bongo's website, the label on which the album was released. Due to a shortage of places to record locally, Alex reached out to a name from earlier on in this list, Sessa, having heard he recently finished setting up a studio in Sao Paulo. Off to Brazil he went and what resulted was some pretty prominent brazilian musicians contributing to the completion of the record. It's eastern european jazz led folk ballads via brazil and it sounds timeless.
Loved this collaboration between Matthew Herbert and Momoko Gill. An electronic/soul record that grows on you more and more with each listen, great production on this one. Some tracks are minimal and introspective whilst others are almost dancefloor ready. Hard to say what modern means anymore, but this does feel like a truly modern, or at least 'progressive' record with the samples and arrangements used.
A mega talented band and a reluctant superstar of a frontman, a winning formula. On their 3rd album they have come good on the early promise and are rightly getting the accolades they deserve. This will forever be a regular seller in records shops around the world from now on, a right of passage for the indie kids and radiohead descendants. Not too much to say about this one that hasn't already been said! An essential listen.Â
4) Derya Yildrim & Grup Simsek - Yarin Yoksa
Love this record, and though 4th on the list, the band played probably what was my gig of the year when I saw them in Manchester, check them out if ever near you! The 'baglama' (a turkish lute) Derya Yildirim plays is core to a sound rooted in turkish folk traditions, but the band build on this spanning beyond and into more psychedelic leaning tracks. Great mix of original music and reinventions of traditional turkish tracks. Standout to listen to is 'Cool Hand' below ,one of my favourite singles this year.
I have to say i'm a bit of a Mabe Fratti super fan at this point, her last solo album was my album of the year in 2024, and she keeps up the form on HAGEN, a project with her partner in both life and music Hector Tosta, by making the podium again in 2025. I just think this one will be cited as really influential by a lot of experimental bands in the future. I think we'll be able to mention Hector Tosta in the same breath as Jonny Greenwood, and Mabe Fratti as Mark Hollis etc (massive call from me). How they can seamlessly go from the abstract, to 80s pop worthy choruses in a flash is great.
Peki Momes showing us you can put whatever the heck you want on your album cover as long as the music is great. Such a fun mix of stuff going on throughout this one, fuzzy funk, anatolian rare grooves, experimental synth, library music and japanese city pop all stirred up under one roof. Peki only started recording music for fun by chance in 2024, and perhaps it was that freshness - and for lack of a better word, naivety - that has gifted us all with such a unique and individual LP. This isn't the kind of record i can say 'if you like so and so, you'll like this' on, it is its own genre, and that's about the best compliment i can give it.
Florence Adooni, congratulations you have taken the top spot. A massive moment for her I am sure, career defining for the Ghanaian. Let's get serious now though, what a record. For a man with little energy for the most part, i'm instantly energised when I play this. It's been span a tonne this year and i'm yet to tire of it. A record that is the past, the present, and the future, as the label put's it, 'An Afro-Futuristic Highlife Odyssey / a bold fusion of ancestral rhythms and forward-thinking grooves'. As you may know, I am often out and about with the shop doing pop ups, and this record when played out always goes down a storm. There are sprawling genre weaving tracks such as 'AOEIU' below, part of which when playing somebody asked me once if it was a Pharaoh Sanders track, but there are also absolutely killer moments when this record kicks in like on 'Vocalise My Luv' which goes all electro-funk. It's always hard to pick a number one, as the top 10 or so are usually interchangeable depending on what day of the week it is, but this one is a modern classic for sure. The album title stands for 'An Ordinary Exercise In Unity', and from my experience it is exactly what it says on the tin, a good times record.
Bonus Categories!
Single Of The Year
Celine Dessberg - Selenge/Chintamani