I’ve had a month of listening to truly excellent music, from older comfort listens to new albums. It’s also been a matter of some amusement to me that in the year that I turn 50, a lot of the newer music releases sound like they could fit into the landscape of my twenties (the `90s).
I’ve been on a listening binge of The National’s discography since stress-editing articles and dissertation chapters necessitates the soothing comfort of Matt Berninger’s voice. I’ve also been listening to Fela Kuti a lot, and the Andor (s1) OST which has pretty much been a mainstay for the past three years along deadline crunchtime. Ditto the music of Hélène Vogelsinger.
For newer music, I’ve been hooked on the following albums of 2025 (along with everything I’ve mentioned in this previous post):
- Forever Howlong — Black Country, New Road
- Ultra Sodade — Kevin Kaarl
- A Study of Losses — Beirut
- Face Down in the Garden — Tennis
For one-off tracks/singles, here are the ones I’ve enjoyed the most lately:
- Yvonne — Foxwarren
- Solar Eclipse — Dream, Ivory
- Sister — Tennis
I have not really been listening to classical music lately but I have been listening to a lot of the usual ambient suspects. Harold Budd forever!