Best of 2025 | Daemon Chadeau

Like last year, 2025 was another banner year for new releases within our scene. It was even more difficult this year to determine the best of the best, as so many artists did whatever they could to set themselves apart from others. My setlists in clubs as well as my own personal listening was the greatest beneficiary of them all, and from the DJ booth it appeared you enjoyed a good lot of them as well!

As before, we will start with the TOP 5 honourable mentions. They were great releases that while overshadowed by a crowded field, but still were great listens nonetheless:

Alex Lightspeed

Lost Future (Rossa Corsa)

A lot of synthwave releases have a reputation for being a little too formulaic for their own good, and sadly a lot of these releases are in overabundance. But unlike the copy and paste counterparts, Alex Lightspeed put a lot of time and care into this release, as he wanted to tell a story with Lost Future (of which, said companion story is included with the album download). The story fits nicely with the clean production and use of variety in sound design that is not often seen in records of the genre.

The Birthday Massacre

Pathways (Metropolis)

My love for The Birthday Massacre is no secret, and every single release is a moment in time in where their growth and maturity as a band keeps being shown. Now more than a quarter century later and with their sound being well defined to where you could identify a TBM record sight unseen, Pathways comes in and gives us that classic sound but adding a much more defined "wall of sound" production. Does it sound like just another Birthday Massacre record? Yes. Is that a bad thing? Hell no!

Blood Handsome

Nostalgia Hold (Strict Tempo)

I know what you're thinking: ANOTHER L.A. Darkwave band, right? Yes, it's goth that quirky lo-fi vibe that was made famous by Boy Harsher in there, but rather than just keep the formula that so many other bands from the area have copied they decided to throw a lot of 80's post punk influence into the songwriting as well as spend a little more time in production and gave this record a little more bite, adding energy to a dark and moody sound.

Lizette Lizette

LaQueer (self-released)

While their previous three releases had gained underground notoriety in Sweden and the UK, the fourth album from Lizette Lizette flew a bit under the radar for a lot of people. Lots of dark bass, lush synths, and pop music vibes are woven together with lyrics full of sarcasm and melancholy...making it both a fun and provocative listen.

S Y Z Y G Y X

SINNER (Cold Transmission)

The long-awaited release to (Im)Mortal really illustrates the growth this project has undergone since then. It's a solid release with a lot of hooks and filthy rippling synth lines and dance floor appeal. I just wished I spent more time with this record because had I done so it might've been in the Top 25.

And now for the TOP 25 of '25
(in no apparent order other than alphabetical):

Assemblage 23

Null (Metropolis)

This was one of those "back and forth" entries that somehow, someway, you always make yourself come back around to again. One thing Tom Shear has done incredibly well with Assemblage 23 is that everything he writes has deep personal meaning, whether he's writing about events in his personal life or about current world events, while not feeling forced. Sound and production-wise, it sounds like a typical Assemblage 23 record to where you could identify it as one without anyone telling you. However, it's the deeply personal songwriting that allows it to stand on its own two feet as unique.

Bootblacks

Paradise (Artoffact)

Perhaps one of the best synthpop releases of the year, if not THE best. Paradise mixes a lot of the style and sound of the late 80's with a modern post-punk feel and production value. You can almost smell the cigarette smoke as you are listening to this. The instrumentation is well arranged, and Panther has the kavorka of a cult leader with his vocal performance. "Can You Feel It" and "Only You" are the standouts on this record, but front to back it's a banger.

Caustic

Fiend series (Undustrial)

One thing you will expect from Matt Fanale is that you'll never know what you're going to expect. After seven years he returns with not one but TWO LPs that are very different but at the same time very interconnected. Fiend I & II represent the manic and the depressive, the yin and the yang of Matt's musical repertoire. The first has that frenetic energy while the second is more freeform and soulful. Two separate entities (heheh...you said titties) but they both work together as one, which can be hard to do in albumcraft without sounding pretentious.

Circuit Preacher

Heaven Can't Heal (darkTunes)

2024's Made To Burn was one of my favourite releases last year, and sometimes when you come with a new release so soon it doesn't hit like the prior one. Those expecting a sophomore jinx might be disappointed because Heaven Can't Heal picks up right where Made To Burn left off, with the congregation fully assembled he now preaches from the bully pulpit the mix of old school EBM and post-industrial with the new breed of the same genres (Old Testament meets New Testament?). Will this project continue to put out consistently hard-hitting music like this? I can't wait to find out.

Comaduster

Memory Echoes (self-released)

There was a LOT to unpack from this release, and I mean that in the best possible way. It's hard to find a record that can scratch multiple itches at the same time, and this one finds a lot of those sonically hard-to-reach places. This blends soothing and deep bass and soundscapes lays the foundation alongside glitches and other programming that feels like the songs are being pulled through a black hole. And even with the collabs that include Mari Kattman, Alex Reed, and Elijah Hennig, Real Cardinal's voice is that last piece of bread on top of this sonic sandwich that holds it all together, not only from a performance standpoint but from a production one as well.

Das Ich

Fanal (Danse Macabre)

Some record albums to get into clubs, and some just create incredible works of art...not like those two are mutually exclusive, but Das Ich does both on a consistent basis and Fanal is no exception as many would believe this to be the band's final opus as this record deals a lot with the reality of age being faced by Stefan and Bruno that we all end up facing. It embraces and understands the inevitable rather than defies it, and whether or not this is their swan song remains to be seen. Then again, when have they EVER followed the rules?

Devours

Sports Car Era (Surviving The Game)

This was another enjoyable and provocative listen from the mind of Vancouver's Jeff Cancade that pushes sonic boundaries with soulful and emotionally vulnerable vocal performances. Like with albums prior (and with most hyperpop in general), this one takes you on a journey that takes a lot of odd turns reminiscent of smoking some good weed but also crushing a couple energy drinks...but all comes together with the one common denominator of Jeff and his songwriting.

ESA

Sounds For Your Happiness (Negative Gain)

Jamie Blacker doesn't just write music; he opens his soul and takes you to a place that might make you feel a tad uncomfortable, because he will make you think about things you've been pushing down for a long time and it's hard to repress when you are being sonically assaulted by hard-hitting and confrontational sounds mixing rhythmic noise and techno with some metal elements as well...and THAT is before Jamie even starts letting it out vocally. The impeccable production quality only intensifies these effects.

Encephalon

Automaton All Along (Artoffact)

I've been a big fan of Encephalon ever since my homie Mauricio of Bioassay introduced me to them back in 2011 or so, and Automaton All Along was a release I had been waiting on for a while. When the single "Last Day At The Institute" dropped last year, I knew I wasn't going to be disappointed when the whole album surfaced at the beginning of the year. Songs like "Illusions" and "Synthskin6d" have been regulars in my darker electronic sets, while the aforementioned single as well as "Survivors Bias" fit in the harder ones. Like releases prior, the songwriting delves into the familiar subject of transhumanism and the problems it causes/fixes (depending on who you talk to) all wrapped up in an electro-industrial package with some darkwave elements sprinkled in. It's a release that is an embodiment of the current "age of enshittification" while at the same time not falling into its traps.

Gatekeeper

Wrong Planet (self-released)

If you look up in the dictionary under the word "PHAT", you would instantly find this album pictured next to the definition. Wrong Planet takes EBM, synthwave, techno, and other proggy & throbby elements and compresses the ever bejeezus out of them, and somehow makes them all sound incredible. Of course, I would give fellow producers a bit of advice to NOT try this at home as it is hard to perfect that like Gatekeeper did.

grabyourface

Sadgirl Mixtape (self-released)

As one Bandcamp reviewer stated, "get in, loser...we're going crying!" Sadgirl Mixtape, brings such a melancholic journey that transcends genres along the electronic spectrum. While there isn't a single upbeat or whimsical song on the record, it is put together in a way that doesn't sound like it's "one note" or repetitive. If you're going through it, or just feel like having a good cry now and then, just throw this on and you'll get it instantly. It might even be cheaper than therapy.

HEALTH

CONFLICT DLC (Loma Vista)

They made a statement with Rat Wars last year, and now HEALTH is back with more sonic chaos with CONFLICT DLC. If the grabyourface record was all about the sads, then this record takes the sads and adds a little bit of rage as well as a little bit of sexual frustration through a collection of psychological observations. While they have been writing in a less-experimental fashion over their last few albums, they still manage to push the sonic boundaries between dance and hardcore thrash music, all topped with Jake's airy, wispy vocals. While a less club-friendly record than Rat Wars, this album is packed with bangers to make you want to cry, cum, and break stuff all at the same time.

Mari Kattman

Year of the Katt (Metropolis)

For years, Mari Kattman has been a very accomplished vocalist who has collaborated with many prominent artists within our scene, including her husband Tom Shear of Assemblage 23. While she has had a few albums under her belt, she had not been known as a primary songwriter until this release. Year of the Katt is a coming out party for Mari and really showcases her as the complete package not just as a songwriter and vocalist but as an album crafter as well, and listening from the past two records the maturity and growth shown is very stark. Mari put the music world on notice, and we're paying attention.

Nevada Hardware

Split Scene (Thinkbreak)

I was a big fan of the project's 2018 release No Future, so when I found out that Nevada Hardware was releasing a follow up this year I was super excited. I was not disappointed as Split Scene just came out the gate with what made me fall in love with this project to begin with; a mix of throwback big beat and 90's Euro-techno (think PWEI, Utah Saints, and The KLF) mixed with industrial rock and EBM in a small yet potent 25 minute package. This is somethign to throw on if you just want to improve your mood real quickly.

Nite

Nite (self-released)

The fifth studio album from the Dallas-based band of twin brothers Kyle and Myles Mendes culminates an evolution in their sound since their debut in 2013. It comes out swinging with "All Your Pain" that has become a big hit in my darkwave sets the last couple months, while the following "Cries For Help" takes us down a deeper, more melancholic path, and songs like "Oblivion (My Obsession)" and "Price For Heaven" return to that darkwave club sound. The band declares it as "a message to all who listen", and we're listening loud and clear.

Perturbator

Age of Aquarius (Nuclear Blast)

Is it synthwave? Is it metal? Is it darkwave? Is it something else? Whatever it is, Perturbator has established itself as part of the Mt. Rushmore of darksynth music. While Lustful Sacraments was a break from the synthwave-driven sounds of albums past and went in a darkwave direction, Age of Aquarius comes back to the dark dystopian synths that brought Perturbator to the dance while still preserving what made the former an incredible record in its own right. Yeah, there are individual tracks that stand out "Apocalypse Now (featuring Ulver)", "The Art of War" and "Lady Moon" (with Greta Link returning as collaborator), but this was crafted as a front to back listen with each track flowing into each other as if it were one.

Pixel Grip

Percepticide: The Death of Reality (self-released)

How do you follow up a banger of a release in Arena? This band has gone from being the first band on the first day of the first Cold Waves post-pandemic to headlining tours all over. And THEN Travis Scott decided to sample them out of nowhere (and non-consensually, of course)...and rather than get angry they parlayed it into even more opportunities. Enter Percepticide, a continuation of the band's own take of electro-pop "horny club music" into a package that is frenetic at times, chill at others, and rather "DJ friendly" all over! And then...Rita's voice that makes you tingle in many of one's special places. Overall immersive, electric, and hypnotic, if there was an artist who is ready to break into the next level of the business, it's the PGs and this record solidifies that argument.

Seeming

The World (Artoffact)

When it comes to artists within our scene whose knowledge of the history of industrial and associated genres as well as the social awareness in which to understand it in plain English, look no further than Alex Reed and Seeming. Given the fact that we are living through countless historical events in our short lifetime, The World is written to be like an instruction manual in which to navigate it and weather the appropriate storms. Musically, it blurs a lot of the lines from which were drawn by synthpop's finest from then and now keeping the listener consistently on their toes. Not only is this probably the best synthpop record this year, but it was one that we didn't think we knew we needed.

Ships In The Night

Protection Spells (Metropolis)

This one you could call the sleeper of 2025, because this record really went largely unnoticed by a lot of people. They really didn't know what they were missing, as this release mixes lush and dark melodic synths with ambient and ethereal soundscapes that will make anyone swoop around on a normal goth night. I like to picture Ships In The Night as if Faith And The Muse and Depeche Mode had a baby, this would what it'd sound like...and the fact that their cover of DM's "Enjoy The Silence" doesn't suck (like most attempts at that song) really reinforces that comparison.

Slaev

Protection Spells (self-released)

This was another I went back and forth with, as it was another release I was not expecting to come back to time and time again. This electronic project from SLC drew up a few singles and an EP before this debut LP dropped, and it is a must have for those who love downtempo darkpop or witch house. It is soaked in bass, throbbing beats, and warped detuned vocals that are delivered in some of the cleanest production I've heard from a self-released record. If you love it dark (like dripping in hot asphalt dark), this is for you.

Spark!

Cirkeln Är Sluten (Progress Productions)

Infectious rhythms? Check. Catchy basslines? Check. Hyper-caffeinated energy? Check. Kickass album cover? DOUBLE CHECK! Swe-BM pioneers Spark! follows up their 2019 return Chaos with this near half hour long fusion of body music and pop elements that put them on the map almost twenty years ago as a reminder that sometimes you just got to keep it simple. It's what the Swedes do best (although we need to talk about those IKEA store layouts).

Static Ghost

Breaching Flesh (Verboden)

This LP from Olympia-based Static Ghost advertises itself as "a study in weaponized sound", and it definitely delivers that vibe. Breaching Flesh is a straight down the pipe Industrial & Body Music record with elements of American coldwave that hits hard from the beginning.

Youth Code

Yours, With Malice (Sumerian)

Fresh off the collab with King Yosef four years ago, Youth Code is back with another EP that comes at you short and not so sweet in typical YC fashion delivering aggressive post-industrial/almost punk rock rhythms met with confrontational lyrics and vocal performances to match. It's a pure 17 minute five song beatdown that makes you want to come back for more.

Zanias

Cataclysm (Fleisch)

Alison Lewis of Zanias has never been shy about the art she produces, whether it's pushing the boundaries on what dark alternative music should sound like to what it should be talking about. No matter if the soundscape sounds like trance or techno, or darkwave, hyperpop, or electro-industrial, her voice stands above all it and pulls it all together as a complete package. There's flowing textures and atmospheres on some tracks, and there are rave elements in others, and of course darkwave tropes here and there, There's chirpy synths and dark droney pads. The unifying element is Lewis and her incredible range as a vocalist and a songwriter rooted in her attachment to humanity, political consciousness and resilience.