Nov 30: Favorite Covers
Dec 7: State of Americana
Dec 14: Favorite Songs
Dec 21: Christmas Christmas
Dec 28: Favorite Albums
At some point we've tried on most of our ten favorite albums for size, deciding fit and style to assess whether each would work as a year-end favorite. Some were just too itchy, while others made us look barrel-shaped. Over the past several days, everything has fallen into place nicely. While we realize that it's not really the LPs that make us look barrel-shaped, we've arrived at that peace that surpasses all understanding. We hope our thirty favorites below contain some surprises and some reassurances that Routes & Branches will continue to make you the coolest among your peers.
Good news is that the spirit of music discovery remains strong, that there's never a time when we're despairing about the availability of excellent new stuff. And while this year has necessitated paring back our posts, we're confident that we haven't lost the bright thread that's carried us through the past eighteen (18) years of this thing. What passes for mainstream americana might seem stale and wheezing now and then, but we've never really respected those borders anyway - only five of our thirty favorites hold a place on the Americana Music Association's one-hundred
most played records.
So take a few minutes to stare at our annual list, waxing opinionated and casting aspersions as your time permits. We're grateful for our fellow bloggers who take the time to share their original thoughts and express their passions. We're especially pleased with our regular readers who continue to visit our humble online adobe in hopes of finding a couple things to add to their own playlists. And, of course, it would be harder to do this without the artists who push against the frontiers of our kind of music, those who dive deep and surface with something that changes the way we see our world, or at least gives us something neat to listen to while we wait for suppertime.
WHAT's SO GREAT ABOUT 2025: FAVORiTE ALBUMS
1. Fust, Big Ugly (Dear Life, Mar 7)
As we wrote presciently upon the record's release: How have I been, Dowdy wonders on the pretty "Heart Song", Have I been okay at living. This new project is a phenomenal step forward for Fust, beautifully broken but capable of great melody and genuine feeling. Like Richard Buckner's watermark Devotion + Doubt, Big Ugly is a terrific blend of quiet and noise, with Dowdy and cohort setting the early bar for the year's best album.
2.
Ryan Davis & Roadhouse Band,
New Threats From the Soul (Sophomore Lounge, Jul 5)
Who knew that the world yearned for extended, rambling alt.country? The second project from Davis and his outfit has made an unexpected appearance on several higher-profile year-end lists. No great surprise that the thing has appealed to us, with the proggy roots arrangements and enigmatic but good natured lyrics. As amiable as seven-minute tunes can be.
3.
Big Thief,
Double Infinity (4AD, Sep 5)
Boldly bursts the bubble built by Dragon New Warm Mountain, letting in the world. Sends Adrianne Lenker's intimate songs grooving into the cosmos. Who else is capable of growing from a whisper to a hallelujah without abandoning their thread?
4.
Geese,
Getting Killed (Partisan, Sep 26)
Yes, us too. Cameron Winter 'n co. abandon themselves to the muse. With Getting Killed, Geese have created a sound both nostalgic and imminently current. In the midst of all the attention, we're both excited and afraid to hear what's next.
5.
Alan Sparhawk & Trampled by Turtles,
Alan Sparhawk & Trampled by Turtles (Sub Pop, May 30)
A collaboration that was initially unimaginable, but one that has turned out to be brilliant. Essential. Sounds like nothing less that the Low veteran (indie rock) fronting a progressive roots outfit, and reveals unexpected shades for both.
6.
Weather Station,
Humanhood (Fat Possum, Jan 17)
Joni Mitchell is Joni Mitchell, but few if any artists are as worthy of carrying her mantle forward. Tamara Lindeman excels equally with folk, jazz, and electronic sounds, expressing warmth in arenas that can emphasize distance and difference.
7.
Ken Pomeroy,
Cruel Joke (Rounder, May 16)
Our first proper americana selection, if you're counting. Pomeroy's songs are simple and simply elegant, quietly confident like Anna Tivel or early Gillian Welch. Her plainspoken approach speaks volumes, her songs and delivery sufficient to lure and maintain our attention.
8.
Wednesday,
Bleeds (Dead Oceans, Sep 19)
While Karly Hartzman and her cohort are more strongly embraced by the indie crowd, Wednesday have become one of the hallmark acts in our kind of music. While still impressively eclectic and plenty noisy at times, Bleeds is more focused than '23's breakthrough, Hartzman's writing steadier.
9.
Brown Horse,
All the Right Weaknesses (Loose, Apr 4)
Here's what we said upon hearing the first single: Next to the printing press and penicillin, the corduroy fabric is among our greatest inventions. Running close behind is the singing voice of Brown Horse's Patrick Turner (followed by the light bulb). The UK band's 2024 album, Reservoir, was among our surprise favorites for the year. With its shared lead vocal from Phoebe Troup and a sweet little guitar line, "Corduroy Couch" might be a stronger song than anything on that debut. Incidentally, our favorite inventions list will be published next week, with graham crackers and fire also figuring in.
10.
Pigeon Pit,
Crazy Arms (Ernest Jenning, Jan 17)
From our review in the early days of the year: Perfection is overrated. Given the choice between polish and passion we'll gladly choose the latter, a quality flowing freely on the fourth LP from Olympia's Pigeon Pit. Frontwoman Lomes Oleander barks, gasps and emotes her songs, lyrics that passionate invoke friends and settings, bare sustenance and abandon. Crazy Arms is a breathless punk-folk howl.
11. Florry, Sounds Like ... (12XU, May 23)
The offbeat charm of Florry's third album is the product of Francie Medosch's offbeat sound and sensibility. Alongside her evolving cast of collaborators, Florry's riff-happy country-rock speaks to a spontaneity and looseness, a sweet imperfection.
12. Joelton Mayfield, Crowd Pleaser (Bloodshot, Oct 24)
We'll go to our grave defending the opinion that singer-songwriter is not a genre. Mayfield's eclectic debut isn't the sound of some guy singin' and strummin' his diaries. From our review: Like Jason Hawk Harris or Richard Buckner, Joelton Mayfield pieces together his work with sonics and space, a soulful delivery and unguarded lyrics that make Crowd Pleaser among the year's most accomplished debuts.
13. Margo Price, Hard Headed Woman (Loma Vista, Aug 29)
While previous projects have landed higher on our year-end charts, Price has never sounded more in her element than on this country-straight collection. Most written with her partner Jeremy Ivey, Price's new songs are instantly familiar, spendidly aged and spirited.
14. Racing Mount Pleasant, Racing Mount Pleasant (R&R, Aug 15)
Truly original, RMP delivers the gift of prog-roots, with horns and time changes and extended jammy bits. Ambition without pretension.
15. Dove Ellis, Blizzard (Black Butter, Dec 5)
Released on December 5, this one sneaked just under the wire for our year-end list. Like fellow Irish troubadour Damien Rice, Ellis imbues his work with plenty of drama, firmly rooted in the fertile peat of the country's folk traditions. Much of that emotion is communicated from Ellis' delivery, which falls near Jeff Buckley or even Thom Yorke.
16. Folk Bitch Trio, Now Would Be a Good Time (Jagjaguwar, Jul 25)
Australian Trio With Silly Name Makes Genuinely Pretty Debut. Much less disruptive than their name might suggest, the indie folk Trio build their songs from their lovely harmonies outward. Will make honorary Folk Bitches out of even the most cautious listener.
17. Anna Tivel, Animal Poem (Fluff & Gravy, Sep 26)
Few if any artists on our year-end list are as immediately recognizable as Tivel, whose entire catalog is stamped with her precious hushed delivery. Her new record is especially subtle, but it's also smart, beautiful, and deeply felt.
18. Neko Case, Neon Grey Midnight Green (Anti, Sep 26)
Neon Grey arrived as a companion piece of sorts to Case's enjoyable memoir, The Harder I Fight the More I Love You. Leaning into the more theatrical nature of her music, the songs can be mercurial and stormy, poetic and writ large.
19. SG Goodman, Planting By the Signs (Slough Water, Jun 20)
Goodman is a master of building a vibe, using the tools of Southern stories, language and sound. Her third solo LP takes its inspiration from rural culture and a rootedness in rich soil and hard work. Like Bonnie Prince Billy, that connection is heard in Goodman's voice as a singer and guitarist.
20. Snocaps, Snocaps (Anti, Oct 31)
Here at R&B HQ, we enjoy the unexpected. Barely hinted before its Halloween release, this project from the Crutchfield Sisters, MJ Lenderman and Brad Cook proved a great surprise. Like a perfect weaving of PS Eliot and Waxahatchee, Snocaps serves as a fine companion piece to Waxahatchee's excellent roots-flavored work.
21. Free Range, Lost & Found (Mick, Mar 28)
We're not positive that we invented the term bootgaze, but we're certain that, on their second album, Sofia Jensen epitomizes the sub-genre. Free Range's songs are intriguing and understated, not unlike Elliott Smith with a roots music education.
22. Patterson Hood, Exploding Trees & Airplane Screams (ATO, Feb 21)
Thirteen years since his last solo collection, the Drive-by Truckers frontman was long due. Guest like Lydia Loveless, Wednesday, and Waxahatchee aren't really necessary for Hood to grab our attention, though they serve to acknowledge his standing among peers. A stronger set than we'd expected.
23. Jason Isbell, Foxes In the Snow (Southeastern, Mar 7)
Having raised the profile of his 400 Unit with a series of very well-received records, this spare solo project was just the thing Isbell needed to do. Far from lazy or incomplete, the songs are intimate and personal, stories that sound best delivered with an unadorned acoustic guitar.
24. Greg Freeman, Burnover (Transgressive, Aug 22)
The indie songwriter's follow-up to the 2022 cult favorite I Looked Out could never be as much of an out-of-nowhere phenomenon, even as Freeman continues to please with his Molina-esque work. Beneath the satisfying noise and yawl there is some terrific songwriting happening, and it's that noise and yawl that raises Burnover above most other roots-adjacent stuff.
25. Turnpike Troubadours, Price Of Admission (Bossier City, Apr 4)
Seven albums in, Evan Felker and his veteran Red Dirt act have little left to prove. Their second project with producer Shooter Jennings simply satisfies with fine songs, tastefully delivered. There's an effortlessness to their sound that can be misleading, a professionalism that shouldn't be taken for granted.
26. James McMurtry, Black Dog & the Wandering Boy (New West, Jun 20)
McMurtry stands as one of the very few artists of his generation who are still creating music that matters. While his voice can betray his years, he remains an almost peerless songwriter, an especially effective storyteller.
27. Alex G, Headlights (RCA, Jul 18)
Harbors our favorite song of the year ("Afterlife"), which sounds like little else in the indie DIY multi-instrumentalist's busy catalog. One moment this uncompromising collection is musically naive, while the next is orchestrated like a Brian Wilson suite. File under CHARMING (just after CHALLENGING).
28. Janet Simpson, Can I See You Tonight (Cornelius Chapel, Sep 19)
Over the years, the Alabama artist has honed her craft as a member of acts like Wooden Wand, Delicate Cutters, and Timber. Her 2021 solo debut caught our attention, but this follow-up raises the bar with edgier arrangements and even some pop-leaning moments.
29. Laney Jones, Laney Jones & the Spirits (AHPO, Nov 20)
Carves a jagged new edge for our kind of music. Such a welcome, raw gesture from a bandleader who deserves to be mentioned alongside Courtney Barnett and Jenny Lewis. Possibly the foremost guitar record on our list.
30. Red River Dialect, Basic Country Mustard (Hinterground, Nov 14)
David John Morris is rather new to us, though the British folk songwriter has been practicing his trade for nearly twenty years, both as a bandleader and a solo figure. With Red River Dialect, his songs range from pastoral to driving, deploying fiddle, pipes, whistle, and drone as needed. Less ornate and more organic, Mustard charms behind the alchemy of its players.
--------------------------
