2025 was another year of flaunting for the ever impressive beast that is female-led pop domination. The now iconic line up of legends and future greats, and their growing class of inspired apprentices, have punctuated the year with defiance and celebration in the form of fantastic pop songs. The prevalence across festival stages, TikTok trends, and radio are telling of the power that this entity basks in but doesn’t take away from the deserved success of most of it.
Lady Gaga’s Mayhem took the crown for me this year, it’s an all round well planned and polished album with a perfectly effortless feel and a strong sense of character, and sometimes that’s exactly what you need music to be. The other most enjoyable and meaningful release of the year for me was the record-breaking The Life of a Showgirl by Taylor Swift, another thoughtful and expertly crafted album that will go down in history, despite the excitable criticism that inevitably came with it by those strangely praying for her downfall.
In a year when punk and rock were limited in their new music offering, Gaga’s injection of quirky, theatrical rebellion into what would otherwise be considered a Dance Pop album filled the void for me. The perfectly catchy “How Bad Do U Want Me” lured me in with the suggestion that Mayhem might be a return to roots for Gaga, now bragging so many strings to her bow that a throwback pop album could only be worth making if it was perfect, and it is.
“Garden of Eden” and “Killah” are amongst some of my favourite ever Lady Gaga songs, the high energy electropop tracks are complimented by the coolest confidence, but they’re just two examples of the self-assured spirit that makes this album such a great listen, you can just feel that she cares about it, but with zero desperation. It would be nothing new to highlight the impressive vocals that Gaga is capable of, but the assertive nature of her voice is as comforting in Mayhem as it is impressive. The ballads tick every box they should, with just enough weird energy scattered through them to know who you’re listening to. I couldn’t turn it off, and I think it will go down as one of her most representative albums, in the very best way.
Three More Essential Albums of 2025
Taylor Swift - The Life of a Showgirl
Turnstile - Never Enough
Motion City Soundtrack - The Same Old Wasted Wonderful World
Musical Experiences of the Year
2025 was the year I finally made the trip to California to experience Vans Warped Tour for the first time, and it delivered on every level. Highlights were the longest and happiest crowd-surf of my life during A Day To Remember’s energetic set, and the sun setting over the sea of skaters, checkerboard logos, and elder emos with burnt shoulders as Sublime provided a moment of laid-back escapism. I was also lucky to witness the great return of Oasis in their hometown a couple of weeks before, July was a memorable month for live music.
Track of the Year
Taylor Swift “The Fate of Ophelia”
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