ACTIVAIRE’S TOP ALBUMS 2025
Baby – Dijon
After a joint tour with Bon Iver and Mk.gee, a Paul Thomas Anderson cameo, production on not one but two Justin Bieber albums, getting married and having a baby, and a Grammy nomination, Dijon has solidified himself as a necessary figure in the Pop culture zeitgeist. And with all of that now under his belt, the California-based producer-singer-musician extraordinaire was ready to deliver his very own follow-up to his stellar debut, Baby.
Baby is a record filled to the brim with passion and a deep admiration for music, romance, and life as a whole. It is an album jam-packed with decades of music culture readily bursting through its seams, with Dijon passionately hollering Prince-like screams over frenetic and driving reimaginings of R&B, defined by its swirling melodies, staunchly off-kilter rhythms, divine harmonies, and unescapable hooks that bring a new sense of life to you with each listen. Dijon uses his diverse palette of sounds and grooves to deliver his most breathtaking performances to date. Bringing an unbelievable sense of physicality to his vocals through his showstopping croons and tongue-in-cheek verses, Dijon has made an undeniable record that evokes a zealous sense of emotionality like never before.
Getting Killed – Geese
When frontman Cameron Winter quietly released his solo record of tender ballads at the end of last year, nobody could have predicted the catalyst it was for Geese’s launch into Rock band stardom. Every headline, caption, and post online suggests that Geese is Gen-Z’s first great rock band, and with each passing day, it couldn’t be truer. Getting Killed may be the band’s fourth studio album, but it is the beginning of a long career as rock stars. It’s a record touching every corner of contemporary art rock: from explosive openers with aided screams from JPEGMAFIA and cunningly written tracks about taxes and crucifixion, to heartbreaking, crooning, delicate, yet emotionally charged ballads, Getting Killed covers everything anyone would want out of a band, making Geese a must-know group going into 2026.
LUX – Rosalía
Rosalía dominated the Latin sphere in 2022 with her genre-defying abstract reggaeton record, Motomami, a near-industrious reincarnation of a genre that thrives off varying rhythms and catchy flows. After three years of subtle output following the album that launched her into true global stardom, the Catelonian pop sensation returned with her most mind-altering work to date, LUX: a tight-knit 180 turned heads for its luscious and boundary-pushing take on classical orchestral and flamenco music. Throughout this album’s adventurous escapades, Rosalía manages to blend entire worlds through its instrumentation with a newfound depth like never before. It is a record that circles and swirls around the listener, dragging them into the depths of Rosalía’s intense writing and grandiose vocal performances backed by dramatic orchestral sections and a diverse set of gaudy choirs, building on the tension Rosalía yearns to bring the listener into. It’s like watching a stage play, with Rosalía front and center, ready to spill her heart out to a standing ovation.
DeBÍ TiRAR MáS FOToS – Bad Bunny
Bad Bunny came into 2025 with a bang, releasing his fifth studio album just five days into the year on Three Kings Day. Arguably, it’s his most beloved to date, and statistically, it’s the most-streamed album of the year. Bad Bunny is a superstar for a million reasons, but when it comes down to it, audiences love the authenticity and honesty of his musicianship. Time and time again, he crafts reggaeton albums that captivate fans globally with their undeniable hooks and multilayered instrumentation, truly defining what reggaeton means to a global audience. His latest record, DeBÍ TiRAR MáS FOToS, brings his Puerto Rican roots to the front of his sound, blending his reggaeton and dembow base with a traditional salsa flair, celebrating his culture through the modern sounds he pioneered in popular music. It is a record unwilling to sacrifice Benito’s identity, bringing an honest and deeply personal connection to his music that has always been there, and will continue to be there for the rest of his career.
Choke Enough – Oklou
French singer, songwriter, and electropop underdog Oklou has been unafraid to disconnect from the world and float into the void. The pop abstractist spent most of her time offline while creating her debut album, Choke Enough: a warbled interpretation of pop through an ambient, drumless view, carrying you through the rhythms and grooves with each new encompassing melody and rhyme scheme. Her disconnection from the online world led to her creating an album that focuses on the connections around you, tender not only in sound but in spirit. This record has been a definitive part of 2025’s soundtrack, its fluttering melodies, deep, rumbling pads, and ever-changing percussion perfectly contrasting the maximalist sounds dominating mainstream channels while still captivating audiences.
Essex Honey – Blood Orange
Dev Hynes’s musical moniker, Blood Orange, has always been an outlet for raw, unfettered emotion presented through the palatable sounds of indie R&B. The tones he experiments with and plays with twist and turn into something more abstract and tender, much like his major influence, Arthur Russell, did with disco and folk music. Essex Honey is a hazey yet carefully crafted dream pop record, thriving off its sprawling soundscapes of deeply layered instrumentation and a diverse set of collaborations (Caroline Polachek, The Durutti Column, and many more). This wide array of sounds and influences makes an interdimensional record, hazy yet steadily driven, electronic yet natural, sharp yet flowing, as all good Blood Orange albums are.
Is It Now? – Automatic
Automatic has been a quintessential band in the third wave of Dance-Punk revivalism since the start of the decade. The American, all-girl Post-Punk act has been making stellar records since the beginning of the decade. Their new album, Is It Now?, blends the psychedelic and warbled sounds of dub reggae with grooving basslines and snappy drums, creating a record that is both trippy and driving. Their abstract sounds and sheer palettes make for a cutting-edge dance record, defining Gen-Z’s tastes in Post-Punk.
Big City Life – Smerz
Smerz was a definitive name in the carefully curated sounds of the titularly-titled Copenhagen scene this year. The Norwegian Indie Pop duo is known for the experimental electronic edge. But on their newest album, Big City Life, the Scandinavian musicians hone in on the city-slick sounds of Trip Hop, bringing a nineties edge to the indie pop sphere through sly lyricism and playful instrumentalism. Their single, You Got Time And I Got Money, was named Pitchfork’s second favorite song of 2025, and is one of Activaire’s favorites too.
Friend – James K
James K is a musician who has floated around the avant-garde pop sphere for over a decade, but her AD93 debut, Friend, put her on the larger indie pop map. Her album is a collection of ethereal Trip-Hop tracks that travelled dimensions to get here. She draws on the iconic sounds pioneered by Warp Records’ Ambient IDM roots to create music that will define any atmosphere in which it’s played. James K not only showcases her techniques as a producer but also presents an album of exceptional vocal performances and otherworldly writing, fully embracing the extraterrestrial calm of her carefully crafted songs.
Star – 2hollis
2hollis has been making a name for himself as a part of a new generation of pop stars ready to redefine how the mainstream sounds. After having an unprecedented year among the chronically online music circles that have birthed many of Gen-Z’s biggest names and genres, the 21-year-old songwriter/producer Wizz released his long-awaited album, Star. 2hollis explores his thoughts and feelings on his newfound fame through the new age sounds of pop music to come. He mixes the catchiness of 2010s radio tunes with the avant-garde sounds of his underground rap, dubstep, and electroclash upbringing. His sound is a breath of fresh air, creating a record that seamlessly blends internet culture into mainstream spaces with effortless ease.
Mark William Lewis – Mark William Lewis
Mark William Lewis’s self-titled album turned heads this year for several reasons; it’s the first non-film release to come out under indie film studio A24 (Moonlight; Uncut Gems; Ladybird); its promotional material was shot entirely by Steve Gullick, one of the most significant photographers in modern alternative English music history; but above all, Mark William Lewis released a record quintissentially capturing the eerie calm of London after dark. This album is full of contemplative moments and reflections of self, pastiches of south London boroughs, and tightly knit performances, creating a tender mix of breezy and grungy tones that blend and twirl together like carefully woven pieces of thread. Mark William Lewis’s self-titled is nothing short of stellar, coming from a musician who has studied and is ready to continue a lineage of great English songwriters.
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