THE 2025 ROUND-UP: PART 18

What an ending

To close out his chapter as The Weeknd, Abel knew he had to pull out all the stops and go crazy on this album. That's exactly what he did. This is such an insane and cinematic experience.

A lot of people will see the length and dismiss is as another bloated pop album. This is obviously not the case at all, as the experience he's curating makes having a long album justified. Is it too long though? A little. The run of songs from the ... read more

THE 2025 ROUND-UP: PART 17

Yeah I love your computer too

Shit slaps. The way she hearkens back to early 2010s sounds reminds me of my favorite album from last year: SMILE! :D

I love all of the transitions and how the album basically feels like one long song or a ever-flowing experience. Production is always killer, and I love what she brings as a vocalist. Lotta character in this music.

Also, iPod Touch and Sing Good are such touching songs. The genuine love for music and growing up with it ... read more

THE 2025 ROUND-UP: PART 16

This is the DON'T TAP THE GLASS for... oh wait

I'll keep the review short like the album. This is fire. Wowww I love dancing to this. Such great emphasis on why Tyler is so special to me: production. Production wise this is one of the most Tyler albums ever. Especially I'll Take Care of You. That song is just the embodiment of why I love Tyler.

I also love him for his world-building, but him dropping that for once was cool. The album really is as ... read more

THE 2025 ROUND-UP: PART 15

LIKE A RING OF FIRE BABAAAAYYYY

Dijon really knows how to work a certain magic that not many others can. From the weird but captivating production to his vocal performances that overflow with passion, he makes songs that light a fire in my soul.

I just love the way he approaches music. He seems to be doing it for the feeling he can get out of himself and anyone else who wants to listen (and boy do these songs make me feel something). Everything comes from a ... read more

THE 2025 ROUND-UP: PART 14

this is culturally inappropriate

Imma be real... I didn't listen to this album that much this year. I was definitely into it when it came out, but I guess I just became more occupied with different releases moving forward (and different genres tbh). My appreciation for it never went away, but I really wish I spent more time with it because GOTDAMNNNNN

This really was Clipse's year. I say that not just in terms of the impact this album had, but their ... read more

THE 2025 ROUND-UP: PART 13

Whimsical ahh tunes

This album really grew on me. Loved the sonics of it from the beginning, but the songwriting didn't fully connect with me. It was mostly the song structure that felt off for me for a bit, as they were always moving between ideas within the longer songs, and I felt like it didn't always flow. For whatever reason, I don't feel that way about those songs anymore. Maybe I just got really into how pretty and whimsical everything sounds, ... read more

THE 2025 ROUND-UP: PART 12

It's just so fun

Yeah, a lot of these songs are short and really just there for a vibe, but like... Dom Fike is all about vibes. He might not hit the mark every single time, but it hits, it HITS. He has a certain sound that I can't get enough of.

These are lowkey some of the most replayable songs of the year. I kinda surprised myself with how much I was getting into this mixtape through the late summer/fall. I kept coming back to listen to Great Pretender ... read more

THE 2025 ROUND-UP: PART 11

Bro got sober just to make this shit 😭

Joking, obviously. This album is pretty awesome. Danny doing features for a lot of these artists and then announcing that they're all on his new album was so hype.

We all know that Danny can rap over anything, and this album proves it. The production is wild but incredibly fun. You can tell what Danny's purpose was with this album, and he definitely succeeded. It's one hell of a good time.

The one thing that ... read more

THE 2025 ROUND-UP: PART 10

It's cool

I don't wanna be one of those people that's just like "well, it's no Forever Story...", but that is kind of the main thing I'm thinking. TFS was so much more focused and consistent. I respect him trying to do more of the pop stuff to show his versatility, but it kills the momentum of the album a little bit.

For some reason, the strong cuts aren't really as strong for me either. Still great, but there's ... read more

THE 2025 ROUND-UP: PART 9

Dammit Lenker, you've done it again

I only listened to this album one time when it came out, and then went back to certain tracks a few times here and there. I knew I liked it, but didn't think I would be crazy about the entire thing based on what I remember from my listen.

I'm happy to say that I was wrong. I'm not head-over-heels in love with all of these tracks, but I found myself really enjoying what the band curated pretty much the entire ... read more

THE 2025 ROUND-UP: PART 8

0/10 for having d4vd in the writing credits

In all seriousness, this is a really nice and consistent album. The whole sound of the project is great, but unfortunately, things sort of blend together for me a little bit. If I'm ever really feeling the vibes of this album, a full spin would be nice, but overall, I can only see myself going back to the highlights.

Lush production, sweet lyrics, and those heavenly Kali melodies we've come to know and love. Good ... read more

THE 2025 ROUND-UP: PART 7

Oh yeah, hip-hop is just fine.

I might say more later, but I'm gonna keep this really short and scoreless for now because this was actually a first listen... yeah, I'm a little late to the party.

Anyway, HOOOOLY SHIT this is really good. High quality everything. Production/live instrumentation is so full of life, and the rapping is full of passion and character. It immediately gave me CARE FOR ME vibes for whatever reason, which is one of my comfort rap ... read more

THE 2025 ROUND-UP: PART 6

Don't worry Kevin, I get it

Probably the most overhated album of the year. I totally understand all of the criticisms on the production or writing or whatever, but likeeeee.... I think y'all are being a little too harsh. Some tracks could've definitely used more spice, but I find that I can actually get into the vibes of the album pretty easily.

My biggest criticism is that the album doesn't feel very cohesive. I've definitely gotten more ... read more

THE 2025 ROUND-UP: PART 5

same person who made copyright strike my fucking nuts btw

Goes haaaard. Not sure what else to really say. Love the grittiness and those raw ass vocal performances.

There are some songs that drag a bit or have the same punch as the highlights, but my opinions on the songs stayed consistently positive throughout thanks to that song style that I really dig.

Believe, Recoil, and Dead forever are three of the best songs of the year. Recoil in particular hits me right in ... read more

THE 2025 ROUND-UP: PART 4

"Like the boy Roy Ayers say, can't throw away my life standin' in shade"

If Earl up then we up. So nice to hear that he's at a cool and optimistic place in his life.

The short songs work in his favor just as much as they did on SRS, but in a completely different way this time. I love his philosophy on just using one song as one statement, and once he decides he finished that statement, the song is done. Seeing him use this approach in times ... read more

THE 2025 ROUND-UP: PART 3

Thank you Carti for inventing music 🙏

I'm honestly kinda surprised that I'm scoring this as high as I am, but after going back to all 34 songs, I've decided that despite the bloat, this is a good album. Carti obviously knew that he needed to feed the fans, so loading the album with songs is a move I actually kinda respect.

I think we learn overtime to not take Carti albums too seriously. I can catch a vibe on a lot of the songs here, and to me, ... read more

THE 2025 ROUND-UP: PART 2

What happened... to the original plot... of the movie??

Okay, this record is still pretty damn good, but I can't help but feel like it took some major missteps. Not gonna lay them all out in detail, but the biggest thing I'll say is that the album starts really consistent, but kinda loses it and never really finds it again. There are nice tracks throughout, but the first 4 tracks are easily the highlight.

In fact, that 4 track run is so good that I'm ... read more

THE 2025 ROUND-UP: PART 1

DON'T TAP THE GLASS for the girlies. Short but oh so sweet.

Pink is basically doing everything she does best here, but the way she carves out a distinct character for herself with the UK themes and influences is what makes this special. She's incredibly charismatic, and I think certain parts about her great performances, such as the iconic ad-libs or background moments, are what really tie everything together for me.

While I appreciate the sound ... read more

ALBUM OF THE DAY 3/17/25

GREAT STORYTELLING AND BEING A SICK BAND AT THE SAME TIME??

On today’s episode of nerd albums, I revisited this BCNR album that has become beloved by many after only 3 years. I listened to it one time about a year and a half ago, but I forgot about most of it (other than my favorite track, which I’ve probably listened to 30 times). My revisit was absolutely incredible, and now I can pinpoint what makes this band so cool.

With bands that focus a lot on ... read more

ALBUM OF THE DAY 3/14/25

IT’S FINALLY HEREEEEEEEEE

When I was a sophomore in high school, I heard that Carti’s next album would be titled MUSIC. 3 years later, after a terribly long rollout, the album is FINALLY out.

There was obviously an insane amount of hype for this album because of how long it took, but did it live up to that hype? Eh. Honestly, the hype for me was just waiting for the album to be out. I didn’t really care about how good it was. I knew Carti was gonna ... read more