Washington, DC | Five D.C. area record shops and their favorite new albums from 2025: 2025 brought a number of album releases that kept us grooving from January until now. But there was so much new music released this year that it is nearly impossible to enjoy it all…or even to know where to start. WAMU arts and culture reporter Darryl C. Murphy paid a visit to some of the D.C. region’s top record stores to find out what new albums from 2025 topped their favorites list, as well as some local acts to look out for in 2026.
Minneapolis, MN | Minneapolis’ top record store names its 2025 bestsellers: In-store appearances paid off for artists who made it to Minneapolis’ best-known record store in 2025, but they couldn’t top the performer behind this year’s much-ballyhooed Super Bowl appearance. Kendrick Lamar’s “GNX” was the Electric Fetus’ top-selling record of 2025, according to the store’s annual year-end list. Released to streaming sites in November 2024, the album was issued on vinyl in January just before the Pulitzer Prize-winning Los Angeles rapper’s halftime gig at Super Bowl LIX in February and his tour kickoff at U.S. Bank Stadium in April. “The Super Bowl gave it a boost, but really it’s been a steady seller all year,” said Jim Novak, the Electric Fetus’ music buyer. “I think that’s a testament to how it’s just a very solid record.”
Akron, OH | Popular Akron record store closes after nearly 25 years in business: The Akron community has said goodbye to longtime record store Square Records. “I’m not too pleased about it, because this was my favorite spot to go,” said customer Brian Corrigan. The store opened back in 2003 in Highland Square and quickly became a community staple. It was known for its wide selection of post-punk, new wave, independent, hip-hop and jazz. “One thing that really drew me to this place is it has a more curated selection compared to other record stores,” said customer Aidan Miller. For over 23 years, the record store became a hotspot people looked forward to visiting.
Kansas City, MO | Drop the Needle: A guide to KC’s record stores. Even in the age of digital streaming, independent record stores across Kansas City are alive and well. There’s something grounding and intentional about the tactile nature of vinyl: dropping the needle, flipping the disc and taking in an album from start to finish. From vintage rarities to new releases, the records at these local shops are keeping the art of listening alive. Sister Anne’s Records and Coffee: In the ’90s, Frank Alvarez and Jim Oshel’s friendship blossomed as co-workers at the vinyl shop Westport Recycled Sound. The business closed in 2006, but the pair remained close as Oshel put down roots at Overland Park’s now-defunct Vinyl Renaissance and Alvarez opted for a career change at Broadway Cafe. Today, the duo co-owns Sister Anne’s Records and Coffee.
We’ve done the reissues, so now let’s dive into the best new releases of 2025. Here’s part one.
20. Tyler Keith, I Confess (Black & Wyatt) This set came in late in the year, not exactly out of nowhere (there was an email announcing its arrival), but surely with short enough notice that its wild, wailing roots rock and soul purge delivered a surprise in raw fidelity. Giving it a handful of spins to see if it’s holding up resulted in an emphatic affirmative. It sounded even better than it did before. Recorded in a kitchen on a four-track, there’s enough echo to inspire assumptions that it was cut in a cranny of the Grand fucking Canyon. Immaculate scuzz.
19. Marshall Allen, New Dawn (Mexican Summer) and Marshall Allen’s Ghost Horizons, Live in Philadelphia (Otherly Love) Saxophonist Marshall Allen is the current director of the Sun Ra Arkestra, a large ensemble he’s been so dedicated to since joining way back in the 1950s that he just released his debut album as a leader in 2025 at 100 years of age (entering the world record book in the process). It’s a feel-good album for a year in which a whole lot of feel-bad shit has been happening. New Dawn came out in February, and Live in Philadelphia in May. With selections from nine performances, including guests as diverse as James Brandon Lewis, Yo La Tengo’s James McNew, and Wolf Eyes, it’s a beautiful burner.
18. Ayumi Ishito (feat. Kevin Shea and George Draguns), Roboquarians, Vol. 2 (577). This vinyl-friendly label has a tactic I like, which is breaking long sessions down into shorter, more digestible volumes. That’s not the story with this set, though. The scoop is that drummer Shea and guitarist Draguns isolated their instrumental contributions from a recording with an unnamed third party when it was clear that the trio wasn’t making the grade, and then asked 577 Records veteran Ishito to blow mightily in tandem with said recording. It went so well that they actually cut a session together afterward, Vol. 1 (released in 2024). Their sound? Punk-jazz of an exquisitely distinctive stripe. Gobble it up, if ‘tis your bag.
17. Shannon Wright, Reservoir of Love (Vicious Circle) Born in Jacksonville, FL, but currently a resident of Bordeaux, France, Wright made her solo debut in 1998 (after a long stretch with the band Crowsdell) and then released a string of full-lengths that came out every few years and were total winners up to Providence in 2019. Reservoir of Love marks an exceptional return after too long a break. Wright has been a powerful vocalist, guitarist, and pianist across her discography, and the eight tracks comprising her latest make clear she hasn’t lost a thing. Indeed, she’s come back with some of her very strongest material.
10. Jeanines, How Long Can It Last (Slumberland) Indie pop continues to inspire a high number of outfits to write songs and practice them, then record them and release them to a public that’s ever hungry for jangling and chiming guitar melodicism. It’s a genre with an unusually high percentage of success, likely because the bands are doing it out of love and not for fame. Jeanines are clearly smitten as they add some gorgeous ache to their sharp, ’60s-influenced songs. Repeated spins haven’t revealed a flaw in the construction. This here’s the indie pop record of the year.
9. Nadah El Shazly, Laini Tani (One Little Independent) This is Egyptian-born Montreal-based El Shazly’s second album, which she wrote and produced, contributing her voice, piano, additional keyboards, and electronics to the instrumental weave. Welcoming Sarah Pagé into the scheme on harp and electronics and Patrick Graham on percussion and hydraulophone (Jonah Fortune plays upright bass on the title track), El Shazly blends experimentation and traditional Arabic sounds in a manner that’s striking and unique.
8. Deradoorian, Ready for Heaven (Fire) Angel Deradoorian was a contributor to a number of key recordings by Dirty Projectors and has also taken part in Decisive Pink’s reality (it’s a side project with Kate NV), but far more relevant to the here and now is this stellar third solo album, which offers Downtown NYC dance grooves, Krautrock-tinged art-pop, Silver Apples-flavored electro-psych, a solemn neo-baroque processional, post-punky collage spillage, diva soul synth-pop, and more. Giving this the clear edge over similar albums in the same zone is that Deradoorian recorded the whole shebang herself.
7. Noura Mint Seymali, Yenbett (Glitterbeat) Mauritanian vocalist Seymali is a griot who also plays the ardine (a harp-like instrument similar to the kora). On this, her third album, she extends the Moorish griot tradition in bold fashion with the contributions of guitarist Jeiche Ould Chighaly, bassist Ousmane Touré, and drummer Matthew C. Tinari. Produced by Mikey Coltun, who has also worked with Mdou Moctar, this is a robust and thorough contemporizing by Seymali and company, resonant and lacking in any false notes. Desert Blues fans should not flake.
20. The Paragons, On the Beach (Charly) The UK-based reissue imprint Charly has had a presence in the record store bins for decades. It’s great to see that the label is still going strong by putting out records that will either be difficult (if not impossible) to find or insanely pricey to procure in good quality, in an original pressing. For example, there’s this swell slice of rocksteady from The Paragons, which came out way back in 1967 on Duke Reid’s Treasure Isle label. Including the original version of “The Tide is High” and featuring backing from Tommy McCook and The Supersonics, this set is a total delight.
19. Bratmobile, The Real Janelle and Peel Session (Kill Rock Stars) Bratmobile’s beautifully back-to-basics attack could really get under the skin of some listeners back in the day, and that’s likely still the case. Favoring a buzzy and at times kinda surfy feel that was nearer to Beat Happening and Girl Trouble than the blistering fury of others in their Riot Grrl cohort, Bratmobile could still let loose with the rage when it hit them. This combines their ’94 EP and subsequent Peel Session, and the whole still barely breaks 20 minutes.
18. Salem 66, Salt (Don Giovanni) Like a slew of 1980s underground bands, the Boston-based Salem 66 was underrated while active and posthumously neglected but not forgotten. This collection, issued on vinyl and CD, coincides with the digital reissue of what appears to be the band’s entire catalog (this is a model more contemporary reissue programs should employ). Salem 66 caught some occasional guff while extant for being a little too college rock in orientation, but the reality is that their approach was appealingly moody post-punk.
17. Ken McIntyre + Eric Dolphy, Looking Ahead (Craft Recordings) Obviously, the commercial hook here is Eric Dolphy, but please notice that Ken McIntyre’s name is favored size-wise in the cover design. McIntyre, who was later known as Makanda Ken McIntyre, was, like Dolphy, a multi-instrumentalist attracted to the edgier regions of the ’60s-’70s jazz scene. He recorded into the early ’90s as a leader and sideman with Cecil Taylor, Archie Shepp, Bill Dixon, and others, passing in 2001. Taking this album’s title into consideration, Looking Ahead is still a very approachable set, and it’s very deserving of reissue.
10. Charlie Haden, Live at the Jazz Record Mart (Delmark) This is a fascinating document of an 1988 in-store held in the celebrated Windy City record shop owned by the late Bob Koester, who also founded and operated Delmark Records. The digital release features a lot more talking, much of it at the start, as California resident Haden gets acclimated to his Chicago environment, but there is also some playing that’s not included on the vinyl. This is worth mentioning as the event captured is truly a special one. There are many duo albums in Haden’s discography, but no solos, until now. And yet the whole is wonderfully casual, which only magnifies its worthiness.
9. Archie Shepp and the Full Moon Ensemble, Live at Antibes (Lmlr) This 2LP was part of the glorious spate of recordings, most of them live, made by US free jazz musicians on sabbatical in Europe at the dawn of the 1970s. Initially released by the BYG Actuel label as two separate volumes, this compilation combines them, as the two performances, each over 48 minutes long, are split across opposing vinyl sides. Shepp is in strong form in a sextet with the too seldomly recorded Clifford Thornton, the way too seldomly recorded Alan Shorter (Wayne’s bro, don’tcha know), plus Joseph Dejean, Bob Guerin, and Claude Delcloo. Things are already beautifully harry, and then Shepp starts shouting.
8. Mercenárias, Baú 83-87 (Munster / Nada Nada Discos) These Brazilian post-punks have landed tracks on assorted compilations over the decades and even had an anthology devoted wholly to themselves on the Soul Jazz label (released under the name As Mercenárias). In 2018, Nada Nada Discos released this collection of non-album tracks, live material, and a “lost” studio session, and now here comes Munster, doing the world a solid with this very deserving fresh edition. Mercenárias, at least across this set’s 20 big ones, never smoothed out the jagged edges, so anybody down with the sound of prime early Rough Trade should step right up before this one’s gone again.
7. The Verlaines, Some Disenchanted Evening (Schoolkids) Featuring the smart and often biting lyrics of Graeme Downes, the songs of The Verlaines are equal to the work of The Chills and The Clean (and The Bats and Tall Dwarfs) in terms of quality. There’s a very attractive disdain for simplicity in Downes’ songs (it’s almost like he’s a prog rocker at heart) as he manages to always stay on the pop course, often to thrilling effect. Equally wonderful is the core toughness in the instrumentation that reinforces (without making a big deal of it) how this stuff was made possible by the revolution of 1977.
10. Clikatat Ikatowi, The Trials and Tribulations of… (Numero Group) Post-hardcore emerged in the 1980s (DC, Louisville, Chicago, Boston) as young musicians gained adeptness on their instruments and became frustrated with the stylistic restrictions on the right side of the hyphen. However, this new genre really flourished in the decade following as a younger generation absorbed the foundational post-hardcore records and caught the bands (that didn’t quickly break up) on tour.
9. Kenny Burrell with Art Blakey, On View at the Five Spot Cafe: The Complete Masters (Blue Note) This is the second, and one would assume, given the titular addendum (although one can never be sure), final expansion of performances originally recorded in 1959 and released the same year. Capturing guitarist Burrell in the midst of a fertile creative stretch, these 14 selections across three LPs alternate a quintet with tenor saxophonist Tina Brooks, pianist Bobby Timmons, bassist Ben Tucker, and drummer Blakey with a quartet where Brooks lays out, and Roland Hanna takes Timmons’ spot.
8. Xmal Deutschland, Gift: The 4AD Years (4AD) Formed in 1980 in Hamburg, Germany, with an all-female lineup, Xmal Deutschland emerged as part of the Neue Deutsche Welle scene, releasing their first single on the NDW-affiliated ZickZack label. That means Xmal is aptly categorized as post-punk, but it was a Goth orientation that surely attracted the band to 4AD’s owner-operator Ivo Watts-Russell and, by extension, landed them in late ’80s US import bins.
7. Ida, Will You Find Me (Numero Group) Marking the quarter century anniversary of what was to be Ida’s major label debut (for Capitol), the fourth album by this enduring New York City band (properly released by Tiger Style in 2000) gets a massive expansion, available either as a four LP or five CD set, with the latter holding a whopping 103 tracks (the vinyl comes with a download of the entire kaboodle).
His iconic photographs of the Ramones, Patti Smith, Television, Blondie, Talking Heads, Richard Hell, and many more offered a window into that world that stays with us today. It’s an astonishing record.
Melbourne, AU | Spin city: Melbourne is officially the record store capital of the world: With 5.9 stores per 100,000 residents, Melbourne is home to more record stores per capita than any other city on Earth. …For The Record, a new study commissioned by the Victorian Music Development Office, has found that Melbourne boasts more record shops per capita than any city on Earth: 5.9 stores per 100,000 residents, beating Tokyo, London and Berlin. With 119 independent record stores, the city is home to half of Australia’s independent vinyl outlets. The research, delivered by Ethan Holben and Audience Strategies, took a deep dive into Victoria’s vinyl ecosystem, from pressing plants (Victoria produces 66 per cent of Australia’s total) to distributors and retailers who keep local music alive. The findings reveal a city that spins a whole heap of records, and 
Monterey, CA | Recycled Records in Monterey celebrates what is believed to be 50 years in business. If your grandparents had a record player and lived in Monterey, then chances are something in their collection came from Recycled Records – or perhaps is on the shelf there now. Half a century marks the time Recycled Records is believed to have been in existence, but it has changed hands a lot during that time. Still, the same analog attitude is felt when you walk in: A record is often playing on the house system and has a story behind it that shop owners Kellen and Bree Cookson can tell. …The couple has been collecting records individually for about 15 years. Recycled Records stood out to them as 
