ALBUMS WE LOVED! May 2025
A genre-agnostic round-up of May's most exhilarating album releases.
Featuring Farmer’s Wife, Drew Kennedy, Cuco, The Commoners, The Happys, Skinny Lister, Blue Foundation, Time Thieves, Kill Your Boyfriend, Sugar Bomb, Dropsonic, Yogi-G and The Family Tree, and Matthew Nowhere.
Farmer’s Wife - Faint Illusions
Photo credit: Kylie Bly
Faint Illusions plunges into a sludgy dreamscape where gothic decay meets grunge melodicism. Molly Masson's voice floats between eerie lullaby and cathartic howl, threading surreal, romantic horror through tracks like Mildew and The Ballet.
The band’s layered guitars and brooding rhythm section create an unsettling beauty, equal parts shoegaze shimmer and alt-rock dread. It’s a feverish, theatrical listen that pulls you into a dreamlike spiral that’s as disorienting as it is beautiful.
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Drew Kennedy - Drew Kennedy
Drew Kennedy’s self-titled album finds him stretching his sound with drum machines, synths, and stirring lyricism that feels lived-in. Nerves erupts with purpose, threading tension into a full-band storm, while Halo leans into melodic pop with jangly '90s guitars.
Kennedy’s acoustic roots stay close, grounding songs like Lizzie and Keep Mind Of the Wind in plainspoken warmth. Each track feels like a snapshot; some tender, some wry, all shaped by experience.
It’s a confident, open-handed collection from an artist still chasing what moves him.
Connect with Drew Kennedy
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Cuco - Ridin'
Cuco’s Ridin’ leans into the warmth of vintage soul while pushing his sound into new soundscapes. Produced alongside Tom Brenneck, the album trades his usual synth-heavy textures for live instrumentation and a richer vocal range, highlighted by his delicate falsetto and an ear for melodic understatement.
Tracks like Para Ti and Walk The Way unfold with a gentle sway, channeling Southern California’s lowrider sound through laid-back grooves and romantic melancholy. There’s a cohesion here built on feel rather than formula. The production stays grounded in analog warmth, thanks in part to Brenneck’s retro sensibilities, while Cuco’s bilingual lyrics and vocal phrasing bring a modern, personal twist.
Songs like My 45 and ICNBYH nod to heartbreak without theatrics, balancing sweetness with restraint. The album brims with the slow roll of city drives and emotional memory, offering a fluid ride through Cuco’s evolving voice and sense of self.
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The Commoners - Live in the UK
Photo Credits: Haluk Gurer
Live in the UK finds The Commoners feeding off a roomful of energy, pushing their roots-rock sound into heavier, freer soundscapes. The recording is wide open and full-bodied, with guitars stretching, solos expanding, and arrangements breathing more than on the studio versions.
The band leans into the live format with a loose-tight balance; tight enough to hit hard, loose enough to let moments land naturally. It’s a performance that feels like a direct line to the stage, no polish needed.
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The Happys - Listen to The Happys
Photo credit: Michael Chan
Listen to The Happys overflows with fuzzed-out guitars, sun-baked riffs, and a loose, off-the-rails charm that nods to the band’s grunge and punk influences without sounding stuck in the past.
There’s a rough-edged humor in both tone and texture, helped along by a mix of unconventional recording spots and big-name collaborators who bring a messy polish to the chaos.
The production swings between heavy and playful, making the album feel unpredictable in the best way.
Connect with The Happys
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Skinny Lister - Songs From The Yonder
Songs From The Yonder is a loud, lively record that blends their signature folk-punk energy with sea-soaked melodies.
Built around live studio takes and minimal edits, it buzzes with energy and spontaneity, full of stomping rhythms, rowdy choruses, and flashes of tenderness. The arrangements balance boisterous sing-alongs with more reflective detours, all held together by a clear sense of identity and purpose.
This is the sound of a band tossing their past and future into the same pint glass and raising it high.
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Blue Foundation - Close to the Knife
With Close to the Knife, Blue Foundation continues to carve out their distinct world of dream pop and ambient electronica, where shadows stretch long, melodies drift like fog, and every sound feels considered.
Across the album, the band leans into glacial pacing and atmospheric depth, blending textural synths, soft-edged guitar lines, and ghostly vocal layers that feel more like a presence than a performance. There’s a rotating cast of vocalists, each bringing subtle shades to the record without breaking its cohesion.
The album feels like one continuous current, pulling you through minimal percussion, immersive sound design, and a steady emotional undercurrent that lingers without shouting.
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Time Thieves - Come Home
Come Home sees Chicago’s Time Thieves doubling down on what they do best: guitar-driven power pop with earworm hooks that stick in your head. The EP wastes no time; each song is concise, high-energy, and anchored by sharp melodies and crunchy riffs that nod to their punk roots without leaning too hard into them.
The band’s chemistry is tight, a product of their collective years in the Midwest punk circuit. There’s a confidence in the way each element fits - jangly guitars, punchy drums, and layered vocal lines that keep things moving at a brisk, satisfying pace.
Instead of overcomplicating, they focus on feel and form, packing every second with melody and momentum. Come Home is a quick hit of pop-rock adrenaline and leaves just enough on the table to make you hit repeat.
Connect with Time Thieves
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Kill Your Boyfriend - Disco Kills
On Disco Kills, Italian duo Kill Your Boyfriend expands their post-punk roots into darker, dancefloor-ready soundscapes. Drum machines and analog synths dominate the mix, creating a sharp contrast with the guitar-driven work of their previous releases. The result is a six-track EP that shifts the focus toward rhythm and mood, blending the band’s signature gloom with flashes of electronic brightness.
There’s a strong retro-futurist current running through the record, with nods to pioneers like Kraftwerk and Moroder woven into the DNA of each track. The production leans toward minimalism, giving the songs space to breathe while maintaining an undercurrent of tension.
It’s a tight, deliberate collection that balances a sense of melancholy with the pulse of late-night energy. This is magnificent.
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Sugar Bomb - Sweet
Sugar Bomb’s debut EP, Sweet, is exactly what its name implies: mellow, smooth, and built on a warm groove that gently unfolds over five tracks. While rooted in jazz, the Asheville trio doesn’t stick to purist conventions. Instead, they stretch the genre outward, letting threads of psychedelic soul and ambient textures drift into their laid-back sound.
The band’s instrumental setup gives space to each member’s background. Jacob Bruner’s keys shimmer and shift, Joe Enright’s drums hold a steady, fluid pulse, and Eli Kahn’s bass brings both structure and warmth. Rather than relying on a vocalist, Sugar Bomb lets melody pass through keys, bass, and occasional sax lines that feel expressive without saying a word.
The result is a loose but thoughtful record that doesn’t try too hard; it just sounds good. Sweet may be their first release, but it already shows a band that knows how to say more with less.
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Dropsonic - Dropsonic
Photo Credit: Calvin Florian
Atlanta trio Dropsonic roars back to life with their first album in over 15 years, and it’s all fire. Co-produced by William DuVall (Alice In Chains), the record is a stripped-down, guitar-heavy blast of alt-rock that leans hard into volume, precision, and chemistry.
The riffs are thick, the solos come fast, and the tightness between the three members feels earned through years of playing side by side. There’s a sharpness to the production that gives each track muscle without sanding down the edges.
This is the sound of a band doing what they do best - louder and more fired up than ever.
Connect with Dropsonic
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Yogi-G and The Family Tree - Show Me The Truth
Happy Mondays drummer and co-founder Gaz Whelan takes the driver's seat on Show Me The Truth, a genre-fluid album that fuses classic Madchester grooves with an experimental edge.
While the project embraces 1990s nostalgia, it’s not a rehash. Instead, it brims with urgency and invention, shaped by Whelan’s lyrical bite and his restless, shape-shifting production style.
Across the album, string flourishes and distorted guitars crash into gospel-tinged rhythms, funk lines, and shades of punk.
It’s an unpredictable, driven record that feels like it had to be made, and the result is as fierce as it is inventive.
Connect with Yogi-G and The Family Tree
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Matthew Nowhere - Crystal Heights
Photo credit: Anjali Rivera
Matthew Nowhere’s Crystal Heights is drenched in analog synths, dreamy vocals, and pulsing drum machines that echo the golden age of '80s new wave. Tracks like Echoes Still Remain and Love Is Only What We Are blend shimmering hooks with moody textures, while Persist3nce adds choral flourishes and darkwave layers.
The production is warm and tactile, giving every synth sweep and beat a physical presence. There’s a cinematic sweep to the album; melancholy at times, but always reaching toward uplift.
A strong debut full of heart and retro charm.
Connect with Matthew Nowhere
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About Chris Roditis
Chris Roditis has been an active musician since 1995 in various bands and projects across a variety of genres ranging from acoustic, electronic to nu metal, british rock and trip hop. He has extensive experience as a mixing engineer and producer and has built recording studios for most of the projects he has been involved with. His passion for music steered his entrepreneurial skills into founding MusicNGear in 2012.
Contact Chris Roditis at chrisroditis@musicngear.com
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