Hit up a charity shop, flea market, estate sale, thrift store or vintage shop for planet-friendly, affordable gifts.
2026 est merde but there are small ways to show your loved ones some love and support your local community, band, label, bookshop, record store, chocolatier, venue, and letterpress genius on this most corporate and silly of holidays. It has never been more important to vote with every dollar you spend, so consider putting it back into your local community to keep the lights on for musicians, artists, photographers, designers, writers, and other small businesses. Rescue a pup, go birdwatching, build a hummingbird sanctuary or adopt an endangered animal!
You could give them experiences (photography class! a lesson in making fresh pasta! a private karaoke party!), handmade or homemade gifts (how about some protest sign-making materials), incredible edibles, original artwork from an artist you may know, or something that gives a chunk to charity. Skip the red roses (give them living plants or a tree instead!) or the mainstream chocolates! World peace begins with having each other’s backs. We have to right the ship, and it starts with LOVE.
I was super lucky and grateful to be included in some amazing music projects & shows in 2025, including:
All Girl Summer Fun Band opening for Bratmobile at Revolution Hall in Portland!
Super fun (and hot) summer backyard show with AGSFB, The Mistons and The “No” 3.
Goofing off, playing music, and writing and recording a song with Riley (Artsick) in her home studio in Seaside, CA.
Getting invited to record vocal harmonies on the new Artsick record and hanging out with Riley and Mario in Mario’s awesome studio in Oakland. I can’t wait for everyone to hear their new album, it’s so great!
Being asked by Dusty to play keyboards and sing in Rocketship. We’ve been practicing all year getting ready to tour in 2026 to celebrate the 30 year anniversary and reissue of A Certain Smile, A Certain Sadness. The songs are so much fun to play and I love playing with Dusty, Nancy & Andy!
Rocketship playing 3 songs for an episode of Playland Studio’s The Big Box Set (playlandstudio.com).
Tracy Wilson
Tracy Wilson – Outer World / Courtesy Desk In no particular order, here are things in 2025 that brought me great joy:
*Richmond’s Petit Four’s jambon + beurre baguette/my first beef on weck (I also really love visiting Buffalo)
*Kenny’s martini at home/ the fig old fashioned in Memphis at Bar Limina between Gonerfest sets
*Rostov’s Seville orange coffee on the stove after a cold dog walk – we keep it on low heat all December so our house smells incredible all holiday season
*Our rescue dog finally feeling safe enough to sleep soundly in our laps
*A newly renovated/redecorated bedroom and bathroom that feels peaceful yet invigorating.
*Self editing: letting go of things in my my life that no longer served a positive purpose, from bad habits like creating endless to-do lists, to doubles in our record collection, to energy vampire people
*Splurging on getting Veselka delivered to our home for a group of friends on Valentine’s Day and reading love poems out loud between courses.
*Ocean Vuong’s book The Emperor of Gladness that I would suggest to anyone who loves Harold & Maude
*Replacing the gardens around our home with native plants thanks to Ricky at Craft Natives
*Neighborhood friendships with the most incredibly kind, thoughtful, and strong women spanning the ages of 30 something to 70 something.
Tracy’s favesDawn Sutter Madell (right) from Agoraphone Music Direction / longtime CF contributor and her plus one, who happens to play in Girl Scout Handbook
Fanny tribute featuring Gossip and ESG at Lincoln center
Cindy Lee at Paramount
Cameron Winter at Carnegie Hall
Pulp at Forest Hills
The Tubs/Wedding Present at Music Hall of Williamsburg
Courtney Barnett at Lucinda’s
Devo at Paramount
Frankie Cosmos at Union Pool
Chicago Underground Duo at Public Records
Team Dresch at Elsewhere
Big Thief (ft Laraaji, Hannah Cohen, June McDoom & Alena Spanger) at Forest Hills
Patti Smith at The Met (Philly)
Robyn Hitchcock/Sharp Pins at Bowery Ballroom
Girl Scout Handbook/Off Pink Young Ethel’s
Here’s a photo of the crow on the Kyoto Imperial Palace grounds before it dive-bombed my head; it felt like I got hit by a basketball. (Photo: Evelyn Hurley)
2025 was a busy year, but I had some really lovely moments, here are a few of my favorites:
Riding the mail boat along the coast of Portland, Maine. I was visiting Portland, Maine, in January and had an afternoon free. My friend told me that the mail carrying boats make trips every day to all the little islands outside of Portland and you can pay for a boat ride and see all of the charming and isolated islands. So, I took this ride on a chilly winter day, and the water was so shimmery and bright, it was an invigorating, beautiful boat ride, and an exhilarating way to begin the year.
Visiting our son in Taiwan and visiting Japan. We spent two weeks in Asia visiting our son at school in Taiwan, and it was so exciting to be in a culture that I’ve never been in before and experience the sights and sounds of Taiwan. It was especially thrilling to have our son navigate us through the different subways, pathways, night markets, and museums. Our trip to Japan was incredible: visiting record stores in Tokyo, riding the bullet train, getting dive-bombed by a crow at the Kyoto Imperial Palace, seeing an immersive exhibit of Ryuichi Sakamoto, were highlights of an really wonderful trip.
Eating sushi in a Japanese train station. I know it might sound weird to us Americans considering the state of some of our train stations, but my neighbor told me before I went on this trip that eating sushi in the Tokyo train station was something we had to do! So on our last day we ate the most delicious sushi (while standing up,) and I think about this delectable and time conscious lunch experience quite often.
Riding my ebike to and from work. This might be a strange favorite moment(s), but after riding the Boston T for 25 years, dealing with delays and crowds, etc…, and riding a regular 7 speed for the past 15 years and dealing with the wind and heat, I bought an Ebike this past spring. I was not prepared for the convenience and ease of zipping to and from work along the beautiful North End waterfront bike trail, and looking at the Bunker Hill Monument throughout the year was a thrilling (almost daily) event for me. Highly recommend.
Here’s my Ebike, my favorite 2025 purchase (Photo: Evelyn Hurley)
I’m not sure how many bands I saw in 2025. More than 70 for sure. Here’s what I enjoyed the most:
MJ Lenderman, Franklin Music Hall, Philadelphia.
Saw MJ just as he stepped up to the 2000+ size venues. So languid, so compelling. Excellent players in his band.
Wednesday, Union Transfer, Philadelphia.
Speaking of MJ, Wednesday’s show supporting their album Bleeds spanned lots of their recorded output. Ferocious guitar sounds.
TAKAAT, Jerry’s on Front, Philadelphia
Stuffed into the very tiny Jerry’s for the trancelike guitars and drums from the Mdou Moctar crew.
Pinback and Hammered Hulls, Underground Arts, Philadelphia.
Two nights! I missed seeing Pinback in the early 2000s so I was captivated by their intricate songs and great vocals.
Team Dresch, First Unitarian Church, Philadelphia.
So delighted to see these queercore icons out playing shows again! Like many on this list, they were in fine form.
Gang of Four, Turner Hall, Milwaukee.
A band I never thought I’d get to see, to the point I flew to Milwaukee so I could catch this final tour. Ted Leo and Gail Greenwood were the PERFECT musicians to join original members. Taut, political, perfectly executed.
Chimers, Union Transfer, Philadelphia.
The Saints and Pissed Jeans were great, but I really loved Australia’s two-piece Chimers. Driving guitar and drums.
The Lemon Twigs, Ottobar, Baltimore.
I love them so much. I saw them in Tokyo in January, but this road trip to Baltimore was much more fun. They finished the set with a note-perfect cover of “Good Vibrations” in tribute to the recently-departed Brian Wilson.
Lifeguard, Warehouse on Watts, Philadelphia.
Only a few days after the release of their album Ripped and Torn (my fave album of 2025). Another band that has tapped into the best of British post-punk and Mission of Burma.
Lambrini Girls, Underground Arts, Philadelphia.
I’d seen enough online footage to know what to expect, but they were amazing. Unapologetically political. Crowdsurfing out to hold onto ceiling pipes, building a human pyramid in the pit, ripping through their songs. A+++
Wand, Johnny Brenda’s, Philadelphia.
Lots of jam band fans seem to show up at these Wand shows. Huge range, and always so compelling.
Holy Rollers, St Stephens Church, Washington, DC
The Positive Force 40th anniversary show was their first show in over 35 years and they were *incredible*. 90’s Dischord political band that is so urgent, so necessary.
Ink and Dagger, First Unitarian Church, Philadelphia
The basement had been transformed into a creepy dungeon with spray painted bedsheets on the walls and ceiling. Lights off, except for chaotic strobes and flashes, the band, covered in ghoul paint, absolutely ripped.
Unwound, First Unitarian Church, Philadelphia.
Playing their 1995 album The Future of What (and nothing else), Unwound was tight, disciplined and unforgiving in its ferociousness.
Mekons, Magic Bag, Ferndale, MI.
I was going to miss the Mekons show in Philly, so Jenny Toomey and I journeyed to Detroit to see them supporting their new album, Horror! I mean, it’s the full Mekons!!
These hold a special place in my rock and roll heart:
Pile, Underground Arts, Philadelphia.
Why was this the first time I’d seen this band?? Boston’s Pile hints at all the bands I love in the Unwound/Hot Snakes/Jehu lexicon. Blistering, political, unpredictable.
Eno on Four Screens, Athens, NY.
Each viewing of the Eno documentary is different. I mean that. It’s sequencing the clips in real time as you watch it. Now, imagine seeing it playing on four drive-in movie screens at once, each of them playing a different version of the movie. This was amazing on so many levels.
Rocket From the Crypt and Superchunk, House of Blues, San Diego.
What’s more fun than RFTC and Superchunk? Together? How about seeing them on Halloween!
Peter Schickele Memorial Concert, New York, NY.
Curated by his daughter Karla (Ida, Beekeeper) and populated with an incredible range of musicians, this loving look at Schickele’s body of work included everything from clever jingles for the classical radio station, to pieces written for 10 bassoons, to a giant singalong at the end.
Every show that Tsunami played with Ida on the Coin Toss tour. I think the show at Polaris Hall in Portland was the most special.
Scrawl, Deep Cuts, Medford, MA.
I love Scrawl so much!! This was the first of three shows with Tsunami drummer Luther Gray on the tubs and they were having such a good time. MORE SCRAWL IN 2026 PLEASE.
Stefan Zachrisson As Chickfactor’s Stockholm correspondent I give you my top 10 Swedish music of 2o25. Click on the links, listen to the music, and support the musicians and labels:
Cindy Lee’s “Diamond Jubilee”. It didn’t come out in 2025 but I don’t think I heard it until earlier this year. It’s a fantastically inspiring piece of work that has lit a renewed creative fire under me.
“I Saw the TV Glow” Again, it came out in 2024 but I don’t think I got to it until this last spring. It has become one of my favorite films of the past 20 years at least. Wears its influences tastefully while still being utterly unique in tone and tenor.
Tony Molina “On This Day” We had a wonderful tour with Tony and Lightheaded this fall, and the new album is absolutely gorgeous. Tony is a masterful songwriter and guitarist.
Lightheaded “Thinking, Dreaming, Scheming” Good pals of ours who just happen to make some of the best guitar pop on the planet. Cynthia’s songwriting reminds me of Linton’s in a lot of ways, with these beautiful, sometimes baroque arrangements and harmonic structures, and Stephen’s lyrics are really evocative and often really moving.
Cassie Ramone “Sweetheart” Cassie G’s new album is absolutely stunning. She’s a real one.
Massage “Coaster” Another wonderful slice of dreamy guitar pop mastery. Great folks, great band.
Time Thief “Time Thief” Our Providence pals put out this terrific and way too short album this year. RIYL Weirdo pop.
James by Percival Everett Could have been a high-concept slog in lesser hands. I mean, much…. lesser hands. Everett is one of the greatest living writers.
• first and foremost, our beautiful cats who brighten every minute of every day: ribbon, marlys, and maybonne
• the ida / tsunami coin toss tour, which brought me to tears of joy and then fits of laughter (usually at dan’s endearing stage banter)
• tortoise playing with the chicago philharmonic, and the way their collaboration transformed songs i’ve known and loved for decades (sending wishes into the universe for a live album release in 2026?)
• ‘we’ll prescribe you another cat’ by syou ishida
• the lonely island & seth meyers podcast
• the nooworks gentilhomme collection, which reminds me of curtains i had in my childhood bedroom
• cherished time with the mazzucco/watling family in san diego back in the spring
• the ruth asawa retrospective at SF moma
• seeing scrawl for the first time ever, not once but TWICE this year — after being a fan for 30 years
finally, our wonderful friends — thank you thank you thank you
Having Rob and Amelia from Heavenly drive the band around England, showing monolithic stones and yo-yo tricks to Adam, Cynthia, Madison, and I for a week straight.
My one afternoon with Mt Misery in Glasgow made my whole year worth it.
Late night hangs with Kenji and Adam at Kenjis flat will hopefully replay on my deathbed, I will never forget falling asleep on Kenjis couch to some of the best music I had never heard.
The incredible hospitality of Emanuel, Jeremie, and Hadrien in Paris, and walking out to open our show to a completely packed and sold out Supersonic.
Rachel Love giving me a Dolly Mixture cd in Brighton made me cry almost immediately upon delivery lol
Releases
Aside from all the excellent slumberland releases, like the ones from our tourmates Jeanines and Tony Molina, I listened to the new records by these bands a lot (in alphabetical order!)
Gail O – chickfactor editor in chief Nina Nastasia at Show Bar
Stuart Murdoch book event and solo set at Polaris Hall Michael Hurley Memorial at Cherry Sprout
Gina Birch at Mississippi Studios
Saint Etienne – International Sharp Pins – Balloon Balloon Balloon
Brian Bilston and the Catenary Wires – Sounds Made by Humans
Jeanines – How Long Can It Last
Edith Frost – In Space
Destroyer – Dan’s Boogie
Mei Semones – Animaru
Horsegirl – Phonetics On and On Edwyn Collins – Nation Shall Speak Unto Nation
Marissa Nadler – New Radiations
Robert Forster – Strawberries
Telephone Numbers – Scarecrow II
Dean Wareham – That’s the Price of Loving Me
William Tyler – Time Indefinite
The Real Tuesday Weld – Crow at Christmas
Flinch. – Misery Olympian
The Clientele – Violet Hour on vinyl
Salem 66 – Salt
glo-worm – glimmer on vinyl
The Motorcycle Boy Peel Session
Railcard – Railcard EP John Roseboro
Shouting Out Loud: Lives of the Raincoats (Audrey Golden)
Teenage Daydream: We Are the Girls Who Play in a Band (Debsey Wykes)
Futsal
Soccer City USA
USWNT
The American people saying HELL NO to this shit
Portland, Oregon – deserves the Nobel Peace Prize
A tough year even beyond the kakistocracy shitshow. I hated missing Sarah Cronin’s wake, YLT Hanukkah, Dromfest/Salem 66 songs, and a few other things, but it is what it is. RIP, Sarah and Shay
Franklin Bruno
It’s been decades since I listed, much less ranked, my top records of the year; I discover or rediscover so much older music through reissues or just crate-digging that I’ve stopped distinguishing past and present as a listener. But I can tell you about 24+ excellent shows I saw in 2025: two per month, roughly one rock/pop/“indie” and one jazz/improv/experimental, plus a few outliers. (NYC unless noted.)
Eljin Marbles, The Pick-Ups, Girls on Grass; Sanger Hall, 1/18
Susan Alcorn; Zürcher Gallery, 1/21
The Love Hangover (about 15 artists doing 2-song sets); Berlin Under A, 2/15
Lesley Mok/Lester Saint Louis/Craig Taborn: Bar Bayeux, 2/26
Angela Niescier/Tomeka Reid/Savanna Harris: Jazz Gallery, 3/12
Sloppy Heads; Main Drag Music, 3/14
Nels Cline Consentrik Quartet; Le Poisson Rouge, 4/14
Ida, private show, Laurel Canyon (CA); 4/27
Pomona College Balinese Gamelan; Bridges Hall of Music (Claremont, CA), 5/5
Robyn Hitchcock, Emma Swift, Philosophical Research Society (L.A.); 5/14
Sam Newsome/Anthony Coleman/Brandon Lopez/Nick Neuberg; Bar Bayeux, 6/18
Bug Club, Omni; Bowery Ballroom, 6/26
Mekons, Johnny Dowd; Bowery Ballroom and White Eagle Hall, 7/17-18
Matt Mitchell, trio w/ Kim Cass/Ches Smith, and solo; The Stone, 7/16 and 19
Tie: Open Hand, Landowner, Editrix; Union Pool 8/9 and Sable, Room de Dark, Sotto Voce; Bar Freda, 8/22
Gabrielle Stravelli Trio; Mezzrow, 8/12
[Wild Card: Lucinda Williams, Wilco, Bob Dylan, Willie Nelson; Jones Beach, 8/1]
Haircut 100, Chao; Sony Hall, 9/24
Cecile McLorin Salvant w/ NY Philharmonic; Lincoln Center, 9/25
Stereolab, Dorothea Paas; Brooklyn Steel 10/2
Sullivan Fornter/David Virelles/Kris Davis; Jazz Gallery, 10/4
[4-way tie]
Anthony Braxton, Composition No. 101 and Syntactical Ghost Trance Music, Roulette; 11/5
[Ahmed], Billy Steigers; Cafe OTO (London), 11/12
Ed Kuepper & Jim White, Mick Harvey; TV Eye 11/17
Tiers de Familia, The Scene Is Now, Deerfrance; Francis Kite Social Club, 11/22
Jonathan Paik/Shogo Yamagishi/Max Nguyen; Close Up, 12/14
Stephen Prina, For The People (of New York), and w/ David Grubbs; MoMa, 12/4 and 12/13
I can’t really list shows I played myself, but I have to put in a word for the absurdly talented people I made music with in 2025: my bandmates in The Human Hearts (Bob Bannister, Pete Galub, Matt Houser); Tsunami, our touring partners Ida, and onstage guests including Richard Baluyut, Clint Conley, Kate Pierson, Sally Timms, and Bob Weston; Laura Cantrell and the States of Country band (Jeremy Chatsky, Kenny Kosek, Mark Spencer); Beth Kaplan (of Salem 66) and Chris Brokaw. Career — no, lifetime — highlight: sitting in with Scrawl (Union Pool, 9/1) to play keyboards on Magazine’s “Song From Under the Floorboards” with Scrawl (Union Pool, 9/1).
• the 30+ sparrows who gather beneath my window every morning for black sunflower seeds – ever thankful
• recording and then performing with Wilie Aron, Emily Wittbrodt & David Nagler at The Bitter End
• the FolkEast Festival – such a generous vibe…meeting Sandy Denny’s daughter, Georgia…playing with Jon Wilks… hanging with Diana Matheou… and in the company of my daughter and niece
• attending a Brooklyn Cyclones baseball game
• playing The Chapel, SF, and McCabes, Santa Monica, during the April tour with Evie Sands and her stellar band
Sarah Cronin – Sarah’s death cast a large shadow over an already shadowy year, terrible and unfair and a huge loss… I suspect this won’t be the only time she is mentioned in this year’s lists, as is only right and proper.
Poker Face – Columbo meets the Littlest Hobo starring a live action version of the girl from Brave, and who could ask for anything more. It’s great!
New music from old bands – Pulp! Stereolab! Allo Darlin! All still wonderful and so much easier than hunting down new bands that sound a bit like them… and new Heavenly next year too!
True Grit Texture Supply – essential and ubiquitous brushes, tools and effects for your graphics package – have spent a LOT of fun hours playing in that sandpit this year
Plumbers- this year I found a good, reliable, affordable plumber and heating engineer- cannot be overstated.
Sade – I love Sade.
Biscuits – yes, biscuits – they are brilliant, especially the cheap own brand ones – what are your favourites? Drop a couple of packs into your basket next time you go for a big shop, and treat yourself when you get home – you deserve it (unless you are a fascist, a billionaire, or a POS PUSA – then you don’t)
Gilmore Tamny (Weather Weapon, The Mystery, The Yips)
These are things that interested and engaged me this year, which I’d recommendo. Some of them came out in 2025, some of them I just discovered this year. No particular order.
TV
Who Hired the Hitman
The Lowdown
Hacks
The Diplomat
Unknown Number: The High School Catfish
Heated Rivalry
An Update on Our Family
Pokerface
Mo
The Task
The Righteous Gemstones
Devil in the Family: The Fall of Ruby Franke
The Pitt
MOVIES/SPECIALS
The Perfect Neighbor
Deaf President Now!
Taurasi
Lilith Fair: Building a Mystery
Fairyland
The Wedding Banquet
Come See Me in the Good Light
The Baltimorons
PostMortem, Sarah Silverman
Why Kendrick Lamar’s Super Bowl Halftime Show Is America, Josh Johnson
Happy Gilmore II
Sorry Baby
The Secret Agent
MUSIC/LIVE PERFORMANCE
oof I need to listen to more music, BUT songs I found and liked very much this year and a few live shows:
Manchild, Sabrina Carpenter
Hold On, Ngozi Family
Denial is a River, Doechii
Chappell Roan generally
Scrawl
Ben Hersey, Non-Event show
Major Stars release show for More Colors of Sound
Ravon Chacon performance, ICA
SOCIALS
TIKTOK
· abbey.joselyn
· doggystylinguk
· kobimcnutt
· nicoleolived
· noodyxbums
· ship_spotting_
· journeyofjackson
· yoleendadong
· dpeezy2099
· oceanscary4K
· notoriouscree
INSTA
koreydior_
olya_with_squirrel
african_brutalism
PATREON
Christine Mcconells
The Cottage Fairy
YOUTUBIO
Broadway Barbara
That Practical Mom
Red Squirrel Studios (for cat enrichment–top notch)
BOOKS (all audiobooks FWIW)
The Unfinished Harauld Hughes, Richard Ayoade
Spent a Comic Novel, Alison Bechdel
The Dead of Winter: Beware the Krampus and Other Wicked Christmas Creatures, Sarah Clegg
Birnam Wood, A Novel, Eleanor Catton
History Lessons, Zoe B. Wallbrook
We Solve Murders, Richard Osman
Heartwood, Amity Gage
Vera Wong’s Guide to Snooping (on a Dead Man), Jesse Q. Sutanto
Generation Darkness, Elizabeth Hand
King of Ashes, S.A. Cosby
Margo’s Got Money Troubles, Rufi Thorpe
Sociopath, Patric Gagne
Rental House, Weike Wang
Havoc, Christpoher Bollen
Creation Lake, Rachel Kushner
Perfume and Pain, Anna Dorn
Glory Daze, Danielle Arceneaux
PODCAST
The Rest is Entertainment (I listened to nearly every single episode)
The White Pube
Crissle’s Couch
The Art Angle
Waldy and Bendy
Grits and Eggs Podcast (have not kept up but love what I heard)
Darknet Diary (selective listening but some NUTS stories)
Ed Mazzucco & Laura Mazzucco (Shelflife Records, Tears Run Rings, Autocollants) Our new kittens Diego & Mo (pictured above)
The Autocollants Reunion
Japan vacation
Highspire “Crushed”
The Cords
Quickly Quickly “I Heard That Noise”
Stereolab “Instant Holograms On Metal Film”
The Blue Herons “Demon Slayer” single
Vinyl Williams “Portasymphony”
Teenage Daydream book
The Umbrellas are proud to present our top 5 most played songs of tour. Various songs we’ve either heard at gas stations or just can’t seem to get out of our heads. Ever wonder what we are listening to driving up to the gig? It’s likely one of these here tunes.
1) J^ke – “this is what falling in love feels like” (2021)
2) Leikeli47 – “Girl Blunt” (2018)
3) Rascal Flatts – “Life is a Highway” (2006) , but we should mention Tom Cochrane’s original holds a place in our hearts
4) Rich Gang – “Lifestyle” ft. Young Thug, Rich Homie Quan (2014)
5) Chris Lane – “I Don’t Know About You” (2018)
Alicia Hyman (Jeanines)
The new Tony Molina record (On This Day) and touring with Tony Molina and Lightheaded
The Cassie Ramone record from 2024 (Sweetheart)
Biscuit and Heidi (my cats!)
Road tripping with Rob and Amelia (Jeanines/Lightheaded UK tour this past summer)
The End of Romance – Lily Meyer (Feb 2026)
Constantly – GG (graphic novel)
Frannie Choi poetry
My friends Zoë and James and their band Time Thief
Kendall Jane Meade – Photo: Jimmy Pham
Kendall Jane Meade
Best Movie: Train Dreams
Best Live Shows: Hannah Cohen, Oracle Sisters, The Ladybug Transistor, Mekons, Peter, Bjorn & John
Best Tour Memory: Visiting the Frank Lloyd Wright museum and Historic District in Chicago
Best Book: Nice Girls Don’t Win by Parvati Shallow
Best Doc: It’s Never Over, Jeff Buckley
Best Reason To Release An Album: I made my album SPACE to process complicated feelings around my divorce, but the best part of the process was that it led me back to growing and nurturing my musical community (not to mention my chops).
Best Songs Of The Year: “Long After Midnight” by Flock of Dimes, “Elderberry Wine” by Wednesday, “My Full Name” by Madison Cunningham and every single song on West End Girl by Lily Allen.
Glenn Donaldson (Reds, Pinks and Purples)
Music continues to be the only thing worth your time…some 2025 gems:
Vulture Feather – It will be like now
Maxine Funke – Timeless Town
Necks – Disquiet
Husker Du – 1985: The Miracle Year
Swiz – Complete Discography
Dania – Listless
Obscuress – Maltha
Christina Carter – Like a Bayou to its Gulf
Drunk Elk – Clear Skies in Effect
Matthew Smith Group – S/t
Caroline – 2
Scrabbled – Plough through the Rust
Lois Maffeo
January – Alan Sparhawk dancing and spinning around at the end of his show in Seattle. Physical release to begin 2025!
February – Listening to List of Demands LP by Damon Locks
March – Singing Strumpet with The Linda Lindas in Seattle.
April – Yo Yo A Go Go panel discussion at Evergreen. Recognition of some hard work that was disguised as magic-making.
May – Listening to the DJ Game radio show on KVMRx.org. DJ brothers Thom and Greg Moore astonish one another with wild hits.
June – Whales came to the Olympia end of the Salish Sea!
July – 25th anniversary of The Transfused – a panel discussion at the library on the queer rock opera conceived and produced in Olympia in 2000. Hear the prophecies of the anti-trans, oligarchical 2020s? I do!
August – Making a real time birthday playlist for a special person. Just call out the songs and hit play!
September – Watching Kicking Giant start their set at Northern Sky Festival by summoning a thunder storm!
October – Portland Frog! (And listening to When Boys Cry by Selector Dub Narcotic.)
November – ASMR Dumpling Making Theater in Tacoma by artist Yixuan Pan
December – Mark Robinson’s astonishing setlist. Hydroplane!
Mark Robinson solo show set list (from Portland). Photo: Adam Possehl
Paul McCartney Photographs 1963-64, Eyes of the Storm – a beautifully curated and deftly installed exhibit with about 250 photographs by Sir Beatle. The exhibit is as much about photography as it is about a young man making documentary souvenirs of a trip to America where he coincidentally is the center of attention. Even if one wasn’t a Beatles fan, this is worth seeing. There’s also a book of these photos, entitled Eyes of the Storm as well, which was published in 2023, and one I bought at that time. It was a delight to see the photos enlarged, sometimes to the size of an entire wall! A large part of why I enjoyed this so much is that the photos are from 1963 and 1964… the cars, the clothes, the buildings – all with such individuality and character.
Here are 10 records from 2025 that I listened to A LOT and enjoyed for various reasons. Heavy on the “friends” aspect as it is mostly people I know or have worked with, and artists I have loved my entire life, so their records are like old friends.
Life Death and Dennis Hopper – The Waterboys
The Melancholy Season – Benmont Tench
Horror – Mekons
Dear Life – David Gray
Horsegirl – Phonetics On and On
Neil Young – Oceanside Countryside
Patterson Hood – Exploding Trees and Airplane Screams
Joan Jett & Billy Idol are introduced by Pleasant Gehman on his first visit to Los Angeles in May 1978, promoting Generation X and their recent signing to Chrysalis. Joan was already a punk rock icon as a member of the Runaways. Idol is talking to Pleasant as Joan looks on. Photograph: Theresa Kereakes
Best things of the Year were:
seeing Amy Rigby in a dive bar in the afternoon, playing acoustic and reading from her book. It was like a high school reunion, and her first book was about her journey from her PA home to NYC, and this one is about her journey from NYC to Nashville, where I live, and where I saw her perform. It is a delight to see a woman of my own generation (she and I are a year apart, age-wise) still doing it DIY and making a real good go at it – AND marrying her punk rock dreamboat to boot.
seeing Billy Idol and Joan Jett on tour together. They have been pals since my punk rock best friend and I introduced them in 1978 and them touring together is the Best Thing of the Year because I feel like my misspent youth has made a material impact on the world. Billy did all sorts of promo celebrating the wild party we threw for them! He is still in good voice. Joan Jett is still a badass, and I enjoyed her ranting from the stage about how we have a hateful White House. When she sings “Everyday People,” I know she means it. She too is in good voice.
getting a last minute invite to see Booker T. Jones play in a church converted into a performance space. Another old familiar fave but, as he said, he’s 81 years old. He’s got a lot of stories. He played “Green Onions” about the 4th song in. He didn’t jerk us around. He delivered in church, playing organ, piano, AND guitar and singing.
And that’s all I can remember without looking things up, so it’s the memorable best of my year!
Band T-shirts are pretty much the only clothes I buy these days, apart from when essential items completely wear out and have to be replaced.There are many advantages to buying band T-shirts, and here are some of them:
-you can usually get them at gigs, which means you don’t ever have to visit clothes shops.
– the bands benefit, as the sale of one T shirt is worth about 6 billion streams of their songs on S p o t I f y. (By the same token, T shirt sales don’t help finance AI-based warfare.)
–socially, you might be at an advantage wearing a band T shirt, because other people who like the same band might talk to you. Actually, they probably won’t talk to you, because that would be awkward.But some kind of unspoken solidarity might hover in the air.
For me, the main advantage is that I do really love these shirts. Each one has memories embedded in its fabric. They are like diary entries, reminding you of something you don’t want to forget.
So here are my favourite band t-shirts of 2025. Most of them were acquired over the last twelve months but there are a few older specimens in there too.
HARD SKIN.I bought this at the Hard Skin Ladies Night a couple of weeks ago, where a dozen punk-adjacent women joined London’s finest Oi band on stage for a thrilling and raucous hour.Sean, the lead singer, had taken refuge at the merch stall at the end of the gig and sold me the shirt before being dragged back to the stage for a stupendous encore of ‘If The Kids Are United’.
THE MAGNETIC FIELDS.This might be my oldest band T shirt.I bought it when ‘69 Love Songs’ first came out, and I wore it again this year when Stephin and his group came back to London and played the songs from the album all over again. I’ve worn the shirt on my many occasions in between these two significant dates, and I have to give credit to the band for making such a durable garment.The only negative thing about this shirt is that it’s an ‘L’.The modern 69 Love Songs shirt that I bought more recently is an ‘XL’.The old shirt reminds me that I should have eaten less over the last 25 years.
TULLYCRAFT.I got this shirt when Heavenly and Swansea Sound played with Tullycraft in their hometown of Seattle.They hadn’t played for ages: I guess we infected them with the idea that there is no reason not to resurrect your old band, even if it seems a little undignified.And of course, they were brilliant.And they were dignified.Their songs are timeless, and so is this T shirt.
HOMESPUN FESTIVAL.I was given this shirt by Bob (Swansea Sound), who had helped organise this DIY festival in Rochester, Kent back in 2016.The shirt is actually about ten years old.Bob had stowed the merch away somewhere and only recently re-discovered it in a box in his attic and let me have a couple of the shirts.The Catenary Wires had played the festival, along with bands like The Claim, Pete Astor and Bob himself.Back then, me and Amelia shared a stage with loads of people who we didn’t really know at the time, but who would later turn out to be very good friends. That’s quite a nice story for a T shirt to tell.
RAMSGATE MUSIC HALL.My favourite venue in Kent, actually my favourite venue in the whole of the UK, makes a new shirt each year to raise funds.I can’t remember who designed this one – they have a different guest designer each year.But I like the idea that by wearing it I am making a tiny contribution to the maintenance of the Music Hall.Like most independent venues, it’s run on a shoestring and driven by a genuine love of live music.Without it, people in Kent would be much, much poorer.
WASTED YOUTH.This is my most fraudulent T shirt.I loved this band when I was very young.Their two early singles ‘I’ll Remember You’ and Jealousy’ were two of my favourites.If you like the Only Ones and are quite interested in Bauhuas but could live without their Gothic affectations, I recommend Wasted Youth.Anyway, they played this year at The Ramsgate Music Hall.I couldn’t go, because we were playing a show on the same night.But kind Al, who did sound at the Music Hall, got the shirt for me.So yeah, a bit fraudulent, but I do love it.
TULPA.We put this band’s debut album out in the Autumn of this year.Have you heard them?If not, you should.How can I describe them?Imagine if Dinosaur Jr decided to record pop songs with a female lead vocalist…Something like that.Anyway, it’s been great to get to know Josie, Dan, Mike and Myles and to hear their wonderful music. The sleeve design and the shirts they made were all pretty marvellous too, and here’s a picture of Amelia wearing her shirt.Mine is currently in the wash, so I can’t wear it right now.
THE LINDA LINDAS.We became friends with this band because of T shirts.When The Linda Lindas first started they asked if they could adapt the Heavenly ‘Attagirl’ design to make shirts that they were printing to raise money for a local charity.We said yeah sure, not expecting them to become a world-conquering indie rock band.We’ve now got into a bit of a rhythm with them, where we do occasional T-shirt swaps.That’s how they came to be wearing Riot Twee shirts, and that’s how I came to have my own Linda Lindas shirt.
THE CORDS.This wonderful band have made a big impact on us in 2025.Their debut album, as everyone knows, is a total delight.The band, along with their Mum and Dad (Lou and Marc) have become close friends after we spent a wonderful week travelling round England with them on their first headline tour south of the border. Marc gave me this shirt.Like all The Cords merch, it’s a lovely piece of design, and I am proud to wear it.
SASSYHIYA.If you have heard the Sassyhiya track ‘Crayon Potato’ you will know that Helen and Kathy, Sassyhiya’s songwriters, are very much in love with their cat, Crayon.Not content with writing a very good song about him, they also made a T Shirt that celebrates his furry existence.He is a magnificent beast.I haven’t encountered him in real life and maybe that’s a good thing: it’s never wise to meet your heroes.The song and the shirt will have to suffice.This picture was taken at the Skep Wax Weekender back in July, where me and Helen effected a T shirt swap.A nice memento of a great weekend.
Photo of LD from Gail O’Hara’s 2012 photo book which LD designed
It’s been 5 years since LD Beghtol passed away and since then his friends, former bandmates and collaborators have been wanting to pay tribute to him. Now it’s finally happening. His former bandmate in Flare, Charles Newman, will release the tribute album ALL THESE THINGS I THOUGHT I KNEW on his label Mother West. Linda Smith was also the driving force behind getting this thing to come to fruition. LD would have been 61 tomorrow, Dec. 13. Read the press release below.
cover art for All These Things I Thought I Knew – Artwork by Nick Moore / @nicholasmooreart
LD BEGHTOL COMPILATION TRIBUTE ALBUM All These Things I Thought I Knew will be released in April on Mother West
Album To Feature Renditions of Beghtol’s Songs By Linda Smith, Julia Kent, Stephin Merritt (The Magnetic Fields), Jon DeRosa (Aarktica) and Charles Newman, Kendall Jane Meade, Dudley Klute, Moth Wranglers, Stephen Coates (The Real Tuesday Weld) and Doug Hilsinger among others.
LISTEN TO JULIA KENT’S JUST-RELEASED TRACK, “EPHEMERA” HERE.
December 12, 2025; Los Angeles and Everywhere Else: Today, we announce the upcoming release of All These Things I Thought I Knew, a compilation tribute album to LD Beghtol, his life and music.
The announcement falls a day before what would have been LD’s 61st birthday and circa the 5-year anniversary of Beghtol’s passing. The album, slated for an early spring release on Mother West, will feature an enviable array of artists who knew, were inspired by, and collaborated with the artist who passed away tragically in December 2020.
Beghtol is, for many, best known for his role as one of the lead vocalists featured on The Magnetic Fields’ now classic album 69 Love Songs, having voiced heartfelt tracks like “All My Little Words” and “The Way You Say Goodnight.” But LD was a creative force and a prolific artist in his own right, leading the NYC chamber-pop outfit Flare, and all its subsequent incarnations, for over a decade, as well as releasing music under various other monikers like LD & The New Criticism. He was also a part of the experimental pop duo Moth Wranglers and TMF offshoot The Three Terrors.
In addition, LD worked as an art director for the Village Voice and wrote about pop culture for Chickfactor, as well as for Time Out New York, The Oxford American, The Advocate and the Memphis Flyer, his local paper for a time.
Beghtol’s passing inspired friend and singer-songwriter Linda Smith to connect with his former Flare bandmate and producer Charles Newman with the intention of compiling a tribute album of his songs.
Says Smith, “This album is a different kind of tribute album. It is a tribute to a musician by other musicians who knew and/or worked with him. Where other tribute albums may contain versions of well-known songs covered by artists who did not personally know the songwriter, the songs of LD Beghtol are not well known. Those of us included on this album wish not only to remember a friend and collaborator, we also hope to make these witty and memorable songs better known to a world too long unaware.”
Newman follows, “LD and I made so much music together and played some great shows. I learned a lot from him about music, art and history. My connection with LD deeply shaped the art I make and the way I approach it. His influence will forever live on in my work.”
All These Things I Thought I Knew features renditions of LD Beghtol’s songs by artists Linda Smith, Julia Kent, Stephin Merritt (The Magnetic Fields), Jon DeRosa (Aarktica) and Charles Newman, Kendall Jane Meade, Dudley Kludt, Moth Wranglers, Stephen Coates (The Real Tuesday Weld) and Doug Hilsinger among others.
“I loved him dearly: he was kind, witty, brilliant, unique soul, who felt things deeply but carried them lightly,” says the aforementioned Kent who is a revered cellist and composer. “His music was beautiful, baroque, acerbic, and heartfelt, like LD himself. It was always a joy to see him and chat about everything, from art to books to mutual friends and enemies. Being with him sometimes felt like being in another era: a more amusing and civilized one. He was an unbounded spirit and leaves an outsized hole in the world.”
Kent’s instrumental track, “Ephemera,” to be released tomorrow, December 13th (LD’s birthday) was inspired by the artist himself, and is one of the three original works featured on the tribute album along with a track composed by Stephen Coates (The Real Tuesday Weld). Coates’ song was originally written for LD to voice, and is now finally brought to life by Martyn Jacques of The Tiger Lillies. The third original track is the Stephin Merritt remix of Flare’s rendition of “Celebrate The Misery,” a song by Seattle band Kill Switch… Klik.
All These Things I Thought I Knew’s first single, “If/Then,” a Beghtol composition, was recorded for the tribute album by Jon DeRosa and Charles Newman was released on LD’s birthday in 2024 to mark the launch of this project. DeRosa, who has released music for decades as Aarktica, and like Newman, was a member of Flare, but was also a longtime roommate of Beghtol’s. It was in their Bushwick railroad apartment that Beghtol first shared a primitive version of “If/Then” with him so many years ago.
“In my mind, ‘If/Then’ is the quintessential LD song,” muses DeRosa. “Everything from its elegantly majestic arrangement to its lyrical brutality and vulnerability seems to bear his fingerprint.”
Consider every dollar you spend a vote for the world you want to live in: a better world is possible and we must keep pushing for it. That means avoiding corporations (or spending very little this year for many on a budget) and awful retail giants who pay no taxes and pay their employees so little they can’t make a living. Our guide focuses on community, creativity, mutual aid, supporting artists, musicians and writers, and encouraging gratitude, kindness, empathy and giving back.
GIVE THEM EXPERIENCES: Sign your friend up for kickboxing classes, give them season tickets to a women’s futbol team, a spa day, or take them out to dinner, a play, an art-house movie, time in a recording studio, ceramic lessons, or pasta-making classes. Book a treehouse getaway!
NATURE IS HEALING: There are many ways to support animal welfare, bird safety and wildlife thriving, along with giving humanswhat they need to survive in this stupid world: Head to Audubon, Wildlife Conservation Society, Save the Manatee, Oceana, the A C L U, and other do-gooders and buy things that benefit them! Also consider adopting a real-life rescue pup or a black cat or buying things that benefit animal sanctuaries, hummingbirds, bees, bats, and wildlife. Without pollinators, our species will not survive. Give seeds to grow food, make bat boxes, hummingbird feeders and give someone beekeeper classes! I don’t know anyone who doesn’t need a massage right now.
KEEP THE LIGHTS ON: Support your fave radio station like WFMU by grabbing a bucket hat, a hoodie from top labels, or even buy your loved one a public media subscription. Commission an artist or buy something they’ve already created or a photographer to take a portrait. Shop museum and gallery shops, independent book shops, small businesses, and of course record shops! (We like Jigsaw, Monorail, and Dusty Groove a lot, along with our wonderful stockists Atomic Books, Grimey’s, K Recs, Record Grouch, Sonic Boom, and Peel).
MUTUAL AID: If you want to buy nothing, that makes a statement but consider ways to invest in our communities, support artists, writers, musicians, photographers, makers, ceramic artists, record labels, small publishers, camera shops, food co-ops, farmers markets, help people eat, get the care or services they need, and donate to food banks near you if you can.
IT GIRL: The Life and Legacy of Jane Birkin The real queen of England finally gets a proper bio from an author who once wrote about chickfactor and other zines in the New York Times:
The first comprehensive biography of Jane Birkin—actress, singer, and legendary style icon—and her profound cultural impact, from the “acerbic, culturally astute, and genuine” (The New York Times) author of the instant New York Times bestseller Glossy. (Simon & Schuster)
“The first full-length history of the Shangri-Las, one of the most significant—and most misunderstood—pop groups of the 1960s.
Sisters Mary and Betty Weiss, together with twins Mary Ann and Marguerite Ganser, were schoolgirls when they formed the Shangri-Las in 1963, and had a meteoric rise to fame with songs like “Leader of the Pack” and “Remember (Walking in the Sand).” Their career was cut short for reasons largely beyond their control, derailed by the machinations of Mafia-linked record executives, and heartbreak and tragedy followed. Historian Lisa MacKinney marshals an impressive array of new evidence to tell the Shangri-Las’ story, dispelling many myths and long-standing mysteries along the way.” (Verse Chorus Press)
“John Davis understands that revolutions start at home. His reverent analysis of DC punk zine history, “Keep Your Ear to the Ground, is a sobering call of support for local, DIY culture. John’s book is definitive, well researched, and highly recommended.” —Bruce Pavitt, author of Sub Pop USA, cofounder of Sub Pop Records
“Art is a weapon and as deadly as steel cannons or exploding bombs. Art should not be pacifist nor mystic, but should send fighting people to the field of battle filled with the clear knowledge of what the real enemy is,” according to Woody Guthrie, a great American. The Guerrilla Girls have been busting down doors for decades doing the work required to highlight gender discrimination and income inequality in the art world. Now your kiddo can learn how to be a superfeminist and an artist!
This stamp set is great for anyone looking to get a feel for letterpress. Hatch Show Print has been a working letterpress studio since 1879! I wish I lived closer, I would be there all the time.
Snoopy Boombox Retrospekt just keeps refurbing and making things everyone would totally want. Via Moma Shop:
Features of the Retrospekt Snoopy Boombox include:
Powered by the included traditional plug-in power cord or by four D batteries (not included)
AM/FM/SW radio
Cassette play and record
Bass and treble adjustment knobs
Two built-in X-bass speakers
Headphone out 3.5mm audio jack
Bluetooth® connectivity to phone or wireless device
Track to track and play/pause controls for Bluetooth® connected device
With handle up: 7h x 14w x 6”d and Handle down: 5h x 14w x 6”d
The red telephone is not just a classic banger from Arthur Lee and Love, it’s also a product that I would love to hold up to my ear when I chat on the phone like an old person! From Moma:
Features of the Native Union Retro Pop Phone include:
Fun, retro phone handset design.
USB-C compatible with smartphones, laptops and tablets.
High-quality microphone and speaker for clear calls.
“This how-to guide for electric guitar beginners covers all the basics: tuning, chords, scales, solos, and all the other fancy-pants stuff you need to become the next Joan Jett, Jimmy Page, or Mary Timony. No ‘tech talk’ here, just good old-fashioned tricks of the trade and easy to follow diagrams.” (buyolympia)
Risotto Studio Calendar at Little Otsu We love Risograph prints and this limited edition hanging wall calendar from Glasgow’s Risotto looks smashing! Twelve months of fun colors, lunar phases, and this year’s featured language is Dutch so you can also learn the days of the week and how to phonetically pronounce the months. Risograph printed in Scotland on recycled paper. White wire binding with a hanging loop, comes in a plastic sleeve.
