The 20th Best Album of 2025
Wooo we made it to the top 20! And to kick it off we have an alt-country/indie rock banger, Wednesday's Bleeds.
So Asheville's own Wednesday has been at it for almost a decade now, with their first full length album coming in 2018. I remained ignorant to their existence until 2023 release Rat Saw God got some love, and boy was I indifferent to that album. It was fine, and maybe if I went back and listened to it now I'd appreciate it more, but I don't remember too much about it, and doesn't that really say it all?
So when I saw a new single of theirs drop I was like, oh cool another Weatherday single sick. Then I heard Elderberry Wine and was like, damn this is pretty cool but sounds absolutely nothing like the other singles from Hornet Disaster wtf. Then I remembered how to read and saw it was an entirely different band and the world made more sense. But that happy accident did lead me to take more interest in Bleeds when it dropped, and I'm very thankful it did. The album is mostly country, and as mentioned previously there just isn't enough good country or country adjacent music being made so I love anything that can bring that to the fore. But there are also noise rock vibes, even a little screamo in Wasp. The lyrics are the real star here I think, really capturing how small towns can get left behind and the issues that pervade them. Addiction, loneliness, depression. Asheville is a fkn metropolis compared to SW Wisconsin but man at times it feels like these songs could have been written of our hometown. I think the first half of this album is a top 10 pace. Townies, Elderberry Wine, Wound Up Here By Holding On, all incredible tracks. And it's not like the back half is bad, hence it being here and not further down the list. It just doesn't quite keep up in my view. But like Maruja just before them, I will be excited to see what comes next for these guys, because with songwriting like they showed on this album the sky is the limit.