Our Ten Finest Worldwide Records of 2025
The past twelve months have offered a rich tapestry of worldwide sounds that defied expectations. We explore ten remarkable albums that characterized the year in music.
10. The Percussionist Sarathy Korwar – There Is Beauty, There Already
An album consisting of a single, extended movement of repetitive percussion might not seem the most approachable musical proposition. However, south Asian percussionist and producer Sarathy Korwar converts this insistent rhythm into a unexpectedly magnetic piece. Guiding an ensemble of three drummers, Korwar develops a dense percussive language throughout the record's ten sections. The work channels minimalist concepts from Steve Reich alongside traditional Indian musical phrasing, each grounded in the reiteration of a ongoing, thrumming refrain. The longer one listens, this refrain begins to emulate the hypnotic repetition of devotional music, luring the listener further into Korwar's unique percussive world.
Number Nine: Yasmine Hamdan – I Forget, I Remember
Following an long absence, Lebanese singer-songwriter Yasmine Hamdan makes a comeback with a melancholy collection of songs. It continues exploring the Arabic-sung, dub-tinged style that cemented her status in the Middle Eastern independent music landscape since the 1990s. Hamdan's voice is gentle and ruminative, singing soft melodies over the bowing strings of a track like Hon and the rumbling trip-hop groove of Vows. On livelier tracks such as Shadia and Abyss, she adopts a quivering, yearning vocal technique against electronic lines with North African flavors and skittering electronic percussion. The musical backdrop is minimal and understated, yet this minimalism offers the ideal environment for Hamdan's emotive songwriting to take center stage. This is a record truly deserving of the wait.
8. The Mexican Producer Debit – Slowed Down
From Mexico electronic artist Debit excels at eerie reworkings of historical sounds. On her most recent project, Desaceleradas, she zeroes in on the 1990s variant of cumbia rebajada – a decelerated, dubby version of the rhythmic Latin American dance genre. Debit decelerates this sound down to a crawl, filtering its signature synths and syncopated rhythm through layers of murk and static to create a new, sinister rhythm. At turns ambient and uneasy, Debit converts the celebratory dancefloor sound of cumbia into a enduring, ethereal afterimage.
7. The São Paulo Producer DJ K – Liberator Radio!
Maximalism is the key term for the music of Brazilian producer Kaique Vieira, who performs as DJ K. Inventing his own genre of "bruxaria" (witchcraft), Vieira piles a tumult of alarms, pummeling bass tones and shouted lyrics over the classic Brazilian dance style of baile funk. This recreates the energetic sound of favela street parties. On his second album, Radio Libertadora!, Vieira ramps up the intensity, adding everything from four-on-the-floor techno beats to the sound of the Islamic call to prayer into his chaotic bruxaria mix. The result is a notably hyperactive and deafeningly intense 40-minute listening experience. Surrender to the assault and Vieira's bold productions become oddly liberating.
Number Six: Mohinder Kaur Bhamra – Punjabi Disco
Religious vocalist Mohinder Kaur Bhamra's 1982 album of disco music and Punjabi folk melodies is a reissued gem. Produced by her son, music producer Kuljit Bhamra, Punjabi Disco's ten tracks present an unusually engaging combination of the sharp sound of 1980s synthesisers and programmed drums with her ornate classical Indian singing style. Drum machine patterns mirrors the undulating tones of the tabla, while synth lines replicates the classic sound of the reed organ on tracks such as Pyar Mainu Kar. Elsewhere, bossa nova rhythm is prominent on Soniya Mukh Tera, and Nainan Da Pyar De Gaya channels a driving disco bass groove. It's a club-ready hybrid pioneered over a decade before the global breakthrough of South Asian electronic music.
Number Five: The Mongolian Artist Enji – Sonor
From Mongolia vocalist Enji's gentle fourth album, Sonor, develops her jazz-influenced sound to offer some of her most wide-ranging music to date. Departing from her background in traditional Mongolian "long song" singing, the record's 11 tracks veer from the gentle Norah Jones-esque melodies of slow-burning number Ulbar to the German spoken-word lyrics and trilling guitar lines of Unadag Dugui. The album also includes a sprightly, funk-inflected cover of the 80s Mongolian pop hit Eejiinhee Hairaar. Utilizing a ensemble rather than her typical setup of guitar and bass, Sonor's sound manages to stay personal, inviting the listener into the tender acoustics of her distinctive voice.
4. Derya Yıldırım and Her Band – If There Is No Tomorrow
Drawing on the 60s heritage of Anatolian rock pioneered by groups such as Moğollar, German-Turkish singer Derya Yıldırım's new album with her band Grup Şimşek merges the distinctive buzz of the electrified saz with woozy keyboard and soulful tunes. It's a retro-70s aesthetic rooted in Yıldırım's strong high register and shaped by producer Leon Michels' warm, tape-saturated aesthetic. But, on classic Turkish songs such as the nursery rhyme Hop Bico and 60s classic Ceylan, the group reaches lively new territory. They craft sinuous, downtempo grooves and soaring vocals that give a fresh, unconventional twist to the Turkish psych sound.
3. Lido Pimienta – La Belleza
Sacred music, Czech harpsichord folksong and symphonic arrangements merge on Colombian singer Lido Pimienta's remarkable latest work. Arranging music for the 60-piece Medellín Philharmonic Orchestra, Pimienta and producer Owen Pallett traverse everything from the liturgical vocals of opener Overturn (Obertura de la Luz Eterna) to the theatrical interweaving lines of Aún Te Quiero and the rhythmic dembow rhythms of the woodwind-heavy El Dembow del Tiempo. It is Pim
