We've compiled a list of ELLA RECORDS staff's picks for the Best Albums or Best Songs of 2025. This selection isn’t limited to new releases from this year—it also includes reissues and older gems that our team fell in love with or revisited the most over the past 12 months. Each choice comes with personal comments from the staff, so you can enjoy their perspectives alongside the music.
Here’s to discovering even more amazing music in 2026!
ELLA staff picks "Best of 2025" tracklisting & comments
*The track order reflects the flow of the playlist and is not intended as a ranking.
artist / song title
1. Yekatit / Mulatu Astatke (from the album “Mulatu Plays Mulatu”)
One of the few albums I bought on physical this year. Mulatu revisits and re-records many of his essential Ethio-jazz compositions from the 1960s and ’70s. The unmistakable, hypnotic groove—now even more refined—is simply overwhelming. A truly powerful record. (Watari)
2. Do You Want More?!!!??! / The Roots (from the album “The Roots Come Alive Too: DYWM30 Live at Blue Note NYC”)
A 30th-anniversary live recording celebrating their classic major-label debut. My top recommendation here is track 15, the title song, where Rahzel is absolutely on fire. They even drop “NoNoNo”! Incredible stuff. (Sato)
3. Change / J. Cole (from the 2016 album “4 Your Eyez Only”)
Whenever I’m going through a period of personal change, this is a song that feels like it gently pushes me forward. (Kobayashi)
4. Calypso Gene (feat. Silka & Cleo Reed) / Armand Hammer & The Alchemist (from the album "Mercy")
Their second collaboration in four years. Of all The Alchemist’s projects, this pairing is my favorite. Over more experimental production, Armand Hammer’s verses shine even brighter, revealing a contemporary edge that sets them apart from other rappers. A distinctly 2025 take on psychedelic hip-hop. Be sure to check out the music video as well. (Kimura)
5. OOO WHAT’S THAT ft. Quelle Chris & Cavalier / HUMAN ERROR CLUB & Kenny Segal (from the album “HUMAN ERROR CLUB AT KENNY’S HOUSE”)
A sharp, forward-leaning album that blends electro, jazz, and experimental elements. Very much my kind of record—I enjoyed it a lot. (Kita)
6. La Tourmaline / Clément Vercelletto (from the album “L'Engoulevent”)
May pointless conflicts come to an end, foolish politicians disappear, Japan’s economy improve—and may my salary finally go up next year. (Yokomizo)
7. Spirit / Halvcirkel & Anders Lauge Meldgaard (from the album “Spirit”)
This year’s work by Danish composer Anders Lauge Meldgaard is a collaboration with Copenhagen-based string trio Halvcirkel. Repeating string phrases at differing tempos are layered with the gentle, raga-like tones of the Japanese electronic instrument Ondomo. Drawing on the hopeful minimalism of Terry Riley, the album unfolds into a new kind of rhythmic composition. A true masterpiece. Anders’s Japan tour this April, as well as his solo set at Forestlimit, were both absolutely mind-blowing. (Koike)
8. Kodou / Courtney Baily (from the album “In Dream”)
Courtney’s fragile vocals—woven with occasional Japanese lyrics—float through a deep, dreamlike soundscape, leaving a lasting impression. It’s a beautiful work that paints a dreamy world where shadowy darkness and quiet beauty exist in perfect balance. (Lily)
9. A little rush / Abel Ghekiere (from the album “In de verte, dit uitzicht”)
I didn’t make it to the mountains or the sea this year, but on the days I listened to this album while walking through a park, it felt like I had traveled far away. By changing recording locations and collaborators, and weaving in field recordings, the album creates a wandering, nomadic atmosphere. Sounds that feel as if they’re playing from within one’s personal space mix together, creating a strange sense of distance between the listener and the world. It feels like watching an endless, deeply personal road movie—an album I found myself returning to again and again this year. (Ishiwata)
10. Blue Rags, Raging Wind (ft. Amigone) / Disiniblud (from the album “Disiniblud”)
This is an album I often listened to on my way home from work. (MAPE Nagasaki)
11. Sing Me Softly of the Blues / Eliana Glass (from the album “E”)
Eliana Glass is a New York–based singer-songwriter and pianist. This track is a cover of a Carla Bley composition originally sung with lyrics by Karin Krog on We Could Be Flying, recorded with the Steve Kuhn Trio. The song first appeared on an Art Farmer album, also backed by the Steve Kuhn Trio, and was later covered by Kuhn himself—Sing Me Softly of the Blues. (Hirose)
12. favorite place / strongboi (from the ep “ep 1”)
Alice Phoebe Lou’s solo album Oblivion, released earlier this year, was also absolutely wonderful. I went back and forth trying to decide which to choose, but before I knew it, the year was almost over—so please allow me to call it a tie for first place. All in all, it was another year richly filled with Alice Phoebe Lou’s voice. And looking ahead, I’m especially excited about Japan’s indie scene in 2026. (Mizuno)
13. The Truth Is / Σtella (from the 2022 album “Up and Away”)
I heard this song while browsing a clothing store I wandered into during a trip to New York in September. The twilight air of the city, the atmosphere inside the shop, and the texture of the sound all aligned in such a perfect, uncanny way that it became the most memorable track I heard this year. (KenKen)
14. game over / mei ehara (from the album “All About McGuffin”)
A great album to listen to at night. (Furukawa)
15. IS THIS LOVE / XG (single)
The music video and the outfits are insane. I also went to the world tour finale. (Noda)
16. Edge of Desire / Jonas Blue & Malive (single)
Ever since it was released this year, I’ve played this track at almost every DJ set. For club use, I’ve been playing a lightly edited version of my own. (DJ SHIKISAI)
17. Naked Hunger (Spoken Word Mix) / Quiet Village & Vanessa Daou (from the 12” single “Naked Hunger”)
Perhaps because it comes 16 years after the first release, this second comeback feels far more mature. I found myself listening to the Spoken Word Mix especially often. (kudo)
18. I AM THE CALLING OF ME / Hieroglyphic Being (from the album “The Sound of Something Ending”)
This year, I found myself diving deep into industrial and EBM—sparked by realizing that SPK’s Leichenschrei had been reissued on CD—and then following that thread into proto–goa trance, acid house, and related sounds. When this new album came out, it really stood out among his recent works for its strong sense of mixture, blending exactly those kinds of elements I’d been exploring. (Sano)
19. Fast Track (Sato Remix Radio Edit) / Satoshi Tomiie (single)
This was the track I listened to the most in the car this year—a “less is more” dub by Satoshi Tomiie, stripped of flavor and built purely on texture and tactile sensation. (Kuzuhara)
20. Stay in the Light (Mente Orgánica Version) / Markandeya (from the ep “Stay in the Light”)
The version featuring Horace Andy is great too, but this one feels especially good. (Murata)
21. dUb Season / Dennis Bovell (from the album “Wise Music in Dub”)
When this track dropped during Dennis Bovell’s live show in November, the place absolutely exploded. (Yoshiki)
22. My Only Angel / AEROSMITH & YUNGBLUD (from the EP “One More Time”)
Dad’s back after 13 years—congrats♡ (Yoshida)
23. Both Ways / The Script (from the 2024 album “Satellites”)
A shared sense of loss and growth. (N)
24. 斜陽 / LOSTAGE (from ART-SCHOOL 25th Anniversary Tribute Album “Dreams Never End”)
A cover by Nara-based band LOSTAGE, featured on the tribute album for Japanese band ART-SCHOOL. Among all the tracks on the album, this one really stands out—the presence of each instrument is strong, and the sound is simply powerful. Every time I listen to LOSTAGE, I’m reminded how great it is to be in a band. (Ichikawa)
25. I Want You (Fever) / Momma (from the album “Welcome to My Blue Sky”)
The Brooklyn-based rock band’s fourth album. Heavier and catchier than their previous release, it’s an incredibly satisfying record. Their Japan tour is already scheduled for next year, so they’re definitely one to watch. (towa)
26. Snurra På Hjulet / Dungen (single)
For the past two or three years, they’d been drifting away from live, organic sounds—but this track marks the long-awaited return of that unmistakable Dungen feel. Led by mastermind Gustav, with flute and fuzz guitar pushed to the limit, it snapped me wide awake. This is exactly what most fans have been hoping for. That otherworldly psychedelic rock that only Swedes seem able to conjure somehow fits the Japanese winter surprisingly well. (Nagasaki)
27. Still Above / mark william lewis (from the album “mark william lewis”)
He carries himself like a beat poet. For someone who’s long adored the shadowy, nostalgic slowcore of Mark Eitzel (American Music Club) and Mark Kozelek (Red House Painters / Sun Kil Moon), this encounter was a shock—and he’s also a Mark! It’s deeply understated yet somehow stylish, and the fact that it was released via A24—so familiar from bold, forward-thinking films—makes perfect sense. (Tanaka)
28. I Was Just a Piece of Frozen Sky Anyway / Jonathan Richman (from the album “Only Frozen Sky Anyway”)
After his Modern Lovers days, Jonathan Richman’s music has largely centered on loosely structured, open-spaced songs with just drums and guitar—evoking the feel of a wandering singer making the rounds of late-night bars with nothing but a guitar. It’s the perfect soundtrack for waiting patiently while fishing. The soft, plucked resonance of nylon strings becomes a companion for moments of solitude. This album feels much the same as his previous ones, which is reassuring in the best way. (JET)
29. Talkin to the Trees / Neil Young and the Chrome Hearts (from the album “Talking to the Trees”)
A solitary legend of rock, Neil Young adds yet another chapter to his life’s story. This album was created together with a group of like-minded, highly skilled musicians. Through it, listeners can sense Young’s stoic spirit—his refusal to settle, and his unwavering commitment to his own beliefs. The title track, Talkin to the Trees, is quintessentially Neil: simple, gentle, and warmly embracing. It invites the listener into a moment as comforting as watching logs crackle and burn in a fireplace. In a season when we long for human warmth, why not spend some precious time with this album—alone, or together with someone special? (Asamin)
Playlist by ELLA RECORDS staff members
Cover photo by KenKen Ogura
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