METROLAND STAFF’S 2025 YEAR IN REVIEW
In the spirit of end of year wrap-ups and our affinity for making top 10 lists, the staff here at Metroland has compiled our own personal best-ofs for the year, encompassing everything from music to film to literature.
On the one hand, we are extremely fortunate to have a staff with such eclectic taste in culture. The top spot on our contributors’ music lists spanned genres from Lily Allen’s pop masterpiece, West End Girl, all the way to Swedish post-punk weirdos Viagra Boys’ album, viagr aboys.
On the other hand, this made it damn near impossible to form any sort of consensus list that would stand as “Metroland’s Top Howevermany Albums.” So instead of attempting such a frivolous task, we’ve compiled a list of every contributors’ favorites with links to their own personal best-ofs.
These are here for your merciless judgement dear Metroland readers, so be sure to hop on the socials and tease the shit out of Andy for including his own band’s album on his top ten (I mean, if you don’t believe in yourself, who’s going to believe in you, amirite?) or make fun of Kiki for her top five books all being romantasy novels (there are other genres, you know?).
Before we get into the individual lists, a quick note. We were able to compile a list of the 10 best films according to the Metroland contributors, so stay tuned for that article tomorrow. In the meantime, enjoy and be sure to share your favorites with us!
View the full staff list here!
Erin Harkes (Editor-in-Chief):
Favorite Album: Lucy Dacus - Forever is a Feeling
Favorite Live Show: Weird Al Yankovic at Saratoga Performing Arts Center (Saratoga, NY)
Favorite Book: She doesn’t read, which is weird for the publisher of a written publication, but here we are.
TJ Foster (Editor):
Favorite Album: Moving Mountains - Pruning of the Lower Limbs
Favorite Film: One Battle After Another (dir. Paul Thomas Anderson)
Favorite Live Show: Holiday Hootenanny 2025 at Singlecut North (Clifton Park, NY)
Favorite TV Show/Limited Series: Adolescence / Stranger Things 5
Favorite Book: Dungeon Crawler Carl (the whole series, thus far)
Rory Graham (Associate Editor):
Favorite Album: Hayley Williams - Ego Death at a Bachelorette Party
Favorite Film: Sinners (dir. Ryan Coogler)
Favorite Live Show: Evan Honer with Harf at Bearsville Theater (Woodstock, NY)
Favorite TV Show/Limited Series: Stranger Things 5
Favorite Book: Katabasis by R.F. Kuang
Dana Brady (Associate Editor):
Favorite Album: Sharp Pins - Balloon Balloon Balloon
Favorite Live Show: Fontaines D.C. with Jadu Heart at Empire Live (Albany, NY)
Favorite Book: The Poetry of Pablo Neruda - Pablo Neruda (Published in 1979)
Kiki Vassilakis (Director of Art and Photography):
Favorite Album: Marina Satti - Pop Too
Favorite Live Show: Rilo Kiley with Natalie Bergman at College Street Music Hall (New Haven, CT)
Favorite Book: A Tribute of Fire - Sariah Wilson (Published in 2024)
Andy Scullin (Music Relations and Content Manager, Host of Unsigned518):
Favorite Album: Deftones - private music
Favorite Film: Weapons (dir. Zach Cregger)
Favorite Live Show: Descendents with Teen Mortgage and Liquid Mike at Empire Live (Albany, NY)
Favorite Book: Never Flinch by Stephen King
Natalie St. Denis (Contributor):
Favorite Album: Blondshell - If You Asked For a Picture
Favorite Film: Marty Supreme (dir. Josh Safdie)
Favorite Live Show: Momma with Wishy at Theatre Fairmount (Montreal, QC)
Favorite TV Show/Limited Series: Severance (Season 2)
Favorite Book: The Silent Patient by Alex Michaelides (Published in 2019)
Maggie Aulman (Contributor):
Favorite Album: Elias R∅nnenfelt - Speak Daggers
Favorite Film: O’Bingo! (dir. Ian Kelewae)
Favorite Live Show: Gov’t Mule with Tedeschi Trucks Band at Saratoga Performing Arts Center (Saratoga, NY)
Favorite Book: This Wheel’s On Fire: Levon Helm and the Story of The Band by Levon Helm and Stephen Davis (Published in 1993)
Corey Dempsey (Contributor):
Favorite Album: Turnstile - NEVER ENOUGH
Favorite Film: One Battle After Another (dir. Paul Thomas Anderson)
Favorite Live Show: The Get Up Kids with The Anniversary at Empire Live (Albany, NY)
Favorite TV Show/Limited Series: Task (Season 1)
Favorite Book: Expensive Basketball by Shea Serrano
Elissa Ebersold (Photographer/Contributor):
Favorite Song: “Digital Dreams” by The Midnight
Favorite Live Show: Glass Animals with Sofia Isella at Saratoga Performing Arts Center (Saratoga, NY)
Favorite Book: The Last Murder at the End of the World by Stuart Turton
Debi Gustafson (Photographer):
Favorite Album: Lilyisthatyou - LILITH
Favorite Film: Song Sung Blue (dir. Craig Brewer)
Favorite Live Show: blink-182 with Alkaline Trio and Drug Church at Saratoga Performing Arts Center (Saratoga, NY)
Favorite Book: The Uncool: A Memoir by Cameron Crowe
Shelby Hefener (Contributor):
Favorite Album: Thursday - Taking Inventory of a Frozen Lake [Single]
Favorite Film: Frankenstein (dir. Guillermo Del Toro)
Favorite Live Show: Thursday with I Am The Avalanche and Bloodvulture at Lark Hall (Albany, NY)
Favorite Book: Someone Who Isn’t Me by Geoff Rickly (Published in 2023)
Adem Jones (Contributor):
Favorite Album: Addison Rae - Addison
Favorite Film: F1 (dir. Joseph Kosinski)
Favorite Live Show: Rüfüs Du Sol at Grant Park - Lollapalooza 2025 (Chicago, IL)
Favorite Book: Bottom of the Pyramid: A Memoir of Preserving Dancing for Myself and Starring in My Own Life by Nia Sioux
Katie Leach (Contributor):
Favorite Album: Lily Allen - West End Girl
Favorite Film: Come See Me in the Good Light (dir. Ryan White)
Favorite Live Show: Panic! at the Disco at Las Vegas Festival Grounds (Las Vegas, NV)
James Mullen (Contributor):
Favorite Album: Tyler Childers - Snipe Hunter
Favorite Film: Marty Supreme (dir. Josh Safdie)
Favorite Live Show: Bright Eyes with Cursive at House of Blues (Boston, MA)
Favorite (Comic) Book: Ultimate Spider-Man by Jonathan Hickman
Jonathan Patrizio (Contributor):
Favorite Album: Dan Carr and the Cure For Asthma - Big Brain Watering Hole
Favorite Film: Sinners (dir. Ryan Coogler)
Favorite Live Show: Ritchie Kotzen and John 5 at Cohoes Music Hall (Cohoes, NY)
Pete Perry (Photographer/Contributor):
Favorite Album: Viagra Boys - viagr aboys
Favorite Live Show: Drop Dead with Sex Dwarf, Who Pays, Demented FX and Life Abuse at Hangar on the Hudson (Troy, NY)