Julia Steiner of Ratboys tell us about her favorite albums of 2025

1 week ago 7

Ratboys (photo by James Richards IV)

2025 is winding down, Year End List season is in full swing, and we’ve been asking artists about their favorite music of the year. Julia Steiner, vocalist and guitarist of Ratboys, made a list of her favorite albums, and a video talking about her very favorite one. Read her list and commentary and watch her video below.

Ratboys’ new album Singin’ to an Empty Chair is out in February, and they’ve shared three singles so far, all of which are fantastic. Hear those below as well.

JULIA STEINER OF RATBOYS’ FAVORITE ALBUMS OF 2025

14 of my faves in chronological order by release date + a few honorable mentions
And a lil video about Progress Bakery by Eliza Niemi, which was my fave album of 2025
This list is by no means exhaustive.. so much great music came out this year, it’s pretty wild

Horsegirl – Phonetics On and On – Feb 14 – A celebration of girlhood and friendship. Unpretentious and free. Also such a great winter record.

Cloakroom – Last Leg of the Human Table – Feb 28 – So heavy and comforting. I love the production on the vocals, they sound so glued in with the rest of the instruments. Hearing the singles got us really excited to record in Studio B at Electrical Audio!

Eliza Niemi – Progress Bakery – Mar 21 – My favorite record of the year, the one I’ve returned to the most. These songs are filled to the brim with original, adventurous ideas; they’re unbound by genre concerns and somehow fit so well together. Shout out alto vocals and the cello! Low end that shimmers. Can’t recommend this album enough.

Adrianne Lenker – Live at Revolution Hall – April 24 – This is the first live record to stop me in my tracks in a long time. I love all of the tape textures and the collage approach to mixing. I feel like I’m everywhere in the room.

Florry – Sounds Like… – May 23 – So loose, so fun, sounds like the best backyard party of your life. Sit on the porch and slide right into summer.

Subsonic Eye – Singapore Dreaming – Jun 11 – Super jangly, super catchy psych-tinged rock songs from Singapore. “Overgrown” was stuck in my head all summer. Love the yellow cover!

S.G. Goodman – Planting by the Signs – Jun 20 – Frank, honest, heartfelt songwriting. A real human being human. Exactly what we need in these awful & weird AI slop times.

Water From Your Eyes – It’s a Beautiful Place – Aug 22 – Loved this album from the moment I heard it.. and the riffs are still burrowing their way deeper into my head all the time. So many good ass riffs throughout

The Beths – Straight Line Was A Lie – Aug 29 – Peak songwriting craftsmanship combined with radical vulnerability will always be a win for me. How lucky are we to live on the same planet at the same time as this band?

Lynyn – Ixona – Sep 8 – Perfect music for zoning out or getting lost in almost any context. Conor Mackey is a wizard.

Algernon Cadwallader – Trying Not to Have a Thought – Sep 12 – The first time I heard this album, I was on a plane, and I cried. It’s almost too good!! Like a beloved family member came back to life.. like no time at all has passed.. like our voices will stay strong forever. Learned some things as well, re ATTN MOVE.

Wednesday – Bleeds – Sep 19 – Oftentimes when working on a song I’ll ask myself simply, “What do I want to hear next?” Wednesday gives me what I want to hear. They rock, they recede, they look you in the eye. Bleeds is their best release so far.. I love it all the way through

Jeff Tweedy – Twilight Override – Sep 26 – Yes. More people should make triple albums. We can handle it. I listened to this one for the first time on a plane (different plane!), and hearing the line “I or the me I most am / drives by in the backseat of my parents’ car” was completely thrilling

Juana Molina – DOGA – Nov 5 – Stop what you’re doing right now (end of the list, so this is a good time) and please go listen to any of Juana Molina’s albums if you haven’t heard her before! Her approach to songwriting, to repetition, to building tension with texture, is completely mesmerizing and has inspired me for more than 13 years. This new record is so cool. Perfect winter record as well. Closing the loop on 2025.

Honorable Mentions
◦ Free Range – Lost & Found – Mar 28
◦ Beach Bunny – Tunnel Vision – April 25
◦ Deerhoof – Noble and Godlike in Ruin – April 25
◦ Greet Death – Die In Love – June 27
◦ Case Oats – Last Missouri Exit – Aug 22
◦ Geese – Getting Killed – Sept 26
◦ Tortoise – Touch – Oct 24

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Ratboys will be on tour starting in February, including a Brooklyn show with Florry on March 5 at Warsaw. See all dates below.

RATBOYS: 2026 TOUR DATES
Feb 25, 2026 El Club Detroit, MI *
Feb 26, 2026 Lee’s Palace Toronto, ON *
Feb 27, 2026 Bar Le Ritz PDB Montreal, QC *
Feb 28, 2026 The Sinclair Cambridge, MA *
Mar 3, 2026 First Unitarian Church Philadelphia, PA *
Mar 5, 2026 Warsaw Brooklyn, NY *
Mar 6, 2026 9:30 Club Washington, D.C. *
Mar 7, 2026 The Broadberry Richmond, VA *
Mar 8, 2026 Motorco Music Hall Durham, NC *
Mar 10, 2026 The Grey Eagle Asheville, NC *
Mar 11, 2026 Terminal West Atlanta, GA *
Mar 12, 2026 The Basement East Nashville, TN *
Mar 13, 2026 Zanzabar Louisville, KY *
Mar 14, 2026 Vivarium Milwaukee, WI *
Mar 24, 2026 Off Broadway St. Louis, MO ^
Mar 25, 2026 recordBar Kansas City, MO ^
Mar 26, 2026 George’s Majestic Lounge Fayetteville, AR ^
Mar 27, 2026 Club Dada Dallas, TX ^
Mar 28, 2026 Mohawk Austin, TX ^
Mar 30, 2026 Launchpad Albuquerque, NM ^
Mar 31, 2026 Valley Bar Phoenix, AZ ^
Apr 1, 2026 Soda Bar San Diego, CA ^
Apr 3, 2026 Teragram Ballroom Los Angeles, CA ^
Apr 4, 2026 August Hall San Francisco, CA ^
Apr 6, 2026 Biltmore Cabaret Vancouver, BC ^
Apr 7, 2026 Neumos Seattle, WA ^
Apr 8, 2026 Aladdin Theater Portland, OR ^
Apr 10, 2026 Shrine Social Club Boise, ID ^
Apr 11, 2026 Urban Lounge Salt Lake City, UT ^
Apr 13, 2026 Bluebird Theater Denver, CO ^
Apr 15, 2026 The Waiting Room Lounge Omaha, NE ^
Apr 16, 2026 Fine Line Minneapolis, MN ^
Apr 17, 2026 Atwood Music Hall Madison, WI ^
Apr 18, 2026 The Vic Theatre Chicago, IL #
Jun 19, 2026 – Jun 21, 2026 Green River Festival Greenfield, MA