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They recently released their 2025 Year in Review and I'm extremely impressed by the aesthetic of it all. Really love the illustration style, the countdown style and, especially, the YouTube embed with Giant Text Overlay. Very cool. I know almost none of the music but this is a great way to make some discoveries.
- 88% of all streaming tracks on Spotify do not quality for royalties - this means despite being played, Spotify does not pay those artists
- The RIAA calculates that streaming accounts for 84% of all recorded music revenue - but streaming is only paying 12% of its tracks!
- If you are lucky enough to qualify for payments, it's a third of a penny per play. In many cases less than that if you do not own your music.
Oh, there's also the Living Wage for Musician's Act that would help to level the playing field. My faith in politics to do the right thing is at an all time low at this point but I'm in full support of the Act and hope they can make some traction!
"The modern makers’ machine does not want you to create heavy things. It runs on the internet—powered by social media, fueled by mass appeal, and addicted to speed. It thrives on spikes, scrolls, and screenshots. It resists weight and avoids friction. It does not care for patience, deliberation, or anything but production."It's a little bit of ant-AI thinking sprinkled on a much bigger idea that the work, the process, the act of making are crucial to the end result. It reminds me of the advice I think about the most often - "learn to love the process." It often sounds trite but it's a nice reminder that hitting a wall is part of finding the solution.
Anyway, great read! Get it into your brain.
I recently became aware of Mole - a command line tool that cleans to do much the same thing. In fact, it says it's a "All-in-one toolkit: CleanMyMac, AppCleaner, DaisyDisk, and iStat Menus combined into a single binary" Ok!
Both are good options but Mole is free and feels powerfully nerdy running it from the CLI.
• Music and audio that is generated wholly or in substantial part by AI is not permitted on Bandcamp.That policy leaves plenty of room to integrate AI tools into the creative process but not entirely.
• Any use of AI tools to impersonate other artists or styles is strictly prohibited in accordance with our existing policies prohibiting impersonation and intellectual property infringement.
Happy to see it but also curious how they are detecting AI generated content? Is it completely community driven and Bandcamp validated? Do they have their own internal magic for detection? Many questions!
While we're on this topic, it's worth checking out Ampwall's content policy in regards to AI. They have a similar policy (and have had it in place for some time) but with more nuance.
I am not an anti-AI person but I also understand the need to protect human creativity. I am happy to see these platforms taking a stance.
Tickets are on sale now. While you're checking that out, give a listen to the State of the Union podcast - loads of great guests on there and they're barely 10 episodes in!
I've always admired Count's take on the music industry, his efforts to be self-sustaining and focus on his craft. He's been making music for over thirty years and has some great insights on existing as an independent artist.
I suggest letting yourself take the deep dive into both Count Bass D and the Sounds Visual Radio archive.
* A podcast from Justin Meyer; veteran of Spongebath Records!
The play was developed in 2012 by Anne Washburn with music by Michael Friedman. The plot follows a group of apocalypse survivors that retell the plot of "Cape Feare" to distract themselves. Over time, the plot evolves and morphs into something much bigger. By the third act, it's taken on a wildly different life.
You can watch the stage play on YouTube if you like. I've scrubbed through and certainly see the appeal; especially in that surreal third act. Boots Riley filmography feels aligned with this.. so I'd love to see it happen. Seems unlikely but I'd still love to see it!
- Everyone Dies - public access performance that takes a wild turn around 40seconds. Soak it in and enjoy it (spoiler alert: NSFW). There are additional performances worth watching too.
- Do you know anything about techno? - right when you're in the middle of galactic ecstasy, it goes acid! Incredible clip from Vibrations (1996) which has one of the most outlandish plot synopsis I've read in some time. Apparently the whole thing is on YouTube and the final scene is.. quite something.
- Coding Music for Cold Machines - frankly this deserves its own post but Switch Angel is a musician that uses a live coding environment called Strudel to make these compositions. The narration is intentional and the results are fantastic. It's ten minutes and it's consistently riveting. Ironically, well connected to Vibrations in its own way.
- Professor crashes out over cheating students - 11 minute sketch that escalates in a way that you don't see coming. I know 11 minutes is a long time but stick with it. If you don't have time for that, watch the IG edit.
I also suggest diving into the whole Almost Friday account - lots of treats to be found. - My Pet Toucan, Chester - this bird sounds like dinosaur and is delightful. It's 90 seconds, enjoy.
- Taylor Swift > MF Doom - quality Doom impersonation.
- Train Timing - competitors must time dropping a ball into a train car. It's ridiculous. It's 13 minutes long. And it's oddly soothing!
I don't really have much commentary on the point they're trying to make but the site looks great. Love the aesthetic of it all; especially this grid of heatmap gestures. You don't need to tap through and read everything but do give everything a visual gander - delightful!
I recall hearing a rumor some time ago that she had sued the band for using her image without permission and never got compensated for it. Doing the tiniest bit of digging, Reddit confirms that is BS:
For the Google impaired: Her name is Lisa Hughes. She gave permission to use the shot after Stephen called her amd asked permission. No, she did not sue the band. She is still proud of this feat. She works in healthcare.Amusing that I'm part of the problem but happy to see that Hughes was not screwed by the band, the photo is a good memory for her and all is well. Rare to see!
Putting the podcast together took a lot of deep diving research, so when I saw that 33 1/3 was releasing a book on Garth Brooks in… The Life of Chris Gaines, I knew author Stephen Deusner had quite a challenge ahead of him! I finally picked up a copy and can confirm that research was well done and manifests quite enjoyably in the book.
While brief, the book does a good job of balancing the history of the album, the history of Brooks and throwing in some meta-commentary that blurs the line of reality. There's a sizable chunk of the book that is supposedly taken from an erased blog post that I still can't tell is true or not. I choose not to know; the presentation was just perfect.
I wouldn't have minded a few more nitty gritty details about what happened behind the scenes, how the songs were written, why they were all R&B instead of pop but I also understand that I'm a particularly nerdy kind of reader on this subject. For anyone with even the most casual interest on this topic, pick up this book. You'll finish it in 3 days and enjoy every moment of it.
* This is debatable and nuanced but also accepted as kind of the general line of thinking
This blog post from software engineer Nikita Prokopov about the problem with Tahoe icons could easily be have been another routine barrage of complaints about the latest version of MacOS. It's not. It's an incredibly well articulated teardown of how Apple didn't listen to themselves and ended up making a user experience that is objectively harder to use. That said, it's a great read and makes nothing but incredibly valid points! Do read.
My Spotify subscription has been cancelled but I'm not so naive that I think any alternative is that much better. Royalty rates on Apple Music, Amazon and Tidal are the top 3 but they're still abysmal. There are some alternatives like CodaMusic that look interesting but are unvetted (to me) at this time.
The majority of my listening happens via Bandcamp and Ampwall; two platforms that are decidedly not streaming services but benefit artists much more directly and sustainably. As I previously mentioned, I picked up about 208 releases last year on Bandcamp alone - paying for each one. That's not a brag, its a conscious choice!
All that said, I am not ditching streaming entirely. I already pay for YouTube Premium, so that makes YouTube Music my new platform of choice; simply because I'm already paying for it. I'll be keeping a playlist of 2026 Enjoyables over there, as well as albums I'm trying out. I think if I can get the embeddable playlist to be a little nicer, it won't be such a bad option.
In longwinded summation, there's no perfect choice. I'm not shaming anyone for sticking with Spotify. They're bad because they're vocal about how bad they are. Every single other streaming platform - even the beloved Tidal - is negotiating to pay less. Pick your battles and support artists where you can! Your choice of streamer is not your 100% participation in the arts. Just make sure you go see a live show every so often or pick up a t-shirt.
The song "Blue Apollo" is one of my favorites from the record and the band recorded a taped session of it back in 2024. It's a simple performance video but captures so many of the things I like about the band.
A lot of this MIDI music is either too corny or too nostalgia based to be worth your time but there are some legitimate gems in there. Furthermore, the interface is right on - perfect balance of keyboard navigation and clicking around; the Tandy 1000 would be proud.
"The Man Who Broke the Music Business" (
Once you're done with the article, treat yourself to a browse through the mp3 scene archives. Any names you recognize from the Napster days?
Here we are in the “dead zone” of 2025; that one week between Christmas and New Year’s that, quite frankly, should be a national holiday. I hope you’re getting some rest and relaxation and recharging for 2026. I like to take this time to button up any projects that have been lingering and reflect a little bit on the previous year.
Before I get into that reflection, let me start with a hearty THANK YOU. If you’re reading this, I can’t begin to express my gratitude. I’ve been running yk Records for 16 years as a labor of love and it continuously blows my mind that people are following along and enjoying the fruits of that labor. Don’t get me wrong, I know the music is good – I just know there are a lot of choices out there. In a world where small indie record labels have a lot to contend with, I sincerely thank you for tuning in.
I’m going to include a list of all of our releases from 2025 with a little blurb for each below. If you’d like to listen along, check out this YK 2025 Sampler.* It's also available on Bandcamp, Spotify** and YouTube Music - convenience wins!
Along with the playlist, you can also just jump into the deep end with a playlist of everything from 2025. That's on Ampwall, Bandcamp, Spotify and YouTube as well. Dive in. Enjoy.
* Did you notice Dave Paulson on that sampler and think – “hey, that record came out in 2018!” That’s true! But it only came out on vinyl this year. So it gets included. ;)
**Note that the Spotify playlists do not include everything because we do not put everything on Spotify!
The Robe
MMXXIV MRYUCK (2024 BEEZ)
Throughout 2024, The Robe released a mind boggling amount of music; two new songs every month and sometimes more. I’m honestly unsure how he did it.
To commemorate that, we kicked off 2025 with two compilations of all of those songs. MMXXIV is all of the A-sides from the releases, with MRYUCK (2025 BEEZ) containing all of the b-sides.
Listening back to both compilations, they’re both fantastic. Clearly I’m biased but Rollum’s songwriting and arrangements never fail to captivate and immerse me. Technically these songs are from 2024 but if you missed them then, be sure to get them into your ears in 2025. There’s still time.
General Trust
“Apologia”
We only got one official release from General Trust in 2025 and it’s a damn good one. That said, accomplishments should not be measured simply by digital output! General Trust went out on a mini-tour with More Is Not Enough, played Spooky Ghoul Fest, played Fascination Street and worked on plenty of new music.
I’d also like to note that in the 2025 Grimey’s Staff Picks, “Apologia” made it to Bekah’s Singles I Replayed An Alarming Amount of Times list. That’s a huge win imo.
I’m told new music is being prepared for 2026. I’ll let you know as soon as I know more.
phiz
“i lost my fkn mind” b/w “If I Had Known”
Tristen and Cortney Tidwell are incredibly talented in their own solo endeavors. If you’re unfamiliar with either you’ve got some homework. Finding out that they had recordings together was a shock and delight. I jumped at the opportunity to be involved.
These two songs were revived from an old hard drive. They capture a very unique time and place, physically, emotionally and otherwise. Regardless of the context, the songs and performance are downright moving.
Be sure to watch the video for the lead track and then consider picking up a Flexi.
Fetching Pails
“Ruiner”
Another YK artist with just one song released in 2025 but also another YK artist with a stellar offering regardless of the volume. If you haven’t been paying attention, “Ruiner” is actually one of three new singles over the past two years. Make sure you hear “The Witching Hour” and “Shattery” as well!
Prepare yourself for more new music in 2025. Being prepared now!
Matt & The Watt Gives
Matt & The Watt Gives
One theme you’ll see emerge throughout these blurbs is astonishment. I’m astonished that I get to work with all of these artists. I’m astonished by the work that they create.
Matt Pelham’s project Matt & The Watt Gives falls right into that category. I’m dumbfounded that I get to work with an artist that I’ve been a fan of for nearly 30 years but moreso I’m blown away by the work itself. This record is both a fire-y rock record and a vulnerable introspection.
We got some very nice press on this one from the Nashville Scene (even a Best of Nashville!), WNXP, WRLT, Ampwall and many others. Write-ups and coverage are not why we do this but they certainly feel good.
It’s a fantastic record with wonderful artwork, two very fun videos and a live show that can’t be beat.
Talking with Hands
The Coin
Matthew Smith is Talking with Hands – a pseudonym for his solo work that he’s been using since 2013 (with the debut on YK). His work is layered, thoughtful and intentional. I love hearing him talk about his process because he is always actively exploring new sounds and techniques.
Part of that exploration is listening to the feelings that he can not be quiet about happenings in the world around him. Our turbulent political times call for commentary. The Coin is that commentary; a brief and compelling EP exploring frustration and revolution. It’s also pretty damn poppy with a outrageous music video.
Cody Uhler
Gluggle Jug
If you don’t know, Cody Uhler was one half of Kindercastle – a band that made ELO style pop in Nashville and played a large part in YK Records existing in the first place. He’s released several albums under the name Nahnee Bori and many under his own name; all exploring sound techniques and blending of styles. I’m biased but he’s brilliant.
Gluggle Jug is somewhat of an extension of his previous release Darbo’s Island. Where the latter felt like an unreleased SNES soundtrack, Gluggle Jug expands that sonic palette into a layered dance party. It’s a delightful listen; buoyant, gummy and visceral. We said in the press you can “feel it in your jaw and mouth” and I think that’s an absolutely apt way of putting it.
Alex Caress
i’m always here (2005)
What happens when you post a song to the Internet in 2005, someone puts that song on a mix CD with no credit and then tries to find you 15 years later? That’s the story of Alex Caress and the song “Don’t Get Over Me.”
The Lostwave community spent years looking for him and was actually successful in 2025! That’s the impetus behind putting out this record that Caress made way back when. It’s a wild ride.
Read more about it here on WPLN and then listen to Alex speak in detail about it on this podcast episode. There’s an incredibly uplifting lesson to having your music discovered decades after you made it; it does matter and does reach people. Keep making it.
Back in January of 2025, I started a podcast! I am using this as a place to talk about new releases, have more in-depth conversations and generally talk about literally whatever seems worth talking about.
I’ll note that I have zero metrics on this thing so I have no idea how many people are listening but despite that, go subscribe. ????
Tower Defense
“Fit for Purpose”
This may be the first time we’ve released a single exclusively to YouTube. It’s a full blown new Tower Defense song AND full blown video but you won’t find it on streaming or download, only YouTube.
This is the first taste of lots more Tower Defense coming our way in 2026. I’ve heard the demos and can confirm you should be excited.
Chris Crofton
I’m Your Man
To most, Chris Crofton is a comedian and satirist. His writings as The Advice King are hysterical and always poignant. While humor is the primary draw, there’s always a significant amount of self-reflection and introspection.
Crofton’s musical endeavors embrace that self-reflection and introspection with just a dash of the comedy. In the liner notes for I’m Your Man, he remarks that for 20-years he’d been battling a prescription induced brain fog. Remedying that balance unlocked a wave of creativity (listen to “Side Effects”) and prolific abundance.
For me, I’m Your Man is a melancholy record. It’s heart heavy at times, it’s wry at others. It’s lovingly sweet and it’s self-critical. Crofton’s delivery is sincere, vulnerable and uniquely his own.
I implore you to watch all three music videos; each their own perfect short film.
sugar sk*-*lls Coupler
The Great Oxidation Event
This 30-minute EP was inspired by the techniques of Miles Davis and his producer Teo Macero. sugar sk–lls performed an improvised set and then handed it off to Coupler to with the instructions of No Overdubs. Edits and mutations are encouraged but don’t add instrumentation.
The final result is 3 movements of sound that evoke a primordial event. The title of the record is a nod to exactly that – a time when our planet mutated into being oxygenated; destroying nearing everything in its wake.
sugar sk–lls and Coupler always create with great intention. This EP is fascinating in how it came together and the events that it evokes. Watch the video for “Part 1” and really let that concept sink in. Then be sure to listen to both artists speak on the creation and that intention behind it all.
Trash Man
Cool Until It’s Not
The second EP from Alex Mojaverian’s Trash Man is kind of a perfect sophomore offering. His songwriting continues to get stronger – it’s pop/rock but it’s existential pondering. The recordings are stronger – done his hometown buddy Dave Lawson. The two videos are even a step up.
These songs always hit me just right. They’re loud and unbelievably catchy while still capturing real concerns about yourself and the world.
We got some honorable coverage from a lot of outlets, including Bandcamp Daily. Again, getting press is not the goal but it does feel good. Speaking of that, be sure to listen to Alex talk about the record on this YK World episode.
Jessica Breanne
Electric Heart
Right here at the top let me express my delighted fascination with Jessica Breanne’s voice. It has a cadence and a quality to it that no other human has. This may be true for all of our voices but Breanne is able to use it in a way that is heart heavy, melancholy and bursting with boiling strength all at once. If you’ve ever heard any traditional country artist that could sound both broken and defiant, you are in the right ballpark.
Electric Heart is Breanne’s second full-length album under her own name and it serves to expand her sonic palette from her previous (wonderful) debut, Rosebud Queen. Where that record has a more country-induced flavor, Electric Heart weaves together the psychedelic, Southern rock and even a touch of roots.
Through it all, Breanne’s voice carries the songs. Her songwriting is deeply personal and often downright Southern gothic in the stories she shares. The record has three fantastic videos – start there and then immerse into the rest.
Zook
Evaporating
I have been a fan of Zook since I first stumbled on his work back in 2018. Every album, standalone single and experimental EP was a rewarding listen for a variety of reasons.
Evaporating does not sound like what I first heard in 2018 as the project has evolved and changed with each release (as it should). Fortunately, the pleasure and reward remains. This is an album that finds an absolutely perfect blend of power pop, shoegaze, synth explorations and just a hint of the off-kilter experimental. All that while being introspective and catchy.
This is not the last time you’ll hear me sing Zook’s praises. This is a record that I am incapable of turning off once it’s started. I think you’ll feel the same. Watch this video for “Disappear” and you’ll be hooked too.
Once again, THANK YOU to everyone who purchased, favorited, streamed or paid any morsel of attention to the label in 2025. It truly means a lot to everyone involved and there's plenty more on the horizon.
However, I said things slowed not ceased. I do have a playlist of enjoyed tracks from 2025 that I curated throughout the year. It's not exclusively new releases, it's simply some songs I heard in 2025 and liked. Here it is: In the spirit of JPB's playlists, here's the same content but available on YouTube Music.
A better representation of the music I primarily consume would actually stem from Ampwall or Bandcamp. Looking at my profile on Bandcamp, it looks like I picked up about 280 releases in 2025! That's a lot of music potentially not represented on Spotify. I'd love to make a playlist of my favorites but playlisting on Bandcamp is a terrible experience (mobile only, no thank you). Ampwall has a much better experience but the music isn't there (yet). So, to solve my problem - please tell all your friends to sign up for Ampwall or tell Bandcamp to get it together and add web functionality. Thank you in advance.
That's a lot of rambling just to say - here's some music I enjoyed this year! Put it on shuffle and see if anything piques you interest.
Absurd, ridiculous and delightful. I highly recommend you let it run for awhile as the ball does change styles and animation several times. via cpu.