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User
Reviews 15
Approval 79%
Soundoffs 145
News Articles 16
Band Edits + Tags 138
Album Edits 70
Album Ratings 3552
Objectivity 75%
Last Active 02-25-21 1:37 am
Joined 11-25-15
Review Comments 23,796
| bubs's belated 2onion24
lfg | | 10 |  | U2
How To Re-Assemble An Atomic Bomb
Debated whether to actually count this or not but figured I might as well throw it a nod since it is mostly new songs lol. The boys go into the vault 20 years ago, dig up some rad unused instrumentals, and lay down new vocals to yield a much stronger collection than the album proper. The Re-Assemble collection bodes very well for future projects and sees the band generally writing on their own terms. | | 9 |  | Green Day
Saviors
A lot of the albums I spent the most time with this year came from artists that are deeply embedded in the fabrics of my DNA. I learned the guitar through Green Day's catalog when I was 12, they were a pretty integral gateway act into getting me into music. That said their output in my lifetime has mostly been pretty lackluster, largely because it felt like they were in an identity crisis where they didn't know whether to overcommit to their serious side or laugh in their fan's faces with some of the dumbest material I've ever heard from a band in their ilk. Saviors finally strikes the right balance and sees the dudes organically having the most fun they have in forever. They aimed for a pretty diverse project too, cycling between rippers, mid tempo arena tunes, and slower jams all in glorious form, sold with one of their sharpest sets of hooks. Really enjoyed this one | | 8 |  | In Hearts Wake
Incarnation
My fucking god, I never thought I was gonna get to hear a good In Hearts Wake album again. Their spiral into incorporating more "nu" influences in their sound on Kaliyuga and the soundtrack they made a year later was, to be frank, very bad. But the boys after a lineup shift managed to surge back with their hungriest and heaviest album since the early days, pushing their sound into a plethora of new directions as well. A worthy sequel to Divination in nearly every aspect, and probably my favorite IHW since that album. It's kinda surreal it exists lol | | 7 |  | The Cure
Songs of a Lost World
Maaaaaaan I'm so happy this is a.) finally out and b.) generally a slam dunk. I saw them play over half this album live back in 2023 and everything translated remarkably into the final studio product. Hard to say anything new about such a universally beloved beast, but it has certainly earned its accolades. | | 6 |  | State Faults
Children of the Moon
Sputnik's favorite album of the year does in fact slap insanely hard and thank you all for getting me into this band because the best 10 minutes I experienced last year was being crammed in a tiny Brooklyn venue losing my shit to "No Gospel" in a crowd of strangers equally losing their shit. This album perfected the influences introduced on the album beforehand while managing to thread back more of the aggression from R/D, culminating in an absolutely beefy full course meal of goodness. | | 5 |  | Charli XCX
Brat
And likewise regarding insane live experiences, shoutout her playing pretty much this in it's entirety, unbelievable. Charli unlocked pop music for me so seeing the whole world get it at such a high degree of publicity was absolutely sick as hell, and super well earned. Was a thrill to see of the greatest playlist artists ever finally figure out how to make a fully cohesive and captivating project front to back. | | 4 |  | Nala Sinephro
Endlessness
Unbelievably gorgeous and soothing, this was one of my favorite completely new discoveries this year. It's the most organic feeling album here, as the tracks phase in and out of their ideas seamlessly. Following along to the subtle shifts in these tracks such a captivating exercise in focus that lasts throughout the whole runtime of the album. I tried to write a blurb on this back when it came out and really struggled to do it justice lol, which I think really speaks for how intangible, surreal and magical it feels to listen to despite being grounded in a lot of natural instrumentation. | | 3 |  | Alkaline Trio
Blood, Hair, and Eyeballs
When the last Alkaline Trio album came out, Alkaline Trio were my favorite band. Luckily for me, said prior album was a huge banger that returned to their glory days in pretty much every capacity, while being informed by the maturity that comes from being in your 40s. Where do you go from an album as comprehensive as that? New ground baby. Alkaline Trio have finally learned how to riff, and tore down the walls in the process between the Matt / Dan divide, seeing them trading off vocals more frequently than ever before. Like the chorus of "Scars" is some straight up R.E.M. shit, so fuckin cool. This is their last album with their longtime drummer Derek which is very bittersweet since Derek is probably the best drummer in his genre, but he particularly kills it here, always in sync with Dan and serving as the perfect foundation for the new angular style Skiba has developed. It's an immensely satisfying evolution for the band and cemented itself as my favorite trio | | 2 |  | Chief Keef
Almighty So 2
Every year there's an album I didn't get to during the year that ends up placing really highly for me, and this year I gotta give it to my boy Sosa. Didn't even realize this finally came out which is a shame because pretty much every corner of this is phenomenal. The production, lyrics, themes, and Keef's rapping provide an endless amount to dive in and come back to, with a killer mix of huge bangers and more reflective cuts about Keef getting out of the hood, familial cycles and fear of turning into his father, etc. The slower tracks have some of the most gorgeous damn beats I've ever heard too, with "Believe" especially sending me into the stratosphere every time it comes on. Bitches love Sosa, and so does Bubs | | 1 |  | ERRA
Cure
I already reviewed this bad boy when it dropped but it's staying power has been absurdly strong for me. ERRA take a little one off detour into shedding their technicality for straight grooves and more of an alt-metal sound, and it served as a really refreshing new take on their sound after such a triumphant career culmination that was the Self-Titled. ERRA did a remarkable job on this album tearing down their traditional influences and building themselves back up with new ones. The biggest thing I appreciate about this album is how they've been able to compartmentalize all the different appeals of the band into separate songs instead of throwing everything into the blender like they used to. While I adore and do still prefer their maximalist material, it's a total flex in and of itself that they can still write such a captivating and enthralling album without leaning into it. Also special shoutout for "Glimpse", which is both my SOTY and my new favorite ERRA song. Goddamn magical | |
onionbubs
05.25.25 | may is the new january lfg
did not jam nearly as much stuff in 2024 as other years but the stuff i did i loved a lot so id been meaning to do a lil writeup for a minute | someone
05.25.25 | belated bros
love Sput's overarching Nala praise | onionbubs
05.25.25 | :hi five:
and yea such a breathtaking album | Hawks
05.26.25 | 2, 4, 5 and 6 frigg yeah!!! | onionbubs
05.26.25 | fuck yea, ive had 2 on repeat all weekend | normaloctagon
05.26.25 | Gr8 stuff | Ladron93
05.26.25 | 7, 5 and 4 are my thing last year. | JohnnyoftheWell
05.28.25 | most of this is rad some of this is shit from a butt lfg you've done it Nala for president | onionbubs
05.28.25 | nala for president chief keef for vice |
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