OOPS! of 2025 / #10-6: A Princess a Modern Cowboy and A Psychic

This has been a great year for country. There is just a ton of fresh new country out there and I love it. There will be some different styles of country in this block and one more in the next block. There are also some bands I never heard of in this block, which is great! I love learning about new music. So, let’s learn together!

10. Ekko Astra: Head Empty Blues

I am not familiar with Ekko Astra’s work, but this punk noise music fusion has it all. Thrashing guitar, raw vocals, a driving bass line and multiple percussion accents. This track as great energy and largely focuses on the surface level of life and living in violence. The chorus is repeated over and over until it is drained of all meaning, which I think is the point. The challenge is how we make meaning within a life of violence and isolation. Some fun punk with depth.

9. Yaya Bey: Sir Princess Bad Bitch

Yaya Bey has been on the list before. This year she has a groovy track about identify, living your truth and feeling comfortable and confident in yourself. THe title itself refers to gender fluidity and calls into question how we construct gender identities. All of this is within a jazz / funk background that effortlessly flows from one verse to the next. This is a powerful track by an artist who is putting her stamp on hip hop and R&B.

8. Zach Bryan: Pink Skies

This has been a big year for country. Zach Bryan has brought back the folky side of country music, which is a big throwback to Woody Gutherie and his storytelling about the nation and the people it left behind. Zach carries on that tradition of singing about marginalised people and their daily struggles. It also helps that he has an emotionally devastating vocal and excellent musicianship. This will turn you onto country.

7. Gillian Welch and David Rawlings: Empty Trainload of Sky

Most well known for her duets and featuring on tracks, Gillian Welch is back at it with country folk legend David Rawlings. This is good old front porch country. No frills, just excellent vocals and acoustic guitar. Lyrics of the devil wrestling for your spirit and ultimately staring the devil down are classic country themes, but they still hit. This is great work by Welch and adds to the year of country music.

6. Los Campesinos: Psychic Wound

Seven piece band Los Campesinos came out with a largely self-funded record that has really taken off. Their twist on early 2000s skate pop with high energy guitars, thumping 4/4 drums and the loud quiet verse chorus song structure, made famous in the 90s, is very catchy. The high energy and anthemic vocals are at odds with the subject matter, which is about carrying trauma and having it impact all aspects of daily functioning. However, the song ends with some hope that things are “getting better all the time.” This is a deep track with some fresh instrumentation.