OOPS! 50 of 2025: #5 – 1: Some Townies and Geese in Sweatshirts

We are here. All of the entries have led to this. The final five of the OOPS! list and the final five songs of 2025. After this you will have 100 songs to listen to before we do this all again for the songs of 2026…but let’s not get ahead of ourselves. We have some great artists here and the number 1 track probably would have been in the top 5 of the 2025 top 50 if I knew about their record before I did the list. So, let’s get into it for one last time.

5. The Beths: Metal

NZ indie stars The Beths are out with some new music and an evolved sound. Previous records have seen The Beths firmly in guitar driven indie rock. Their new track Metal sees them taking a move into a fuller, warmer 90s alt sound that really highlights Elizabeth Stokes’ shimmering vocal. I love how she both sounds raw, but also beautiful and sparkling….it’s like a cute puppy that has done time…beauty and danger. Think the Sundays meets The Runaways…there is some lush pop, but still a bit of edge just under the surface. Great stuff.

4. Wednesday: Townies

I saw this record everywhere and finally got to it…and I’m glad I did. Wednesday is thsi great mix of guitar crunch, some country slide and that Kurt Vile / Courtney Barnett organic slacker rock that seems to turn tracks into vast luxurious jams. The wall of sound with this band is incredible and envelopes you. As someone that is from a small town I highly relate to this track and how part of your hometown has moved on, while there are always a few places and people that never changed. I love the mix between Karly Hartzman’s vocal and their super beefed up instrumentation. Don’t miss on this band.

3. Hayley Williams: Kill Me

I had this on my list, but then couldn’t find it after publishing the top 50. I must have had it on my mental list…OOPS! Front woman from Paramore, Hayley has put out her third solo record. Her vocal is as powerful as ever with some uncharacteristically poppy hooks that burrow into your brain. This song about the cyclical nature of trauma and trying to do the right thing showcases Hayley’s talent and shows that she is a modern Stevie Nicks…someone who can front a rock band and have a successful solo career at the same time.

2. Earl Sweatshirt: Exhaust

Much like Hayley, this is a song I thought I put on the top 50….but didn’t…OOPS! Sweatshirt has developed a reputation as a hip hop artist who is fearlessly introspective, while also having an unparalleled talent for wordplay. There’s a little bit of introspection on this track, but it’s more about jumping in and marvelling at his bars and what new word combos he’s going to come up with next. Plus he is over a 70s style soul / psychedelic track that is the cherry on top of this fun hip hop sundae.

1 Geese: Getting Killed

I saw this record on everyone’s list…and quite high. I kept putting off listening to it until we got to the OOPS! list. Well…OOPS! This band is unlike anything I have heard in the last 5 years and would have been number 2 on my top 50 list. This is also frontman Cameron Winter’s second time on the OOPS! list…with his solo record earlier in the list. The band has played together for years, so the instrumentation is tight and delivers a punch, while Winter has this raw emotional Nick Cave – esque vocal that is both grounded and urgent. You really sit up and listen when he takes centre stage. Moreover, the band’s writing moves from fun wordplay to devastatingly emotional verses that touch your soul, “My love takes a long time / Longer than a lover can survive.” This band will resurrect your hope in modern rock and is a must listen.