New To Me...To You...To Me...To You

or, How To Get Away With Two "25 From 25" Albums Lists Whilst Pretending That Wasn't Your Intention All Along, Part Two.

This is the second of two lists, my very loose criteria being the first time I have purchased an album by these artists, irrespective of whether they've been going for years or debuted in 2025.

Again, loads of albums that either remained on the long list or haven't yet made it off the shopping list and as yet are unheard. Honourable mentions to Brian Bilston & The Catenary Wires (sorry, JC!), Ead Wood, Restricted Code, Oklou, Steve Lane, The Morning Early, SPRINTS and Peter Capaldi (yes, him!)

As yesterday, I've listed my 25 picks alphabetically, rather than in order of greatness, but I will also reveal my favourite at the end.

25 From 25 - New To Me

(click on the links to buy these albums...and more!)

1) The Smile You Send Out Returns To You: Constant Follower

2) Gift Of Sorts: Chris Reeve

3) Dan's Boogie: Destroyer

4) Concrete Rockers: Earl Sixteen & The Co-operators

5) Ellen Beth Abdi: Ellen Beth Abdi

6) Mother Of A Thousand: F.O. Machete

7) Phantom Island: King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard

8) Om Verda Mi: Lakeshouse

9) Living History: Later Youth

10) LEDLEY: LEDLEY

11) Clients Of Suddenness: Louise Connell

12) A Danger To Ourselves: Lucrecia Dalt

13) Things Must Change: Montjuïc

14) Might As Well Play Another One: Mumble Tide

15) Ways To The Deep Meadow: Ocean Moon

16) A Dawning: Ólafur Arnalds & Talos

17) Desert Queen: Pearl Charles

18) Disturbia: Phonolab

19) Quad 90: Quad 90

20) Concorde: Res One, Upfront, Badhabitz

21) Don't Worry, It's Forever: Sister John

22) Rapture Party: The Joshua Hotel

23) Red Door Open: The Twistettes

24) Last Exit To Music: Xavier Corbera

25) Things Found In Books: Yvonne Lyon & Boo Hewerdine

I recommend each and every one of these albums, but my #1 of 2025 is the stunning self-titled debut by Ellen Beth Abdi.

I was fortunate enough to see Ellen Beth Abdi supporting A Certain Ratio in Bristol last May, and although I recognised her from appearances on the ACR album 1982 and 2023 EP, I was completely unfamiliar with her own songs.

I was at the gig with my friend Mike and we were both blown away by her performance. I told Ellen Beth as much at the merch stand after; she didn't have any records for sale at the time, but I did come away with a jar of delicious marmalade...now that's a USP!

So, when Ellen Beth Abdi's album emerged in May 2025, needless to say that expectations were high...and then surpassed.

The voice is something else, enough to carry the songs, but Ellen Beth handles the entire record with a sure hand, from keyboards and flute to co-production with Joel Anthony Patchett, this does not sound like a first album.

A highlight of the gig was a cover of Spellbound by Rae & Christian, a tribute to Ellen Beth's musical inspiration, vocalist Veba aka Beverley Green. She does the song - and the singer - justice, both on stage and in the studio, sublime vocal loops layering and layering to create a mesmerising whole.

Ellen Beth's own songs are more than up to the challenge of meeting this high bar. Tenterhooks, the lead single, was a perfect example of this but honestly, there's not a single song on the album that I don't want to play again and again. And I have, since buying it.

I can't wait to hear what she does next.

It's So Hard To Quantify

So this week's final look at my checkout choices for December's Bandcamp Friday covers the last seven from T to Z, namely

Tambores En Benirras

Urmet K

Viktus

Wagon Christ

Xavier Corbera

Yellow Ostrich

Zaatar

Tambores En Benirras aka Graham Newby came to my attention when he remixed Other Skies by Electric Blue Vison, Jesse Fahnestock's project with Emilia Harmony, in 2023.

Now Jesse's returned with his other partner in crime, Darren Bell, to deliver a lush Jezebell remix for the third and final remix EP of Tambores En Benirras' debut LP, Ondas Horizontales. Just the fact that it's a Jezebell remix is reason enough to buy, but I especially love the tempo changes in their take on Alma Hablando.

Buy this one and you get further remix excellence including 100 Poems and Leo Zero. Buying all three adds the likes of Aim, Andres Y Xavi, Steve Cobby and Marshall Watson. Wonderful.

According to the blurb accompanying 2023's (debut?) EP Unani Pendeza, Urmet K aka Kermann Urmet is a native of Estonia, and a fixture on London’s underground circuit. Having current experience of neither, I can only say that the track Summer Solstice is a banger. Flip side You Know How continues in a similar vein, and slightly edges it for me. 

Another recommendation for the Stereo MC's label Connected, too. They sure know how to pick them. 

Viktus is a rapper from Bristol... ot at least he was, he appears to have relocated to Brighton since I first featured him in my post in June, which by sheer coincidence also happened to be his birthday.

Big Dawg dropped in November, and all the characteristics are in place: driving piano chords, hefty beats and a rap that covers all the lyrical bases with plenty of effing and jeffing as you might expect. Vocally, swapping the Bronx for a Bristol burr will always get extra points from me.

I'm a huge fan of Luke Vibert's music, my entry point being his releases and remixes in the 1990s, particularly Wagon Christ. I've lost tough in recent years - I have a promo WC album preview from 2011, the last proper track dates back to 2004 - so I'm not sure if this is a Wagon Christ comeback or if I've just not been paying attention.

Planet Roll is a mammoth 16 tracks, so no question that you're getting your money's worth.

Is it a radical departure from the 90s/00s Wagon Christ sound? Hell, no!

Is it great to have a new Wagon Christ album unexpectedly drop in my shopping bag? Hell, yes!

Xavier Corbera hails from Spain and, on the strength of the album Last Exit To Music, is influenced by film soundtrack composers, not least John Carpenter. The album appropriately came out the day before Hallowe'en and features 9 electronic soundscapes. The pulsing Plank is my pick today.

If you believe Discogs, Yellow Ostrich played their final show in 2014. However, main man Alex Schaaf appears to have resurrected the name in 2021 and Trying is his second full length, full band album since. 

Lots of naggingly familiar reference points, but it's confessional style and earworm harmonies has won me over.

My final pick of the day and the week is Zaatar aka Marie Benaboud. Based in France, grew up in Morocco, three nationalities (Belgian, Swiss and Moroccan), a love of "blending EBM (Electronic Body Music), electro & North African roots into raw, genre-bending sets."

It certainly scratches my Front 242 itch, not least on the opening track of The Sound Of Z EP, Eyes Like Static. And I'm a sucker for record sleeves featuring big cats, especially when they remind of TV classic Manimal.

Happy shopping!