Pop on your best frock (or at least some clean socks), it's time for what no-one is calling The DiSsies. This is a little end of year rundown of the things that blew our minds and warmed our hearts...
To kick things off, it's our gigs of the year...
GIG OF THE YEAR
Nine Inch Nails, The O2, June 18th
Sean's pick: Whilst I was blown away by Sofia Isella, Mannequin Pussy and Ecca Vandal, I still haven't gotten over how special this NIN arena show was. Considering I usually have my best live experiences in rooms that hold 300-1000 people or bigger rooms that are purpose built for music, rather than places like this gargantuan Millennium Dome tent. And yet, sat about 20 rows from the back, somehow this was sonically, visually, and viscerally a truly powerful live show.
From the mid-venue solo start of 'Right Where It Belongs'/'Somewhat Damaged' to the swarming veil with projections and horror movie shadows, through the banging synth section (still have 'Copy of A' as an ear worm), it was a proper voyage through their catalogue.
Anyway, I gushed about the show here:
Sean Adams
Parkway Drive, Wembley Arena, Saturday 4th October
Emma's pick: Every so often, I’m sent to review a live show and walk away feeling the pressure of the job weigh a little heavier. I have to do words that do justice to that now. I felt that perhaps more acutely than ever as I filed out of the doors of Wembley Arena after seeing Australian metal band Parkway Drive play the show of their lives with the most astonishing arena production I’ve ever seen.
Contemporary dancers. A giant rising and falling walkway. A drum riser that span upside down. A string trio. Indoor fireworks – and rain. And, of course, truly colossal sounding songs, all adding up to a two-and-a-quarter hour cinematic display of both power and devotion to their art. It was detailed, dazzling, and a joy to behold.
UNEXPECTED EVENT OF THE YEAR
Artists and users leave Spotify in their droves
Emma: We’ve known for years that Spotify is not the friend to artists that it claims to be, but that was amplified this year when users and artists quit the platform for good over Daniel Ek’s investments in AI war drones. In the end, it might end up being a source of hope that could shift the streaming landscape towards options that pay artists better and promote curation by real people, not AI, and with community and fandom at its heart.
BIGGEST NEWS STORY OF THE YEAR
Revealed on our review of the year podcast
Sean: We've been counting down the five biggest stories of the year on our podcast. Tune in to hear which story we went for by searching for "Drowned in Sound" wherever you get your podcasts.
You can find it on Apple Podcasts here:
VENUE OF THE YEAR
Royal Albert Hall
Emma: The stately domed hall on the other side of Hyde Park is a gorgeous place to watch live music, especially bigger artists in a more intimate setting, but it’s leading by example when it comes to putting money into the grassroots pipeline. In July, they became the first arena-sized venue in the UK to commit to the £1 grassroots levy for all its commercial rock and pop concerts. We can only hope they will be the first of many (and in positive news, The O2 is following by donating to the Live Fund whenever a new artist headlines for the first time). And, while we’re at it, next year’s Teenage Cancer Trust gigs there, curated for the first time by Robert Smith, look absolutely stacked.
SHOULD’VE BEEN THE SONG OF THE SUMMER AWARD
CMAT 'Take A Sexy Picture Of Me'
Emma: Apparently this summer, nothing beat a Jet2 holiday - and that viral jingle was as close as we got to filling the Espresso-shaped hole left by last summer’s gold rush of sun-soaked pop. Was the song of the summer really ten years old?
A better candidate might have been CMAT’s country-flecked hit ‘Take A Sexy Picture Of Me’, the opening salvo of a huge year for the Irish singer-songwriter. (In fact, Iona from Cliffords put it forward as the song of the summer and I wholeheartedly agree). It was wry, cutting, painfully relatable yet with a lightness underneath – see “I did leg things/And hand stuff/And single woman banter.” What a banger – and what a worthy candidate it would have been.
Our review of the year is presented in partnership with Qobuz - the service for music enthusiasts featuring high quality sound so that we can rediscover music. Listen to tracks from our albums of the year and start your 30-day free trial of Qobuz.
CALL-AND-RESPONSE OF THE YEAR
JADE at Glastonbury
Sean: Down on the farm this summer, former Little Mixer JADE played one of the sets of the festival and added a call-and-response section during her track 'FUFN'. It went a little something like this:
“I’m sure there are so many people you’d love to say f*** you [to] today … I’m gonna say some things and I want you to shout ‘f*** you’ back to me... smelly toilets, f*** you... Reform, f*** you; welfare cuts, f*** you... Transphobia, f*** you; silencing protests, f*** you; selling arms, f*** you; justifying genocide, f*** you.”
The only place we can find a clip is on the hellscape formerly known as Twitter, here.
AMBIENT HARDCORE SONG OF THE YEAR
Turnstile – ‘Never Enough’
Emma: Do you like your hardcore with some floaty bits? Turnstile answered the call, if ever there was one, with their cinematic revamp of their summery sound on the title track from their fourth album. At that moment, hot hardcore summer began, and they were its soundtrack to moshing under the glare of the sun – and in front of their shiny new mosh cam at live shows, in which the fans were the band’s own backdrop. In a slowly greying world, Turnstile brought colour and light.
CLIMATE CAMPAIGNER OF THE YEAR
ANOHNI
Sean: Earlier this year, ANOHNI performed at Sydney Opera House and Glastonbury with a dying coral reef on the screens. It was haunting and I can't stop thinking about it. The interviews around this project were deeply moving and I wrote more about why this was so powerful here:
Sean Adams
Here's a tune from the Glastonbury performance:
For lots more, listen to our recent albums of the year and news stories of the year podcasts:
Tom Venvell
Sean: And now we're off to the awards after-party, which may involve a cup of coffee and a few biscuits whilst listening to the new Ekin Fil album again. Join me, it's a gorgeous blue mist of a record, which came out yesterday:
DRONARIVM
Your Winners of 2025?
Invent an award and tell us who won over here:
sean