These are the 10 Best Local Albums and EPs of 2025

2025 turned out to be a breakout year for music globally, with memorable records from rising figures such as R&B producer extraordinaire Dijon, New York rock band Geese, and stellar comeback projects from the legendary Hip-Hop duo Clipse with Let God Sort Em Out, and SABLE, fABLE from Justin "Bon Iver" Vernon.

Meamwhile, the local music industry was no less stellar this year, with mythical comebacks, underrated gems, and records with euphoric payoffs. As always, we took on the daunting task of giving you the best albums and EPs (extended plays) put out this year from surging Filipino musicians and outfits from varying artistic persuasions, in no particular order.

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No Skips: A Track-By-Track Review of IV of Spades' Comeback Album Andalucia

We kick things off with the bombshell comeback album of the alternative rock quartet IV of Spades, which top to bottom is a record we are going to keep revisiting for the foreseeable future. We stand by our track-by-track dissection of what we deem a no-skip LP, which still has tracks on our on-repeat playlists.

The boisterious and diverse rock outfit have made their triumphant homecoming via an album that hearkens to their individual stylistic indiosyncracies and influences. Some of our favorite cuts from the album are the funky "Nanaman," the moody "Tamis ng Pagkakamali," the heartwrenching "Konsensya," and the smooth "Kabisado."

The paradoxical, analog cacuophany of discordant guitar noises and melodies from Hazylazy's debut record Antagonisms deserves recognition. The shoegaze-y, dreampop soundscapes really drew us into this fever-dream world independent musicain Jason Fernandez meticulously paints within this LP.

The album's openers "Lazy i" and "Wake and Flake," aptly set the glitchy tone of the record, which leans a lot on Lo-Fi bedroom production layers. Expect a lot of tasteful fuzzy guitar tones and reverb-soaked vocals crooning on about anxiety and authenticity. Some of our standout picks include "Dreamweaver," for its electronic loops mixed in with the hard rock tones; "Sleaze Please," for its unsettling vocal patches and fast-paced programmed percussion; and "Outfield," which is one of the smoother tracks on the LP that is giving us a Beach Fossils aesthetic.

SOS came out with a very polished indie rock record this year that almost feels like a spiritual successor to their beloved 2017 record Whatever That Was.The tracks evoke the same charismatic and bluesy aesthetic that make SOS such a compelling band to follow even years after mainstream hit tracks such as "Magic," "Perfect," and "Leave Me Out Of It."

The tracks on this project are heaps catchy, groovy, and sensual. Put on "Roses," and "French Exit," for size and you'll get what we mean. This is one record we wish we could see live due to how tightly woven each track is in line with the stoner rock, indie rock goodness, which the group definitely knows a thing or two about.

There's no question Filipino-Japanese singer-singwriter Ena Mori excels at writing electropop and art pop music. r0e is an EP that is very cohesively put together with a narrative that injects a dose of youthful vigor into the listener, especially with tracks such as "Heatache Generation," "Portion Control," and "Trust Me."

It seems Ena Mori is taking a page out of the playbook of artists like Grimes, Rina Sawayama, and injecting her own nostalgic/ modern sonic fusion, leading to more killer new wave-esque tunes.

Pop rock band One Click Straight are doing wonders for the local music scene. See: otw/BROke, which is one hell of a trip for nostalgic early-2000s rock fans out there. The title tracks "otw" and "BROke" play in stark contrast to each other: from a mellow, and feel good easy-breezy opener to a high-strung and in-your-face soliloquy about being, you guessed it, all out of money. But the catchiest and perhaps the best reason to pick up this EP is "Telepono," an almost hynoptic track with its tones and resonant guitar melodies.

Filipino rock band royalty Sandwich, consisting of Raymund Marasigan, Diego Castillo, Myrene Academia, Mong Alcaraz, and Mike Dizon, is back with quite the lowkey project this year called Kaswal.

We got a full Tagalog tracklist with banger against-the-grain tracks such as "Nyare?," Wag Ka na lang Kumagat", that sees the band experimenting with fuzzy fusions and reggae sound profiles. It's refreshing to see the outfit staying active with their trademark grit on the EP. We look forward to a fuller, more cohesive full-length record in the near future.

Alternative hip-hop quintet PLAYERTWO has put out a killer direct follow up to their Happy Accidents Vol. 1 EP, and it's probably one of the best produced records this year, with every bar, guitar line, and snare mixed pristinely. "

"Moodswings" starts the record off and is a breath of fresh air. If you dig groups like Brockhampton, then PLAYERTWO is right up your alley, with killer flows and vocal performances.

"P2000" and "Sabi Ko Sa'yo (feat. LUSTBASS) shows off the versatility PLAYERTWO brings to the industry. The former is an aggressive mix-tape style straight-up rap track that makes it hard not to get pumped up, while the latter is a sensual sexy-time track tinged with a classic R&B flavor and arguably the smoothest vocal performances you will hear this year.

Unless you've been living under a rock, alternative rock/ pop band Cup of Joe and the cult of their their ultra/mega hit "Multo" took streaming services and airwaves by storm this year. The band had arguably 2025's biggest song that has been covered to death by numerous artists, even in different languages.

It's no secret how infectious "Multo's" hook is and how cathartic it is to sing along to (for the obvious relatability of the lyrics). The common fear of a band with such as massive hit on their hands is how they can avoid being a one-hit-wonder, but Cup of Joe doesn't seem to have that problem.

Silakbo is the accompanying record and hosts "Multo" and other catchy pop tunes such as "Bagyo" and "Bubog." The songs are distinct from one another and create such euphoric payoffs during each of their hooks. The boys just have a knack for building up tension and pulling off satisfying climaxes. The title track "Silakbo" is another soaring track, combining bursts of groove with dramatic flourishes.

It's refreshing to hear straightforward singer-songwriter stuff done well and Paolo Sandeja's The World is So Small (After All) does just that. To bring you up to speed, the artist's breakout hit "My Girl"was a hit even beyond Philippine shores, with K-Pop megastar V even taking a liking to the track.

The singer-songwriter once again shows off his earnest storytelling in his music in this new record, keeping things simple without trying to be something he's not.

Sandejas certainly has the chops when it comes to actually coming up with catchy melodies and not being afraid to put some dirt in his tracks. A bunch of fuzzy and overdriven guitar choices were made to complement his otherwise smooth and youthful singing qualiies. The song "moonlight" for example, comes with a pretty tasteful guitar intermission that is reminiscent of something Two Door Cinema Club would do. Pretty impressive musicality overall and a solid effort that is bound to spark further creative evolutions in the near future.

The album art of scenic roads speaks for itself sinc this project from the Baguio-based rock band Dilaw will make you want to take a long drive to wherever. Known for their massive single "Uhaw," the band's debut full-length album helps transport listeners to a country-side roadtrip for the long weekend. There's something entrancing about frontman Leonard Obero's vocal inflections and the character in his performance.

The band also paints a very serene and no-frills pop-rock vibe with crystal clear chorus-driven guitar tones. Favorites from the record include the closers "Rarara," and "Amistad."

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