The Best Songs Released in October 2025

Happy November and to my SoCal readers, go Dodgers! I watched that entire baseball game last night and I never watch sports. It was an amazing game!!!

Now, onto the music – I’ve listened to about ten albums on the list below, which is not a lot considering how many there are in total: and I’m sure I’m missing a few!

We’re gearing up for our year end write up on the 50 Best Albums of the Year: take a look at previous lists HERE. We hope you return at the beginning of December once this year’s goes live!

Noteworthy album & EP releases:
Oblivion, Alice Phoebe Lou
Pretty Idea, Amber Mark
LOVERCORE, Artemas
So Much To Tell You, Ax and the Hatchetman
Holy Grail, Bel
Returning To Myself, Brandi Carlile
Cherry Valley, Carter Faith
How To Be Human, Cat Burns
Big Talk, Couch
Son of Spergy, Daniel Caesar
Anna, Dasha
Til Every Petal Drops, Daya
It’s Not That Deep, Demi Lovato
Chuck, Eleni Drake
Stage Girl, Eli
Good Story, Eliza McLamb
Devour, Etta Marcus
Living While Dying, fanclubwallet
The Life You Save, Flock of Dimes
Everybody Scream, Florence + The Machine
The Eldest Daughter, Gatlin
Blue Sky Mentality, Good Neighbours
Witching Hour, Grace Power
Superlame, INJI
Belong, Jay Som
On The Other End of the Line, Joyer
after the sun goes down, Khalid
PHOLKS, Leon Thomas
West End Girl, Lily Allen
Vicious Delicious, Luvcat
HOT POT!, Mikayla Geier
Fatal Optimist, Madi Diaz
Ace, Madison Cunningham
THE VOID, Nightly
Melt, Not For Radio
All is Love and Pain in the Mouse Parade, Of Monsters and Men
R is for Rocket, Rocket
Kicking My Feet, Ruel
Swimming Towards The Sand, Rachel Bobbitt
Early Twenties Torture, Sadie Jean
There’s Always More That I Could Say, Sigrid
And Your Sun Is Like A Circle, Skullcrusher
The BPM, Sudan Archives
How I Learned To Love What’s Gone, Suzie True
Deadbeat, Tame Impala
The Life of a Showgirl, Taylor Swift
Again, The Belair Lip Bombs
From The Pyre, The Last Dinner Party
Demonette, Venus & The Flytraps

In chronological order:

“Winner” – Meg Smith
Release date – October 3

One of my favorite pop girlies on the rise, Meg Smith, is set to drop her new album, DISCO DYSTOPIA, next Friday. She’s been on my radar for awhile, initially falling for her 2024 album The Gospel According to Meg Smith, loving its witty and sarcastic humor mixed bubblegum pop melodies. “Winner,” my current hyperfixation single from the new project, gives Smith the chance to show off her “edgier” muscles: this song still features plenty of pop elements, but gives me the moodiness of artists like Baby Queen, Olivia Rodrigo, and even Avril Lavigne.

Singing about vices that we all use to cope like pilates, meditation apps, and online shopping, “Winner” embodies the feeling that comes with trying to find happiness with the things that we’re taught to make us feel better, but really just fill the void with nonsense that’s really just a result of living in a consumption economy (“I’m still the same sad girl / Just with more skin care”). – Kristin

“Father Figure” – Taylor Swift
Release date – October 3

Despite still not fully wrapping my head around Taylor Swift’s 12th studio album The Life of A Showgirl and how I feel about it, I know that “Father Figure,” the 4th track on the project, is a clear standout for me. It took a couple listens to fully process what Taylor was singing about, but after that, the pieces fell into place pretty seamlessly: she’s absolutely still grappling with the pain that came from her longtime mentor, Scott Borchetta, selling her catalog to Scooter Braun.

This topic is not new to Taylor or her fanbase, she explored the pain from this backstabbing quite beautifully in “My Tears Ricochet” from folklore back in 2020, but this take is a much more literal one. Told from the perspective of the “mentor” (Scott) speaking to the “mentee” (Taylor), “Father Figure” paints a descriptive picture of the two’s relationship throughout the years, starting when Scott essentially “scooped up” Taylor from oblivion as an aspiring teenage singer/songwriter and helped mold her into a superstar, ultimately leading to betrayal.

The song’s bridge is told from Taylor’s point of view, self-described as THE “Father Figure,” flipping the script on the mentor/mentee narrative and taking revenge on Borchetta for crossing her. “Whose portrait’s on the mantle? / Who covered up your scandals? / Mistake my kindness for weakness and find your card cancelled. I was your father figure / You pulled the wrong trigger / This empire belongs to me,” proving to Borchetta and any skeptics that she is the one who holds the power. – Kristin

“Back of My Hand” – The Belair Lip Bombs
Release date – October 7

When I first heard “Back of My Hand” by Aussie band The Belair Lip Bombs, it felt like a warm hug. It felt like a song that has been in my rotation for years. But I had never heard of them before, despite their debut album Lush Life dropping back in 2023. But the TLDR version of the band’s bio is that they’ve been a staple in Melbourne’s local music scene for over five years at this point, and have had a loyal following since.

Described as “a nice little ode to love” by lead singer/guitarist Maisie Everett, “Back of My Hand” is just that: a declaration of love that’s described by all the ways you know someone better than you know yourself (or the back of your hand). A reliable, sturdy love that’s there, even when you’re fighting. With influences like The Rolling Stones and The War on Drugs, as well as touring experience with Spacey Jane, it’s easy to see that The Belair Lip Bombs’ self-described “yearn-core” rock and fuzzy guitar melodies will be in everyone’s album rotation within the next several months, (their sophomore album Again just dropped on Halloween), as they continue to grow in popularity and even embark on their own North American headline tour in Spring 2026. – Kristin

“Same Kids” – Girl Scout
Release date – October 16

Swedish band Girl Scout haven’t even released their debut album yet (it’s dropping in March of 2026), and they’re already making waves as an indie band to watch. Initially starting as a group of friends studying jazz together in Stockholm, Girl Group bonded over their shared love for garage rock and brit-pop from the ’80s and ’90s. That fuzzy, DIY garage band sound is audible in their music: “Same Kids” feels like a cross between Chicago natives Beach Bunny and Momma.

Performed as an ode to friendship and the people you meet later in life, “Same Kids” speaks on the ways that we all find our “people” in different stages of adulthood and how you look back on your adolescence, a time often filled with insecurity and confusion, and how new friendships can essentially heal your inner child who often felt misplaced and misunderstood.

Speaking on the meaning of the song, singer and guitarist Emma Jansson comments on meeting some of her bandmates and wishing they were around during her childhood: “It reminded me of that moment I first found like-minded people, and made me reflect on what it might have been like to know these people earlier in life. How much that would have meant. That same feeling is the inspiration behind “Same Kids” and a big reason this band exists in the first place: to form your own little circle with its own secret language and ideals around it.” – Kristin

“Afterthought” – Tame Impala
Release date – October 17

Tame Impala’s first album release in five years certainly did not disappoint. “Afterthought” from Kevin Parker’s new album Deadbeat, carries his signature funky, psychedelic beat, the kind that just makes you want to get up and dance. The contrast between the bouncy rhythm to Parker’s melancholy lyrics, “No matter what I do / I’m an afterthought to you” lays bare a sense of relational frustration, capturing the feeling of always being the second option. The juxtaposition of painful lyrics with an upbeat melody gives the song a bittersweet magic that feels uniquely Tame Impala.

Sonically, “Afterthought” continues the album’s shift toward richer electronic textures while still maintaining Parker’s psychedelic roots. Layered synths and crisp percussion blend seamlessly with his nostalgic, reverb-filled vocals, creating a track that feels both fresh and familiar. It’s a reminder of Parker’s ability to evolve his sound, while still keeping the hypnotic pulse that we all know and love. – Katie

“CRANK” – Slayyyter
Release date – October 24

This may be a “blasphemous” take from some super fans, but there’s something so palpable in Slayyyter’s new single “CRANK” that reminds me Beyoncé’s “Don’t Hurt Yourself:” loud, unapologetic rage rock: even if Slayyyter’s is more lighthearted than Bey’s takedown of Jay-Z.

Produced by Wyatt Bernard and Austin Corona (Halsey, Jean Dawson, spill tab), “CRANK” is easily my favorite Slayyyter song to date: it’s fun, in your face, and reminiscent of artists like Charli xcx and Rebecca Black: even though Slayyyter doesn’t consider her music to be fully hyperpop, you can’t ignore those influences on her sound.

Speaking on the song, Slayyyter says “I made “Crank” with Austin and Wyatt in New York City. It’s confident, tweakery, and anthemic. In pop and dance music I feel like there is an expectation for songs to have soaring vocal melodies or really pin pointed lyrical concepts. While making this record it felt very freeing to scream about nonsense with distortion on the mic. Some of my favorite one liners I have ever written live on this song. Call it what you want, it’s all dance…”
– Kristin