Some of the most interesting psychedelic albums released in the first half of 2025

The first half of 2025 has concluded. Despite a tense and troubling international political climate, this period has yielded several notable releases across albums, EPs, and singles. Below is a selection of highlights from the psychedelic rock scene, drawn from the RetroFuturista site. This list is not exhaustive—readers are encouraged to share their favorite releases in the comments.

Swans – Birthing

Released on May 30, 2025 via Young God and Mute, Birthing signals the end of the current Swans lineup and live era. Michael Gira describes the band’s process as “an unending process…the music grows of its own will and eventually it’s playing us rather than the opposite.” Written and developed across an extended tour, the album’s material took shape through repetition, gradual transformation, and collective experimentation. As Gira notes in the interview, “Our shows are typically 3 hours long and they’re grueling and utterly exhausting to perform…it’s just time to throw myself off a cliff again and see what happens.”
Read the full interview with Michael Gira on Retrofuturista.

Deep Sea Diver – Billboard Heart

Released in early 2025 on Sub Pop, Billboard Heart marks a new chapter for Deep Sea Diver. Jessica Dobson wrote and recorded most of the album herself, with contributions from Madison Cunningham, Greg Leisz, and Yuuki Matthews. The album channels a more open, home-recorded spirit, prioritizing first takes and imperfections—“Perfection kills records so I try to avoid that,” Dobson notes. The record’s arc moves from the title track’s sense of awakening to the closure of “Happiness Is Not a Given.” Dobson discusses influences ranging from Katherine Bradford’s art to Wim Wenders’ Paris, Texas in her interview with Retrofuturista.

Turtle Skull – Being Here

Turtle Skull’s Being Here arrived on May 23, 2025 via Art As Catharsis and Copper Feast Records. Recorded mostly live at NoWave Studio, the album abandons the dense layering of Monoliths for a raw, direct sound. According to the band, “We just wanted to feel connected again… Being Here is our way of processing that, and making something that we could believe in.” The album’s development, lineup changes, and reflections on the Sydney scene are discussed in depth in their interview with Retrofuturista.

MIEN – MIIEN

MIEN released their second album, MIIEN, on Fuzz Club in June 2025. The group—comprising Alex Maas, Rishi Dhir, John-Mark Lapham, and Robb Kidd—developed the record through remote exchanges across Montreal, Abilene, and Austin, with occasional in-person sessions. While most tracks evolved independently, “Mirror” took shape during a rare group rehearsal. MIIEN follows their 2018 debut and blends psychedelic rock, Indian classical elements, and electronic production.

Black Market Karma – Mellowmaker

Released June 6, 2025 on Fuzz Club Records, Mellowmaker is the twelfth album from Black Market Karma. Conceived as a companion to 2024’s Wobble, the record extends Stanley Belton’s approach to self-recording—layered analog textures, off-grid rhythms, and a stream-of-consciousness evolution between albums. Belton describes the album’s underlying feeling with the Welsh word “hiraeth,” evoking a longing for an unattainable home: “It’s like nostalgia, but not exactly—for something that maybe doesn’t exist, or something more.” The material was largely shaped in Dover, influenced by time spent walking the White Cliffs and a growing interest in lo-fi electronics alongside the group’s classic psychedelic palette.
Belton discussed the album’s creative process, emotional traces, and the transition from Wobble to Mellowmaker in our interview.

Lael Neale – Altogether Stranger

Lael Neale’s third album, Altogether Stranger, was released on Sub Pop in 2025. Written and recorded in Los Angeles with Guy Blakeslee, the album pairs minimal instrumentation and Omnichord-driven arrangements with Neale’s literary songwriting. Conceived alongside a 34-minute film of the same name, the project explores themes of alienation and beauty, weaving together elements of gospel, garage rock, and drone pop. Neale describes the record as “about feeling like a stranger in this world, but still finding beauty in it.” The album’s release has included a series of solo dates, festival appearances, and support slots for Beach House.

Foxwarren – 2

Released May 30, 2025 via ANTI- and Arts & Crafts, 2 is the Canadian quintet Foxwarren’s sophomore album, arriving seven years after their debut. Featuring Andy Shauf, Avery Kissick, Darryl Kissick, Dallas Bryson, and Colin Nealis, the record was assembled remotely: band members recorded parts in separate home studios across four provinces, uploaded fragments, and Shauf stitched them into cohesive tracks using a sampler.

Ty Segall – Possession

Released May 30, 2025 on Drag City, Possession is the latest album from Los Angeles-based multi-instrumentalist Ty Segall. The ten-track record features the single “Fantastic Tomb”.

David Grubbs – Whistle from Above

Released on February 28, 2025 by Drag City, Whistle from Above is the latest solo album from composer and musician David Grubbs. The record follows the Gastr del Sol retrospective and features contributions from Cleek Schrey, Nate Wooley, Rhodri Davies, Andrea Belfi, and Nikos Veliotis.

Floral Image – Gone Down Meadowland

Floral Image released their debut album, Gone Down Meadowland, on April 25, 2025 via Fuzz Club. The Norwich-based group—Fergus Nolan, Jack Warner, Matt ‘Tex’ Kennedy, Mitch Forsyth, and Phil Whitton—recorded the album independently in Norfolk, blending older material with new tracks written during winter sessions. The record draws on elements of psychedelic rock and danceable rhythms, shaped by both friendship and local influences. The band discusses the album’s creation, Norfolk roots, and approach to songwriting in their interview with Retrofuturista.

Night Beats – Behind The Green Door

Night Beats released the single “Behind The Green Door” digitally in early 2025, with a limited 7″ vinyl edition available from April 11 via Fuzz Club and Suicide Squeeze. The new release presents two versions of the title track: the original, a slow, minor-key piece evoking late-night imagery and introspective themes, and the Rah John version, which draws from 1970s Thai disco and dancehall influences. Danny Lee Blackwell, the Texas musician behind Night Beats, has been active for over fifteen years, weaving rhythm and blues, soul, and psychedelia through his work. For more about Blackwell’s background and approach, see our earlier interview with him here.

The Living Pins – Gold

Austin’s The Living Pins released the single “Gold” on February 28, 2025 via The Cosmic Clash. Recorded with producer Chris “Frenchie” Smith at The Bubble Studios, the track features Carrie Clark and Pam Peltz on guitars and vocals, Bobby Daniel on bass, and Kristy McInnis on drums and bongos. Founded in the 1990s, the group reemerged in 2020 after a long hiatus, continuing with recent releases including the Freaky Little Monster Children EP and singles “Oh Yeah” and “Chateau.”

L.A. Witch – DOGGOD

L.A. Witch released their third album, DOGGOD, on April 4, 2025 via Suicide Squeeze. The band—Sade Sanchez, Irita Pai, and Ellie English—recorded in Paris at Motorbass Studio, resulting in colder, more expansive arrangements compared to their previous work. The shift in geography brought a colder, more expansive sound, layering broader arrangements over the band’s established minimalism and repetitive tension. The sessions, shaped by the city’s gothic architecture and long nights, coincided with a period of isolation and focus—“being away from the distractions at home really forced us to focus on the album.” Giallo cinema and the atmosphere of Parisian cemeteries fed into the mood and imagery of the record, with references to both Italian horror and classic French visual culture. The lineup—Sade Sanchez, Irita Pai, Ellie English—remains centered on hypnotic rhythms and a narcotic garage-blues pulse. More about the writing and recording process can be found in their interview.

Chime Oblivion – Chime Oblivion

Chime Oblivion, led by John Dwyer with contributions from David Barbarossa (Adam & the Ants, Bow Wow Wow), Weasel Walter (Flying Luttenbachers), Tom Dolas, H.L. Nelly, and Brad Caulkins, released their self-titled album on April 18, 2025 via Deathgod Records. The 15-track record spans proto‑punk, experimental, and psychedelic rock, recorded over five days as the group collectively shaped its sound.

Graceful – Riding On The Chaos

Graceful, a band based in Nantes, released their third album, Riding On The Chaos, in 2025. The album was recorded at Black Box Studios, mixed by Arthur Lauth—known for his work with Regarde Les Hommes Tomber and The Ocean—and mastered by Benjamin Savignoni. Riding On The Chaos is available on CD, LP, and digital platforms.

Faun Fables – Counterclockwise

Faun Fables return with Counterclockwise, released May 30, 2025 via Drag City—their first album since 2016’s Born of the Sun. The record presents new and archival songs developed over a fifteen-year period, combining commissioned pieces on themes such as werewolves, Mother Goose, and fairy tales with material reflecting personal and familial experience. Engineered and produced by Dawn McCarthy and Nils Frykdahl, the album features their daughters Edda, Ura, and Gudrin, as well as Norwegian musician Arild Hammerø.

Battle Elf – 10

Detroit-based trio Battle Elf released their debut album, 10, on May 2, 2025 via Birdman Records, available in limited vinyl and digital editions. The lineup includes Gretchen Gonzales (Universal Indians, Infinite River), Chris Peters (Racehorses Are Resources), and David Hurley (Panto Collapsar). The album is built on improvised compositions that draw from krautrock, psychedelic, and experimental traditions.

Tombstones In Their Eyes – Asylum Harbour

Tombstones In Their Eyes, based in Los Angeles, released the album Asylum Harbour in 2025 via Kitten Robot Records. The group—John Treanor, Stephen Striegel, Courtney Davies, Phil Cobb, Paul Boutin, Joel Wasko, and Clea Cullen—recorded the album with producer Paul Roessler at Kitten Robot Studios.

Anika – Abyss

Anika released the single “Walk Away” ahead of her album Abyss, out April 4, 2025 via Sacred Bones Records. Recorded live to tape at Berlin’s Hansa Studios with Martin Thulin (Exploded View), the album features contributions from Andrea Belfi, Tomas Nochteff, and Lawrence Goodwin.

Panda Bear – Sinister Grift

Noah Lennox, known as Panda Bear, released his eighth solo album, Sinister Grift, on February 28, 2025. Recorded in Lisbon with co-production from Deakin, the sound is rooted in psychedelic pop.

Dead Meadow – Voyager to Voyager

Dead Meadow released Voyager to Voyager on March 28, 2025 through Heavy Psych Sounds. The record continues the band’s exploration of psychedelic rock with themes of space and personal reflection. The album includes singles such as “The Unhounded Now,” characterized by heavy riffs and expansive, atmospheric arrangements. The lineup remains centered on Jason Simon, Steve Kille, and Mark Laughlin. For more background on the band’s development and approach, see our previous interview with Dead Meadow.

Tenebrous LIAR – Hell Never Called

Hell Never Called brings together rehearsal room improvisations, home recordings, and studio takes. The album marks the arrival of Aimee Lovric and shifts between raw noise, atmosphere, and stripped-down song structures. Released in a limited edition of 113 vinyl copies, each includes an original darkroom print by Steve Gullick.

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