THE BEST OF 2025 - The Best ROCK Of The Year

 

- I recently saw the movie Song Sung Blue, and it was a potent reminder of the power of music. Music makes us feel larger than life, it makes us feel like anything is possible, it heightens emotion and helps us to get through even the darkest of times. In 2025, we needed music to be a cry of rebellion. We needed music to be a call to action. We needed music to feel like hope yet remained even in this darkest timeline. 

It's why, as I thought about my favorite songs of the year, I ultimately gave the top spot to a band that has been leading that charge. Dropkick Murphys have long been one of my favorites, but in the Trump era they've talked the talk and walked the walk - giving us songs and albums that felt urgent, timely, and sorely needed. 

I was lucky enough this year to see the great John Fogerty live in concert for the first time ever, at the Hollywood Bowl. Decades ago, Fogerty and Credence Clearwater Revival used music to talk about the changing times, and to protest the bad moon rising, the trouble that was on the way. In his 80's, Fogerty was still absolutely fantastic - sporting his trademark bandana and blue jeans, he sang iconic song after iconic song. And you couldn't help but notice that so many of his Vietnam-era protest songs resonated more today - sadly, I suppose - than they have in many a decade. 

I got another dose of still-vital classic rock when I saw Jason Bonham's Led Zeppelin Evening at the Greek theater. I'd recently watched the new Led Zeppelin documentary, and was eager to get the Led out in whatever way was possible in 2025. Seeing the son of the band's legendary drummer (not to mention *his* son, whose band was the opening act) was a pretty good way to honor the Zeppelin legacy. While not quite the same as seeing the original band, this was a fun show that gave us a mix of iconic rock songs and some deeper cuts. 

I had another really fun experience at the Hollywood Bowl, seeing the "I Want My 80's" concert. I love me some vintage 80's music, so this was a real treat. The headliner here was Rick Springfield - who, at age 75, was somehow still in great shape such that women were screaming when he took his shirt off (life goals for my 70's, I guess?). But Springfield legit rocked, and I came away from the show with a newfound appreciation for his surprisingly deep catalog of 80's rock bangers (my new favorite: "Human Touch" - it rules). That said, I was also really excited to see Wang Chung. They've been having a bit of a moment of late, with their classic "Dance Hall Days" being featured in a number of recent movies, and their "To Live and Die in LA" song also serving as the theme to John Mulaney's Netflix talk show. Wang Chung seriously rocked live, and I got sort of emotional for "Dance Hall Days" ...

 ... Because to bring this post back full circle, the song was used in one of my favorite movie scenes of the year, in the film The Life of Chuck. In the scene, a young Chuck spends time with his grandmother after the death of his parents. She's in the kitchen, cooking, as "Dance Hall Days" kicks up. Nick Offerman's narration states: "She liked rock n' roll, while she was cooking. Music Chuck would have thought much too young for her. But which she clearly enjoyed." Young Chuck looks at his grandma. She smiles back, as she taps the counter with her ladle, to the beat. She looks at him and says "C'mon little brother, let's dance." And they do. And from that moment on, a love for music and dance awakened in Chuck. It made me think of my own seemingly forever-young grandmother. It made me think of my own love of music. It made me think of how music keeps us young, smiling, and alive. 

2025 was a really tough year in a lot of ways. It was a struggle. But music made it easier. Music made me feel like I could fight back. Music made me feel like I - and all of us - still had a fighting chance. 

So here are some of the songs that spoke to me, that moved me, that energized me - in the year that was.

DANNY'S TOP ROCK SONGS OF 2025:

 

1.) Dropkick Murphys - "Who'll Stand With Us?" / "Chesterfields and Aftershave" / "Bury the Bones"

-  As I said above, Dropkick Murphys have become more than just a kickass punk rock band in recent years - they've become a voice of the revolution. And their recent 2025 album encapsulated that. It's filled with songs that urged us to fight. That proverbially spit in the face of Trump and MAGA and anyone who would follow them. Songs that lament the fate of the working man, that look back nostalgically on simpler times, that mix rage and sadness and emotion into a maelstrom of punk rock anthems that make you want to pump your fist and fight the good fight. "Who'll Stand With Us?" is the protest song we needed in 2025 - an anthemic rager that doesn't quit. "Bury the Bones" is another standout track, a scornful eulogy for would-be oppressors. And "Chesterfields and Aftershave" is the best song about grandfathers ever - a nostalgic ballad about the good ol' days and the people we miss from them. It's songs like these that make the Murphy's 2025 album "For The People" my pick for Album of the Year.

 

2.) Aerosmith & Yungblood - "Problems" / "My Only Angel"

- I'm a diehard Aerosmith fan, so it felt like a minor miracle that, somehow, the band returned from the brink to give us unexpected new music here in 2025. It had seemed the band was done, finished - but lo and behold, 2025 saw a new collaboration with up-and-coming rocker Yungblood that gave new life to the Bad Boys From Boston. And you know what? While their 5-song EP was sort of up and down, it had a couple of certifiably rocking tunes that have only grown on me more with each new listen. First single "My Only Angel" is a radio-friendly tune that, yeah, smooths out Steven Tyler's rougher vocal edges way too much. But still. There's some magic there. And "My Only Angel" is actually my favorite of the new songs - it's got vintage Tyler wails, some heavy Joe Perry riffage, and an emotion-packed vibe that reminds me a bit of "Sweet Child o' Mine." There's stuff that can be picked apart here, no question. But let's take a moment to celebrate that Aerosmith is back, baby.

3.) The Darkness - "Walking Through Fire"

-  I was a bit mixed overall on The Darkness' latest 2025 album, but the standout song for me was, easily, "Walking Through Fire" - a hard-driving rocker that is the band at their best. This was a big anthem for me in 2025, a motivational song that could be cranked up to 11 during those times when you need a musical pick-me-up. 

 

4.) Lady Gaga - "Abracadabra"
 

- Lady Gaga's latest album is all killer, no filler - and "Abracadabra" is flat-out one of the best dance-pop songs in a long, long time. It quickly entered regular rotation on my morning exercise playlist, and *also* served as a key source of inspiration as I penned the latest chapters in my spooky comic book series Halloween Team. Talk about a song that's got it all. This is a mystical, magical, evil spell of a song that is both mesmerizing and energizing.

 

5.) Billy Idol featuring Avril Lavigne - "77"

 

- If you've been paying attention, you know that Billy Idol has been on a bit of a musical tear for several years now. Yes, his music will always be rooted in 80's-era punk and new wave - but man, don't sleep on his 2020's output. In 2025, he put out a great new album, filled with fun collabs. One of the best, in my humble opinion, is his banger of a pop-punk song, "77", done with Millennial icon Avril Lavigne. It's a great mix of both of their sensibilities, and it speaks to the current moment as well. It's a call for rebellion like it's seventy-seven.

 

 

6.) Florence + The Machine - "Everybody Scream"

- I've not necessarily been a mega-fan of Florence + The Machine, but I've long had a healthy appreciation for the band's dark, haunting melodies and gothic-tinged tunes. But wow, when I first heard "Everybody Scream," I really sat up and took notice. This song got under my skin and really stuck with me. It's a dark, moody, and mystical song that gets my imagination running. So good.

7.) Ghost - "Satanized"

- Ghost is now a rock band whose new music I consistently look forward to. They have a uniquely epic, theatrical sound - and their songs tell stories like few other bands can. "Satanized" is their latest goth-metal epic - a maximalist power ballad that soars, that tantalizes, and that just plain rocks really hard. 

 

 

8.) Evanescence - "Afterlife (Gunship remix)" / "Fight Like a Girl"

- What a comeback year this was for Evanescence. Incredible cameo on Nathan Fielder's show The Rehearsal aside, Evanescence released some amazing new music this year. Their new song "Fight Like a Girl" played over the end credits of the new John Wick spinoff The Ballerina (and was arguably the best part of that movie). It's a badass rock song that kicks you in the teeth and doesn't let up. And then, they dropped a super cool remix of their new song "Afterlife," done in conjunction with the amazing synthwave band Gunship. 2025 was a full on Evanescence comeback, and I can't wait to see what else they've got up their sleeve for 2026.

 

9.) Alice Cooper - "Blood on the Sun"

-  Alice Cooper is one of my all-time favorites, and I buy every new album of his sight unseen. And so, I was intrigued to listen to Cooper's 2025 album that saw him reunite with his original Alice Cooper Band lineup. The resulting album did indeed have a different, more old-school feel versus other recent Cooper output. And to be honest, not all of it worked for me. But! I did love, in particular, this song - "Blood on the Sun." It's a hard-driving rock ballad with great lyrics and a sense of real epicness. A standout track that makes me, as always, incredibly thankful that Cooper is still around doing his thing.

10.) Twenty One Pilots - "City Walls"

-  In re-watching the music video for "City Walls" on YouTube, I was reminded from reading the comments (I know, I know ...) that Twenty One Pilots have an insanely dedicated fandom who closely track an incredibly complex lore that is associated with the band and their songs. So, yeah - I am nowhere near that level of fandom, but I have been a big Pilots fan since their original album. And that made me particularly excited for "City Walls," which feels like a return to the original, electric combination of rock, rap, and techno that made me love this band from the get-go. 

 

Honorable Mentions:

 

- The Paradox - "Get the Message"

- NewDad - "Misery"

- Gorillaz (featuring Sparks) - "The Happy Dictator"

- Spoon - "Chateau Blues"

- Men Without Hats - "I Love the '80s"

- KPop Demon Hunters soundtrack - "Golden"

 

 

To close, I wanted to mention the monumental loss that the rock world suffered in 2025, with the death of Ozzy Osbourne. Ozzy's music meant so much to me from an early age, and I was devastated to hear of his passing - even as I was awed by Ozzy's epic and emotion-packed final show, when he knew the end was near. "Maybe, it's not too late ...".

THE BEST OF 2024 - The Best ROCK Of The Year

 

- I feel like I'm at an age of nostalgia. So many conversations I have with my peers devolve into games of "remember that?" And while music can be a powerful reminder of old memories and past adventures, there's also something to be said for discovering something that's new-to-you. Going down a band rabbit hole, exploring their discography, finding new favorite songs. I know, I know - ironic coming from someone whose annual Best Of The Years lists tend to be filled with a lot of new stuff from old favorites. But I also love taking some time at the end of each year to comb through others' lists and find something new and different. And sometimes, those discoveries happen in other, more random ways.

A favorite annual tradition of mine is driving down to the OC Fair each summer. I didn't go for a few years due to COVID / Long COVID, but the tradition has since resumed. Historically, I would check out what concerts would be playing at the adjacent Pacific Amphitheater, and see if there was anything that struck my fancy. This year, I was really hoping that something would jump out at me. It's been a lot harder for me to attend concerts since coming down with Long COVID in 2022, and by this past summer I hadn't been to any live shows so far in 2024. The Pacific Amphitheater is an outdoor venue, which is easier for me to make work. And tickets tend not to be too pricey, and include OC Fair admission as well - bonus. But looking at this list of concerts, I didn't see anything that felt like a must-go. I kept looking at the schedule though, and I kept coming back to a band that I knew almost nothing about ... The Aquabats. I'd heard the name, but wasn't familiar at all with their music. But wait - they had a superhero gimmick? And they did comedy songs? Interesting ...

And so I went down an Aquabats rabbit hole. Over the course of one night, I listened to dozens of their songs. I quickly had some new favorites. They had a song about pizza! Amazing. Their music was like Weird Al meets Reel Big Fish meets the old Superfriends cartoon. I was hooked! Still, I worried that it would be weird seeing them live being so new to the band. But as it turned out, the show freaking rocked! It was one of the coolest rock concerts I've ever been to, with an amazing energy and an unpredictable quality as the band veered between styles and genres and tones. There were people in the crowd in full Aquabats regalia. And there was an eclectic, diverse group of fans - older, younger, kids, families, and everything in between. It made me wonder how I was only just now getting into this band. Suffice it to say, I had a blast - and an unexpected new band that I loved. You'll see some 2024 Aquabats songs on my list below.

I saw one other really cool concert in 2024, as just after Halloween, in early November, I got to see the legendary Danny Elfman in concert at the Hollywood Bowl. It was a super fun show that was not quite like any concert I'd seen before - as we got Elfman singing songs from his 80's cult-fave band Oingo Boingo, songs from his newer band that had a harder goth-metal bent, tunes from The Nightmare Before Christmas (in which Elfman, of course, voices Jack Skellington), and then also orchestral renditions of his many iconic movie and TV scores (everything from Batman to Beetlejuice to The Simpsons). What a show.

I had some great new, unique music experiences in 2024. And I also got some kickass new music from those old comfort-food favorites. Green Day roared back with their best album in a decade. Linkin Park reformed with new singer Emily Armstrong. Jack White put out his best solo album yet. Billy Joel gave us an unexpected new classic. And Pearl Jam got back to their hard-driving grunge rock roots. 

Speaking of which, let's get to the list.

DANNY'S TOP ROCK SONGS OF 2024:

 

1.) Green Day - "One Eyed Bastard"

- Consider this pick at least, in part, a mega endorsement of Green Day's latest album - Saviors. In late 2023 we got a sneak peak at some of the tracks off the new album, and they were on last year's Top 10 list. But once the full album released in 2024, it was clear that this was Green Day's best release since the days of American Idiot and 21st Century Breakdown. Top to bottom, great rock song after great rock song. And one of the best was "One Eyed Bastard" - a rollicking, anthemic ode to sweet, sweet revenge. During a year that produced many villains, this one felt like a rallying cry to stand up, fight, and remind the world's jerks and bullies that, hey, "vendetta is a friend of mine."

 

2.) Linkin Park - "The Emptiness Machine"

- Like many, I was shocked to learn this year that Dead Sara singer Emily Armstrong was set to become part of storied nu-metal band Linkin Park (following the 2017 death of Chester Bennington). I'm a huge Dead Sara fan (you've seen them at or near the top of this very list many a time), so I was incredibly intrigued by what she'd bring to the band. And wow, did she bring it. "The Emptiness Machine" served as Armstrong's grand entrance - and when her trademark gritty, emotion-packed vocals finally kick in, it's a chill-inducing moment. Linkin Park is back, in an exciting and kickass new form.

3.) Jack White - "Archbishop Harold Holmes" / "What's the Rumpus?"

- Jack White's latest album, No Name, is arguably his best solo effort yet. I liked just about all the songs on it, but when I heard the absolutely awesome rocker "Archbishop Harold Holmes" I was blown away. It's a theatrically-sung, ultra-funky, lyrically-inventive groove that tells a fun story to boot. Meanwhile, "What's the Rumpus?" is a similarly awesome rock song that is Jack White at his best. So, so good.

 

4.) Billy Joel - "Turn the Lights Back On"
 

- I'm a pretty casual Billy Joel fan, someone who generally digs his more well-known ballads and rock songs. So I wasn't super excited, per se, for his first new song in - what, decades? - but I was certainly curious. But the new song, "Turn the Lights Back On," was unexpectedly kind of amazing. A moving, self-reflective, soaring ballad that feels like Billy Joel at his best. Don't call it a comeback.

 

5.) Pearl Jam - "Dark Matter"

 

- I grew up a huge fan of Pearl Jam and their archetypal grunge rock sound. But there hasn't been much new from the band in recent years that's really hit for me ... until now. Their latest album is a welcome return to a harder, more angry sort of classic Pearl Jam sound. And "Dark Matter" fiercely announced this back to basics approach. It's a rip-roaring song that announces to the world that yes, Pearl Jam rocks once more.

 

 

6.) The Aquabats - "Whatever Forever" / "Little Lady Amazing"

- As mentioned above, The Aquabats were my big musical "discovery" of 2024. I had the good fortune to see them put on an amazing live show over the summer, and I had a lot of fun going through their  back-catalog and discovering fun and hilarious and uber-catchy songs like "Pool Party" and "Pizza Day." But the band also had a really fun new album in 2024 that featured a few surprisingly heartfelt songs. My favorites were Whatever Forever, a funny-yet-sweet song about the little things that make a relationship work, and "Little Lady Amazing," an uncharacteristically earnest tribute to daughters everywhere.

7.) Chappell Roan - "Good Luck, Babe!"

- Chappel Roan was the undeniable pop-star breakout of 2024. And while I often sort of roll my eyes at whoever the next big thing in pop is supposed to be, Roan quickly won me over with her 80's new wave inspired sound and her unbridled showmanship and individuality. You could quickly tell that there was nothing cookie-cutter about her, and you could also quickly tell that her music was/is the real deal. "Good Luck, Babe!" is an infectiously bop-y 80's-style banger that brings to mind The Eurythmics. I dig it.

 

 

8.) Stevie Nicks - "The Lighthouse"

- Like many, I saw Stevie Nicks perform "The Lighthouse" on SNL this year. And, I assume, like many, I was sort of blown away by the song - a powerful and timely power-ballad that also happens to really rock. Stevie Nicks doesn't usually go this heavy, so you know she's got some stuff she's pretty upset about going on in the world. And so the legend's righteous anger was channeled into this song, as was the anger we all feel about the way things are headed in these crazy times.

 

9.) The Offspring - "Make It All Right"

- The Offspring can always be counted on to produce consistently fun and catchy punk rock (which, yes, has become increasingly pop-infused in later years). And "Make It All Right," the highlight IMO of their latest album, is an hook-y, concentrated burst of pop-punk fun ... just what the doctor ordered in these trying times. 

10.) Lady Gaga - "Disease"

- I've long been a fan of Lady Gaga's unapologetically weird brand of dance-pop bangers, so I was pleased to see that her latest, "Disease," goes all in on the weird part (seriously, check out its horror-movie esque music video, which rules). This one is a pulsating industrial dance song ... that marks another entry on this list that captures the seeming bleakness of the past year. In a country and a world that felt literally and figuratively diseased, this song speaks to this moment. Well done, Gaga.

 

Honorable Mentions:

 

- Fontaines D.C. - "Starburster"

- Green Day - "Bobby Sox"

- Mk.gee - "ROCKMAN"

- Ricky Fitness - "Go"

- Hozier - "Too Sweet"