2025 in Review // Seawind of Battery’s Hidden Gems (Pt. 1)

Seawind of Battery is the ambient, cosmic experimental project of New York-based musician Mike Horn. In 2024, Mike released his sophomore album, East Coast Cosmic Dreamscaper, alongside collaborator Jarrod Annis on Charlottesville’s WarHen Records. Beyond recording, Mike hosts the bi-monthly radio program Battery Operated on CAMP Radio, airing on the first and third Thursdays of each month. While 2025 did not see a new Seawind of Battery full-length, Mike did curate and release the Save the Waves: People for Public Media compilation, which raised over $4,000 in support of PBS and public media.

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I have now been hosting my radio show for over a year, and the experience has fundamentally expanded how I discover and engage with music. It has opened my ears to an ever-growing wave of records sent my way, sparked unexpected friendships, and added substantially to my already bottomless stack of music I love. Some of the albums included here may look familiar from year-end lists like Aquarium Drunkard or other adjacent roundups. That overlap is inevitable. What I really want to focus on, however, are the records that resonated most deeply with me. These are albums that may not have received the recognition they deserve but left a lasting imprint nonetheless.

Enjoy the journey.

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Zachary Cale: Love’s Work (All Hands Electric)

Zachary Cale has long been recognized for his strengths as a songwriter, consistently delivering thoughtful and emotionally grounded work. In 2025, he shifted focus with Love’s Work, an instrumental record created in honor of his late father. It stands as the most intimate release of his career.
Every note feels deliberate. Each chord carries weight. The grief present here is not performative or dramatic, but quiet, reverent, and deeply sincere. This is not sorrow expressed through anguish, but through reflection, gratitude, and pride. The album communicates without words, unfolding as a steady release of emotion that could only come from genuine loss.

Love’s Work is, by a wide margin, the strongest instrumental folk guitar record of 2025. It is difficult to imagine this level of clarity and honesty being achieved without lived experience at its core. One can only hope this is not a one-off detour, but a space Cale continues to explore as he builds upon an already formidable catalog.

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Ernie Francestine: Alternate Place

If I had to define the perfect 2025 record, this might be it. Francestine’s music taps into a kind of musical Mandela effect, evoking memories that feel deeply familiar yet impossible to place. Alternate Place functions like a warm blanket, offering comfort, nostalgia, and emotional grounding. This is my default album of the year, a rare record that fits any mood and feels instinctively reachable. A true care package.

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Soft Power: Space To Breathe (Jazzaggression Records)

The follow-up to 2023’s RAW BITES finds Soft Power refining their jazzy rock attack with a deeper psychedelic lean. Musical nodes of Sopwith Camel are unmistakable, but the band pushes further outward, letting improvisation and texture take the lead without sacrificing momentum. This is a confident, road-tested record that lived on my turntable throughout 2025. A genuine ripper from a group operating at full strength and deserving of far more attention.

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Jantar: Acqua Vergine (SLSC)

Since Sempronia quietly became a cult favorite in 2021, Jantar have remained one of the most intriguing and elusive projects in the underground. Every one to two years they release a near-perfect record with minimal fanfare, as if daring listeners to keep up. Acqua Vergine continues that streak. It is immersive, mysterious, and deeply rewarding. “Kalahari” stands among my top five tracks of the year. This album deserves your full attention.

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Yorkston / Jaycock / Langendorf: Yorkston / Jaycock / Langendorf (We Are Busy Bodies / Black Sweat Records) 

This formidable trio crafts an ominous and exploratory record built entirely from nyckelharpa, guitar, synths, and saxophone. The restraint is striking. Space is used intentionally, and the subtle injections of strangeness keep the listener locked in from start to finish. It stands shoulder to shoulder with the strongest experimental records of the past several years and rewards close, repeated listening.

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floromancy: Leanings

In a post-pandemic era saturated with guitar records that often feel interchangeable, Leanings is a reminder of how powerful the instrument can still be when handled with intention. Floromancy holds attention for its entire runtime, pulling the listener into a quiet but intense emotional space. Bright tones clash gently with a darker undercurrent, mirroring the contradictions of the present moment. This is expressive, thoughtful guitar music at its highest level.

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The Royal Arctic Institute: The Royal Arctic Institute (Centripetal Force)

Centripetal Force has earned its reputation as a trusted source for adventurous music, and this self-titled release continues that tradition. The Royal Arctic Institute deliver what might best be described as ambient soul, pulling from country, jazz, and beyond. Each listen reveals something new. This became one of my most played records of the year and signals an exciting next chapter for the band.

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Josh Martin: Western Mind (Eiderdown Records)

Any serious conversation about the best guitar records of 2025 must include Western Mind. Released via Eiderdown Records, this may be one of the most intimate and quietly beautiful albums the label has ever issued. Martin’s playing feels deeply personal, unhurried, and cinematic. This is music made for long train rides, window gazing, and letting the mind drift without resistance.

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A Magic Whistle: THE SOLAR CELL

Andy Puls assembles a remarkably fluid record using homemade sequencers and synthesizers alongside wordless vocals, guitar, and a collection of tactile sonic fragments. What could easily feel fragmented instead unfolds with surprising cohesion. The soundscapes are rich and varied, and influences surface organically without overwhelming the whole. This record flows effortlessly and reveals new details with each listen.

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Golden Brown: Patterner (Inner Islands)

At this point, Stefan Beck’s consistency borders on absurd. Patterner alone would be enough to secure his place among the year’s strongest releases, yet it arrives alongside his continued live work with Prairiewolf and a casual 2nd album drop over a 5 month span. Golden Brown records have become automatic purchases for me, and Patterner reinforces why. Stefan’s music is confident, melodic, and impeccably crafted. This is another standout entry in an already stellar catalog. By the time you’re done reading this, in all likelihood he’s released another album so go refresh bandcamp.

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Barry Walker Unit: At the 13th Moon Gravity Well (Jean Sandwich Records)

With Ripley Johnson, John Jeffrey, and Jason Willmon in tow, Barry Walker delivers a fearless set of improvisations that land exactly where they should. This is music made by heads, for heads. Peaks and valleys arrive naturally, with just enough space between moments to reset the ear. It scratches the itch in all the right ways and never overstays its welcome.