Podcast Summary: All Songs Considered – New Music Friday: The Best Albums Out Dec. 5

Date: December 5, 2025
Host: Stephen Thompson (NPR Music)
Guest: Aaron Wolfe (Radio Milwaukee)

Main Theme & Purpose

This episode of New Music Friday focuses on highlighting the best album releases for December 5, 2025. Host Stephen Thompson and guest Aaron Wolfe guide listeners through a curated selection of standout records across genres, offering critical insight, memorable moments, and personal anecdotes about the artists and their works. With a blend of detailed discussion and rapid-fire recommendations, the episode aims to provide a comprehensive overview of the week's most essential new music.

Key Discussion Points and Insights

1. Favorite Albums of 2025 & List Season

• List season at NPR is underway, with year-end album and song lists coming soon.
• Aaron Wolfe's pick: Sia Gray – SAA

  "She's so magical, and I feel like she really stepped into her groove with this record." (Aaron Wolfe, 01:35)

• Stephen Thompson echoes that it's stuck with him as one of the year's best.

2. Featured Album Debuts and In-depth Reviews

Dove Ellis – Blizzard

• Debut album from the Western Ireland singer-songwriter, described as "chamber pop" but with more expansive influences.
• Comparisons: Jeff Buckley, Thom Yorke, Fran Healy, Rufus Wainwright, and a pub-band vibe reminiscent of Van Morrison and The Waterboys.
• Standout elements: Intense, tender, youthful melancholia, with both tense and tender energy. Ellis has a "big, swooping, melodramatic voice" and a "nervy energy".
• Holiday Highlight:
  • "I'll Be Gone By Christmas" stands out as a melancholy Christmas song—grand, swooping, and part of a more introspective seasonal canon.

  "Part of what I appreciate is a lot of the Christmas music that really speaks to me is a little more hard bitten and a little more melancholy." (Stephen Thompson, 07:14)

Melody's Echo Chamber – Unclouded

• Fourth album from Melody Prochet, produced by Sven Wonder.
• Sound: Throwback Phil Spector "wall of sound," lush strings, impressionistic, and modern energy.
• Vocal style: "Airy and light," anchored by rich production.

  "Her voice is so airy and light, it needs something to kind of hold it down so it doesn't totally float away." (Aaron Wolfe, 10:25)

• Personal themes: Expression of newfound optimism and self-rediscovery.
• Key track: "How To Leave Misery Behind" functions as an emotional centerpiece and a mission statement for finding hope at year's end.

  "December is always a good time to stop and contemplate how to leave misery behind." (Stephen Thompson, 11:24)

Tom Smith (Editors) – There Is Nothing In The Dark That Isn't There In The Light

• First solo record from Editors’ frontman Tom Smith, 20 years after the band's debut.
• Tone: Deeply reflective, introspective, with a lived-in intelligence, evocative of R.E.M., Matt Berninger, David Gray, and Nick Lowe.
• Themes: Mid-life summary, transitions, and personal growth.
• Standouts:
  • "The Lights of New York City": Atmospheric reflection on a life in music.
  • "Endings Are Breaking My Heart": Vulnerable and raw; explores closing life chapters.

  "It's like a sum up of a young life. Life spent, but not totally... now he's like, what happened? Exactly." (Aaron Wolfe, 19:41)

  • "Broken Time": The emotional pinnacle—the search for profundity lands hardest here.

TEED (Totally Enormous Extinct Dinosaurs) – Always With Me

• TEED, aka Orlando Higginbottom, releases a blend of smooth, propulsive, synth-laden electro-pop.
• Homage: Aims to recapture the feeling—not the exact sound—of discovering Depeche Mode, New Order, etc., for the first time.
• Notable tracks: "In Darkness," "My Melody" (described as a Depeche Mode flashback in the best way), and "Wrecked" (picked as Stephen's song of the week).

  "I'm brooding. I'm 15. I'm here for it." (Stephen Thompson, 26:01)

• Album feel: Chill, sweet, love-lorn, with both ambient and pop elements—cited as a perfect blend of nostalgia and the modern.

Voices from the Lake – Two

• Ambient techno release from Italian duo Donato Dozzy and Neel; their first album in 13 years.
• Origins: Developed from a one-off live set at Japan’s Labyrinth Festival.
• Listening experience: Propulsive, immersive, and brain-engaging; perfect for studying, concentrating, or walking through a snowstorm.

  "It's music that is reaching deeper into your brain and kind of allowing you... to unlock parts of your brain you're not usually accessing." (Stephen Thompson, 31:55)

3. Lightning Round: Other Recommended Releases

(34:17 – 38:13)

• HTRK (Hate Rock) – String of Hearts: Songs of HTRK
  Combative, inventive, unpredictable, includes remixes and covers by artists like Liars and Double Virgo.

• Ben Marc – Who Cares Wins
  London bassist/producer blurring boundaries across jazz, classical, soul, and electronic; engaging, “watery flow” of consciousness.

• Isobel Waller-Bridge – Objects
  Renowned for film/TV scores; delivers a full album of soft, minimalist instrumentals—ideal for relaxation.

• Mother Silky – Fantasy
  Minneapolis artist crafts dreamy, ambient pop reminiscent of Beach House and Cocteau Twins, with a viral single “Rivet Gun” and alluring, dual atmospherics.

• Prins Thomas – Thomas Moen Hermansen
  Norwegian “space disco” master; fun, funky blend of dance, prog rock, and sparkling electro-pop.

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Dove Ellis’ uniqueness:

  "Any boy that can really sing passionately, but also cerebrally, if that makes sense."
  (Aaron Wolfe, 03:29)

• Personal nostalgia in songwriting:

  "Both songs made me feel very emotional and they took me back to the specific place in my life that I'd intentionally abandoned and it felt okay to go back there when I was listening to these songs."
  (Aaron Wolfe, 38:49, on Dove Ellis’ “Pale Song” and “Love Is”)

• The ‘Calgon’ of records:

  "If you need a record to close out the year with and feel like you're dropped into a different existence, this is the one to do it with. Sink into a chair, like, snuggle up with a cozy blanket..."
  (Aaron Wolfe, 12:23, on Melody's Echo Chamber)

• Evoking Depeche Mode:

  "I'm trying to evoke a hazy memory of a feeling that music gave me. And I love that... I feel that coming across after I read that."
  (Aaron Wolfe, 24:55, quoting Higginbottom/TEED)

Song Picks of the Week

(38:13 – 39:57)

• Aaron Wolfe: Dove Ellis – “Pale Song” & “Love Is”
  Emotional, evocative, and cathartic.

• Stephen Thompson: TEED – “Wrecked”
  Hypnotic hook, melancholy, and nostalgia—“the first song that really grabbed me and really didn’t let go”.

Timestamps for Key Segments

• 00:28 – Show intro, list season, favorite albums of 2025
• 02:12 – Dove Ellis – Blizzard
• 09:04 – Melody's Echo Chamber – Unclouded
• 18:09 – Tom Smith – There Is Nothing In The Dark That Isn't There In The Light
• 23:09 – TEED – Always With Me
• 28:57 – Voices from the Lake – Two
• 33:09 – Lightning round album picks
• 38:13 – Hosts’ song picks of the week

Tone & Style

The episode is friendly, conversational, and geeky in the best sense—enthusiastic about music, but also reflective and personal. The hosts blend critical insight with warm anecdotes, creating an inviting atmosphere for listeners seeking both discovery and deeper meaning from new music.

For listeners new and old, this episode packs a broad and insightful survey of new releases, combining thoughtful analysis with plenty of passion for music’s power to transport, comfort, and surprise.