CTRL+ALT+REPEAT 2025: Best Rock Songs
Hayley Williams, Model/Actriz, Geese, and Wednesday delivered some of the best rock songs of 2025.
With questions like “Did you see Hayley Williams dropped 17 singles?” and “Have you listened to the new Wednesday record?” leaving the mouths of music lovers everywhere, 2025 was arguably the year of the rock star.
Bands like Geese and Turnstile took center stage with inventive albums, and newcomers like Rocket stormed the scene with timeless ear worms. Bringing up the rear of Off the Record’s featured genres, here are some of the best rock songs of 2025.
“Cinderella” by Model/Actriz
Mitchell Stewart, Contributor
Model/Actriz has deservingly had their moment in the spotlight this year, from performing on The Colbert Show to headlining an international tour. “Cinderella” was their return to the scene after the success of their 2023 freshman album, Dogsbody. “Cinderella” is a master class in production quality, lyricism, and infectious earworm-y beats that stick with you long after the song has finished. The queer-fronted band uses their music to speak to the dual lives that so many people in the LGBTQ+ community live, switching from building tension to the freedom of losing yourself entirely. Frontman Cole Haden sings of a time he wanted a Cinderella-themed party, but changed his mind and was left “quiet, alone, and devastated.” The crushingly honest lyrics, combined with raw, industrial production, create a masterful act that is best listened to at full volume.
“Beta Fish” by Vundabar
Jane Flautt, Music Extras Co-Editor
The second track from their sixth album, Surgery and Pleasure, Vundabar’s “Beta Fish” has a manic energy. It propels the listener through each chorus and verse like an out-of-control train, and you can’t help but get swept up in the adrenaline rush. The appeal of Boston-based Vundabar’s edgy garage rock lies in their ability to combine their jangly guitar riffs, frenzied drums, and hypnotic baselines with lyrics like those in “Beta Fish,” which explore compulsion, anxiety, and cycles of self-hate. As the song reaches its climax in the third verse, the barely-controlled desperation behind singer and guitarist Brandon Hagen’s every word hits a fever pitch, with him repeating over and over, “I need to shake just a little bit, just a little bit / Shake a little bit, just a little bit.” Vundabar has always been so much more than their hit single, “Alien Blues” — an incredibly addictive track which shot the band to fame thanks to TikTok — and they continue to cement their place in the annals of indie rock with gritty tracks like “Beta Fish.”
“BIRDS” by Turnstile
Reegan-Tate Johnson, Co-Editor-In-Chief
“Finally I can see it/ These birds not meant to fly alonе,” chants Turnstile lead singer Brendan Yates in the chorus of “Birds.” From their fourth studio album, Never Enough, “Birds” is rooted in solidarity and rested in liberation that works in tandem with a signature Turnstile sound, and making for the perfect mosh music. The song starts with a brooding negative space and subtle but toned overlaying drum beats, and builds into an explosive hardcore track; those contrasting elements drawing in a magnitude of praise this year from Turnstile’s devoted listeners and those that are just tuning in. It’s a staple 2025 anthem that can’t be passed by.
“Take me back” by Haim
Mitchell Stewart, Contributor
Haim released their fourth album, I Quit, to critical acclaim this year, following the success of 2020’s Women In Music Pt. III. The single “Take me back” mixes the sound from their third album with the lyrical theme of their fourth. The song builds pressure in the first half, recounting rough moments from the sisters’ childhood before finally exploding with a desperate plea to go back to these moments that shaped them. Haim’s use of a glockenspiel and harmonica, combined with childish references like pulling out petals, lends to this theme of returning to your childhood once more. The repetition of the titular lyric, “take me back,” holds like a mantra, giving the illusion of sitting in bed, repeating the same phrase over again, desperately hoping it comes true.
Watch the music video for “Wound Up Here (By Holdin On)” on YouTube.
“Wound Up Here (By Holdin On)” by Wednesday
Roxie Jenkin, Contributor
Wednesday is no stranger to impact, and “Wound Up Here (By Holdin On)” is a striking release that only strengthens their growing legacy. From their sixth studio album, Bleeds, the song exudes power, electrified by layered guitar slides, screaming feedback, and the rhythmic backbone of Alan Miller’s drums and Ethan Baechtold’s bass. Singer Karly Hartzman’s vocals cut through the instrumentation, delivering a vulnerable, emotional performance as a thunderous wall of sound blasts through speakers. “Wound Up Here (By Holdin On)” is masterful in its ability to grip listeners by building tension in moments of slowness, where Hartzman delivers lines inspired by a friend’s poetry over only bass and drums. This quiet is quickly shattered as listeners are thrown into a loud, forceful soundscape, deepened by MJ Lenderman’s harmonic backing vocals, all of which push Wednesday’s unique take on the slacker rock legacy into raw, unwieldy territory.
“Taxes” by Geese
Allison VanMeerten, Contributor
New York-based alternative rock band Geese reached new heights of success this year following the release of their third album, Getting Killed. The surprise release of lead single, “Taxes,” set the record’s anthemic tone, beginning with soft harmonies blended with lively percussion that builds up to frontman Cameron Winter’s punching vocals. The accompanying music video emphasizes the split between the folky first half of the song and the more electrifying second half. Although up for interpretation, the sparse, poetic lyrics utilize metaphorical tax burdens and religious imagery to portray themes of government protest and spiritual rebellion. Selling out their entire North American tour this fall, Geese has cemented their space in the modern alternative rock scene and will continue riding the wave with their world tour in 2026.
Watch the music video for “Act Like Your Title” on YouTube.
“Act Like Your Title” by Rocket
Brooke Shapiro, Music Extras Co-Editor
With their debut album, R is for Rocket, the LA-based quartet earned themselves an “A+.” It’s impossible not to find a banger amidst the record’s 10 tracks, but single “Act Like Your Title” is one of those songs that demands listeners perk up, listen hard, and dance recklessly along. The track’s opening fuzzy bass line pulls you in, while the early 2000’s-esque arpeggiating guitar melody, power chord-filled choruses, and teasing call-and-response vocal interjections greet you at full-throttle along the way. Lyrically, “Act Like Your Title” grapples with lack-luster familial relationships that lead to isolation: “How I know it’s too far / Is I’m not the only one with wide eyes / Act like your title.” Give the fresh faces two minutes and 19 seconds of your time, and Rocket will show off their on-the-nose poignancy — and do it with some damn catchy melodies.
“Parachute” by Hayley Williams
Jackie Fortis, Music Reviews Editor
If she hadn’t already secured the title, Hayley Williams made herself known as a queen of rock this year. Aside from being the lead singer of Paramore, Williams also has a stellar catalog of her own solo projects. Her latest album, Ego Death at a Bachelorette Party, had the single “Parachute,” which quickly became a fan favorite with its dense production and the exact grit rock lovers look for. Loud drums, a break in the middle for electric guitar shredding, and her punk vocals set the tone for listeners as to why she’s one of the best, and it is absolutely one of the most solid rock songs of the year.
“Bow Down” by Geese
Reegan-Tate Johnson, Co-Editor-In-Chief
Yes, Geese’s Getting Killed was so good, we had to mention it for a second time. The 11th track of the record, “Bow Down” features a prominent a back-and-forth guitar riff and drum beat that pairs strikingly well with the aggression of the lyrics. The chorus “You don't know what it's like/ To bow down to Maria's bones," signifies shifts in agency, battles in love, and strides at perfection, tying it up in the concept of submission, or the lack thereof. With a driving, in-your-face rhythm section in the latter half song, it secures itself in rock history in all of its metaphoric magnificence.
“Hole In The Ground” by Inhaler
Eva Elisa Wells, Contributor
After starting the year off strong with the release of their third album, Open Wide, and an eponymous tour, Irish rock band Inhaler shocked fans when they unexpectedly announced a new single,“Hole In The Ground,” in October. Released just in time for Halloween, the single is loaded with a dark, punchy rock spirit and showcases their evolved approach to songwriting. Frontman Elijah Hewson described the song as “sort of a meditation on hope and keeping yourself awake to life.” Inhaler has made their dedication to sonic exploration clear in their recent releases, and we can’t wait to see where they take us next.