The time of the year approaches once more where I share a Top 10 of albums I listened to, games I played, concerts I attended etc. during 2025. So without further ado, let’s kick this year’s list off with…
10. Dream Theater – Parasomnia
Mike Portnoy’s return to Dream Theater last year, whether positive or negative in one’s eye, was among the most surprising news then. Released in the first quarter of the year, the band’s first album with him behind the drum kit since 2009’s Black Clouds and Silver Linings is overall a solid effort all things considered. It’s Portnoy-era Dream Theater in its essence, with different tracks carrying vibes of different eras from the band’s past. Night Terror, Midnight Messiah and the nearly-20-minute The Shadow Man Incident are highlight tracks.
9. VIMIC – Open Your Omen
The world lost a legend in 2021 when Joey Jordison died. Fans of his work, myself included, got a delightful surprise this year when it was announced that his last known band VIMIC’s “lost” debut album would finally be released. Joey’s drumming in particular shines in every track, from the double-bass-driven intro of She Sees Everything to the groovy Simple Skeletons. Other highlights include Marionette, Beautiful Mistakes and Parasite Persona.
8. Machine Head – Unatoned
2022’s Of Kingdom and Crown was a delightful return to form for Machine Head. And its follow-up, Unatoned, is no less awesome. Robb Flynn’s songwriting chops are as sharp as ever, and while the band’s 2025 offering is lacking in long-form epics, I sort of appreciate the shorter average song length here. Highlight tracks include Outsider, These Scars Won’t Define Us, Bonescraper and the closer Scorn. Speaking of Machine Head, stay tuned for another entry related to them in this list.
7. Perturbator @ Kulttuuritalo, Helsinki 11-19
My attendance at Perturbator’s Helsinki gig was very much a last-minute sort of decision, but boy, am I glad I didn’t pass it up. This was actually my first time seeing the synthwave pioneer live. The inclusion of a live drummer was positively surprising, but the definite draws (next to the music) were the light show and the background visuals. Out of the support acts, I ended up missing GosT, but Kaelan Mikla was positively intriguing.
6. The Algorithm – Recursive Infinity
The Algorithm releasing a new album towards the tail-end of the year somehow flew under my radar initially, but it didn’t take me long to catch up and listen to it. And when I did, I found myself headbanging along to pretty much every track on offer. Recursive Infinity is quintessentially The Algorithm in its sonic structure but no less full of bangers than the dude’s previous offerings. Some of my personal highlights were Graceful Degradation, Hollowing and the closing title track.
5. Tallah – Primeval: Obsession // Detachment
It’s no secret that I’m all for bands going experimental and renewing their sound every so often. And that’s exactly why Tallah’s 2025 offering ended up smack-dab in the middle of my Top 10 list this year. It’s a brave deviation from their earlier albums, adding interesting new sonic elements while still carrying the same aggressive energy that Matriphagy and The Generation of Danger did. What We Know, A Primeval Detachment and As Fate Undoes are some of my favorite tracks on this one.
4. Igorrr – Amen
Igorrr’s experimentalism truly knows no bounds. The band’s previous outing from five years ago, Spirituality and Distortion, I thought was as far as their genre-bending insanity could be taken, but then Amen came out this year and proved me wrong. The most intriguing thing about Igorrr is that the apparent chaos actually works well despite feeling like it shouldn’t, and Amen is yet more proof of that. Highlight tracks include the opener Daemoni, ADHD and Infestis. Oh, and 2020 – an apt musical representation of the year it’s titled after.
3. Score game music concert @ Carelia-sali, Joensuu 09-26
As a long-time gamer and video game music appreciator, it warmed my heart immensely when I heard about the Joensuu Philharmonic Orchestra putting together a series of concerts dedicated to the medium. The last time I heard of such a thing happening in Finland was back in 2015, and even then, it was limited to a single concert. Anyway, music from old and new games alike – from Super Mario Bros. through Final Fantasy VII to Bloodborne – was heard during the two-hour concert, and many emotions were felt, not only by myself but arguably by the entire audience. After all, the power of video game music isn’t to be underestimated. I hope the next concert of this kind in Finland won’t be another 10 years away.
2. Doom: The Dark Ages
I’ll confess that I had some reservations about Doom: The Dark Ages going into it, but when I finally laid my hands on it, they were quickly overridden by what I can only describe as pure joy. After Doom Eternal, which I dare say is my least favorite out of the nu-Dooms, The Dark Ages brought to the table a gameplay experience that sticks to the tried-and-true Doom formula while reinvigorating it in some interesting ways at the same time. Out of the very few games I played that came out in 2025, Doom: The Dark Ages was easily my favorite. And the fact that the game runs at a steady 60fps on my largely last-gen PC goes to show that id’s engineers are nothing short of wizards.
1. Machine Head @ Ice Hall, Helsinki 07-01
You know the drill regarding this one: an old favorite band that I’d last seen live about 15 years ago and seized the opportunity to catch live again after so much time. With a setlist covering more or less every era of the thrash quartet’s discography, including some fresh cuts off Unatoned and surprise inclusions like Bulldozer, the experience was like a time machine that took the audience on an auditory round trip across the band’s three-decade career. And the growth of the live production was delightful to witness, most notably with the addition of pyro. Machine Head is still kicking, and their gig at the Ice Hall was indisputable proof of that.
With that, have a good rest of the year and see you in 2026.
Santtu Pesonen 