The Top Kansas City Albums and EPs of 2025 (so far)

The 25 Best Kansas City Albums of 2025 (so far)

1. Carl Allen- Tippin'
Plastic Sax review.

2. Stik Figa- A Small Fortune
The riches of maturity.

3. Hermon Mehari and Tony Tixier- Soul Song
Plastic Sax review.

4. Sandbox Percussion- Cerrone: Don’t Look Down
Elevated.

5. Samantha Fish- Paper Doll
Tougher than nails.

6. Idle Heirs- Life is Violence
Brutal beat downs.

7. Vinny Golia, Dan Clucas, Kevin Cheli and Seth Andrew Davis- Orchid
Plastic Sax review.

8. Kansas City Chorale- The Mirage Calls
Oasis.

9. TheBabeGabe- Honeypop
Toothsome.

10. The Freedom Affair- The Freedom Affair
Righteous.

11. Jake Wesley Rogers- In the Key of Love
Maximalist pop.

12. Nathan Granner- Gordon Getty: Goodbye, Mr. Chips
An opera based on James Hilton’s novel.

13. Jackie Myers- What About the Butterfly
Plastic Sax review.

14. Rich the Factor- 2K10th Street
Fresh takes.

15. Bob James and Dave Koz- Just Us
Plastic Sax review.

16. All Night Trio- Yeah Sun
Plastic Sax review.

17. Henry Scamurra- Urban Forum
Plastic Sax review.

18. Adam Larson- Push to Exit
Locked in.

19. Wire Town- Riffin’ on Grand
Plastic Sax review.

20. Eddie Moore- What Makes Us
Made men.

21. Xion Sound Waves- In This Celestial Life
New Age gospel.

22. Hot Club KC- Dream Dancing
Plastic Sax review.

23. Season to Risk- 1-800-MELTDOWN
Psychotic reactions.

24. Michael McClintock- Here and There
Plastic Sax review.

25. Brody Buster- Redemption
Confessions.

The Ten Best Kansas City EPs of 2025 (so far)

1. RMW and Maadcxmmander- Pretty Boy Swag
Crank that.

2. Greg LaFollette- Liturgical Songs, Volume One
Holy, holy, holy.

3. Rich the Factor- Snow Money
Grab a shovel.

4. Flora From Kansas- Homesick
Teen spirit.

5. Claire Adams- Passenger Seat
A trip to Laurel Canyon.

6. The Almighty Trouble Brothers- A History of Poor Decisions
Flirtin’ with disaster.

7. Reality’s Demise- Demo
Corrosive thrash.

8. Rich the Factor- Make America Grit Again
Poll numbers.

9. Jass- April Showers
Refreshing.

10. Jean & The Eclairs- the a.m. EP
Good morning.

The year-end tabulation for 2024 is here.

March 2025 Recap: A Monthly Exercise in Critical Transparency

Screenshot of the trailer for the Royal Opera’s production of Charles Gounod’s Faust by There Stands the Glass.

The Top Ten Albums of March 2025
1. Vijay Iyer and Leo Wadada Smith- Defiant Life
Resistance.

2. Sylvie Courvoisier and Mary Halvorson- Bone Bells
“What tale of terror, now, their turbulency tells.”

3. Destroyer- Dan’s Boogie
Regrettably, I know just what he means.

4. Nels Cline- Consentrik Quartet
My review.

5. clipping.- Dead Channel Sky
Overcast.

6. Anouar Brahem- After the Last Sky
Light in darkness.

7. Jan Lisiecki- Preludes by Chopin, Bach, Rachmaninoff, Messiaen, Górecki
All killer, no filler.

8. Bob James and Dave Koz- Just Us
My review.

9. Slim Thug and Propain- Double Cup
Still tippin’.

10. Stik Figa and DJ Sean P- A Small Fortune
Buried treasure.

The Top Three Reissues, Repackagings and Reimaginings of March 2025
1. Art Pepper- Geneva 1980
Late-career fire.

2. Neil Young- Oceanside Countryside
Previously unreleased 1977 album.

3. Branford Marsalis Quartet- Belonging
A replication of Keith Jarrett’s 1974 album.

The Top Ten Songs of March 2025
1. Nathy Peluso- “Erotika”
Salsa. 

2. PremRock featuring Cavalier and Elucid- “A Good Man Is Hard to Find”
Bad guys.

3. Billy Woods and Kenny Segal- “Misery”
Muck and mire.

4. feeble little horse- “This Is Real”
Debaser.

5. Mackenzie Carpenter- “Gone Fishing”
Hook, line and sinker.

6. Maren Morris- “Carry Me Through”
Self help.

7. Black Country, New Road- “Happy Birthday”
Fourpenny opera.

8. Dierks Bentley featuring Stephen Wilson Jr.- "Cold Beer Can"
Pop a top.

9. Little Simz- "Free"
Priceless.

10. TheBabeGabe and The Human featuring Monogram- "1999"
They were dreaming when they wrote this.

The Top Ten Performances of March 2025
1. Robyn Hitchcock and Emma Swift at Knuckleheads
My review.

2. Branford Marsalis Quartet at the Folly Theater
My review.

3. Dead Heat, Stakes Is High, Failure Drill and Honey at Howdy
My Instagram clip.

4. Leonidas Kavakos and Danil Trifonov at the Folly Theater
My Instagram snapshot.

5. Leonkoro at the 1900 Building
My Instagram snapshot.

6. Bram and Lucy Wijnands and the Kansas City Jazz Orchestra at the Folly Theater
My review.

7. Thomas Dunford at Grace and Holy Trinity Cathedral
My Instagram snapshot.

8. The Lyric Opera of Kansas City’s “Becoming a Redwood: The Songs of Lori Laitman and Dana Gioia” at St. Mary’s Episcopal Church
My Instagram snapshot.

9. Dawson Jones at Green Lady Lounge
My review.

10. The Lyric Opera’s “Cruzar la Cara de la Luna” with Mariachi los Camperos at Muriel Kauffman Theatre
My review.

The previous monthly recap is here.