Compilations

With this new initiative, we want to offer a compass: a periodic look at the many strands of the musical landscape through our Spotify playlists, regularly updated by the OndaRock staff to highlight the most exciting new releases. From boundary-less pop to forward-looking rock, from electronic music to singer-songwriters, all the way to jazz and the more experimental territories, without forgetting our home scenes and the "dark" sounds we've always paid special attention to. A real-time journey to explore and be surprised.

Rock and Beyond

Pop Muzik

Among this month's picks you'll find two records at the crossroads of pop and club music: the explosive "DÍA" by Ela Minus and the dazzling debut of Rose Gray. There'll be plenty of dancing this year still to come, both with the excellent return of FKA twigs and with the new synth-pop record from Marie Davidson. 2025 will also be the year of the comeback of SPELLING (and "Portrait of My Heart" sounds hugely promising), of Japanese Breakfast, of Helen Ganya, of the new Springsteen-in-waiting Sam Fender, and of SASAMI. In this month's pop selection we also find some familiar faces: "Defense" is the new single from neo-psychedelia icon Panda Bear, "End Of The World" confirms the thriving second artistic life of Eddie Chacon, while Damon Albarn lends his voice to DJ Koze, and Tunng release a new collection of elegant folktronica. (Daniel Moor)

Dark Corner

2025 has yet to really take off, but this early winter stretch (including the inevitable tail end of 2024) is already giving us plenty of great music tied to darker sounds: darkwave, post-punk and ebm-industrial, as well as the blackest, bleakest fringes of extreme metal. Among the new additions to the list, standouts include the new single by Ethel Cain, the mesmerizing goth-folk of Tristwch Y Fenywod, and the presence of historic names like Ulver and Cure. (Paolo Chemnitz)

Electronic

The new productions from Aya, FKA Twigs, Ela Minus, Rose Gray and Kinoteki open our constantly updated selection on what's been happening in recent months within the electro circuit, from the best-known names to niche ones. Made for dancing, but not only that… (Claudio Lancia)

Songwriter

The Weather Station, Anna B Savage, Perfume Genius, Sharon Van Etten, Nadia Reid, Florist, Lucy Dacus are just some of the singer-songwriters who'll be keeping us company this year with new music. We've already welcomed the first two with a resounding 8 each on our pages, but the singles from the other upcoming records all sound extremely promising too. Whether they move to dark cadences like "Megaloner" by Circuit des Yeux or build on a folk backbone like "How do you want to be loved?" by Sophie Jamieson, these fifteen tracks have won me over completely and, as you've probably guessed, I'm pretty HYPED for what's still to come! (Daniel Moor)

Other Sounds

January is always a transitional stretch, caught between catching up on the year just gone and new music released these very days or merely announced so far. On one hand, the worthy records that arrived right at the tail end of 2024, among which we'd flag Italian duo Nistri-Panichi, the sure hand of guru Fennesz, and our last monthly picks for the section: Thaman S, Claire Rousay. On the other, the first interesting releases of 2025 – with Laura Agnusdei's excellent second effort standing out – and some notable previews such as those from Tim Hecker and Stefano Pilia. (Peppe Trotta)

Italy

A handful of Sanremo tracks plus the new singles from Messa and C+C Maxigross open our Italy selection, followed by a track from the recent releases by Laura Agnusdei and Giulia Impache, two of the most promising names among the new generation of artists from our peninsula… (Claudio Lancia)

Jazz

Compiled at the end of January, this playlist is a chance to take stock of the most exciting releases of 2024. With the breadth that usually defines our approach to jazz: few boundaries, no orthodoxy, and above all close attention to frontiers and cross-pollination, territories that jazz experimentation has always drawn its lifeblood from. Here, then, is a selection that zigzags between Poland and Brazil, Scandinavia and the Mediterranean, taking in afrobeat, nu jazz, minimalism, wonky tendencies, broken beat rhythms, crossovers with electronic music, post-hardcore, the more adventurous soul, even Carnatic classical music. And yes, it also includes Kamasi Washington. (Marco Sgrignoli)