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Lonzo And LaMelo Join LiAngelo Ball In The ‘Tweaker’ Music Video

The first viral hit song of 2025 didn’t belong to any of the big artists you’d expect, but instead was from LiAngelo Ball (aka Gelo), the middle Ball brother, who took the internet by storm with “Tweaker”.

The song became a meme first for its throwback sound and eventually became just an outright hit. It was adopted by a number of professional sports teams as their post-win celebration song, from the Cavs to the Lions to the Bulls — the latter being unsurprising as LiAngelo’s older brother, Lonzo, plays in Chicago. LiAngelo parlayed the success of the song into a massive record deal with Def Jam worth a reported eight figures and a spot performing at Rolling Loud LA.

On Thursday, he dropped the official music video for the song — as it debuted on a livestream and took off from there — and in the video he gets some support from his brothers, as LaMelo and Lonzo join him riding around L.A. in a Hummer. I feel like that portion of the video, with the older Lonzo driving his younger brothers around as they dance and rap along to the track, is one of the more true to life things you’ll ever see in a music video.

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Chris Finch’s Ejection For ‘Derogatory Comments’ Was Reportedly For Calling The Refs ‘Bozos’

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The Minnesota Timberwolves came into the season with lofty expectations after making a run to the Western Conference Finals a year ago. However, after trading Karl-Anthony Towns to the Knicks just ahead of training camp, the Wolves have not been able to find the same rhythm on the court that made them one of the West’s best a season ago.

Entering Wednesday night’s action, the Wolves were 25-21, tied for seventh in the West and riding a three-game winning streak. The flashes of what they can be have been there for the Wolves, but consistently finding that level has been a real issue. For head coach Chris Finch, his job is to figure out how to fire up his team to find that level and go on an extended run that can push them back into the playoff picture in the West. On Wednesday night, Finch went to the “get ejected” well to try and motivate the team and it worked to great effect, as he got tossed with the Wolves down two and they went on to beat the Suns 121-113.

Whether Finch meant to get tossed is up for debate. He was not screaming at the refs when he got tossed, instead he seemed to mumble something while standing next to Bradley Beal, who was getting set to inbound the ball — and then went ballistic and had to be held back by Anthony Edwards (video here). After the game, officials told the pool reporter in Phoenix that his second T of the night was for “derogatory comments” towards the officials. One would think that would be something profane or particularly jarring, but according to Chris Hine of the Star Tribune, the derogatory comment that crossed the proverbial line was calling the referees “bozos.”

On the second technical, Fraher said Finch made “derogatory comments toward all of the officials.” A source who asked not to be identified said Finch referred to the officials as “bozos.”

The best part of the entire situation is Bradley Beal’s facial reactions throughout, but, look, if “bozos” is getting Finch tossed I don’t understand how any player is successfully making it through 48 minutes without getting ejected. That can’t be where the line is drawn in a league where Draymond Green exists.

Perhaps this was one of those times where a coach wants to fire up his team and basically asks the refs to eject him and then makes a big scene after to get the boys going a little bit. That would make way more sense than getting T’d up for calling officials “bozos.”

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2hollis Continues His Ascent With The Glitchy And Catchy Single ‘Afraid’ Featuring Nate Sib

2hollis built some buzz with his third album, 2024’s Boy — since dropping the project, he signed with Interscope — and now he’s following up his breakout year with new music: Today (January 30), he has shared “Afraid,” a fresh single featuring Nate Sib (who’s opening for 2hollis on his ongoing tour) that’s as glitchy as it is catchy.

2hollis has been described as “mysterious,” but he insists that’s not what he’s aiming for, recently telling The Face, “I’m not really trying to be mysterious. 2hollis is a character, and a character wouldn’t be so forward and 100% out there and readable and relatable. Like, your favorite character from a movie — you wouldn’t see Howl from Howl’s Moving Castle on Instagram being like, ‘Oh yeah, today I’m going to this store, what are y’all doing?’ I like to keep it a little theatrical.”

Listen to “Afraid” above and check out 2hollis’ upcoming tour dates below.

2hollis’ 2025 Tour Dates

01/31 — Chicago, IL @ Metro Chicago
02/01 — Saint Paul, MN @ Amsterdam Bar & Hall
02/06 — Auckland, Australia @ Laneway Festival Auckland 2025
02/08 — Brisbane, Australia @ Laneway Festival Brisbane 2025
02/09 — East Sydney, Australia @ Laneway Festival Sydney 2025
02/11 — Darlinghurst, Australia @ Oxford Art Factory
02/12 — Melbourne, Australia @ Max Watts Melbourne
02/14 — Melbourne, Australia @ Laneway Festival Melbourne 2025
02/15 — Adelaide, Australia @ Laneway Festival Adelaide 2025
02/16 — Perth, Australia @ Laneway Festival Perth 2025
06/12 — Manchester, TN @ Bonnaroo 2025

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Central Cee Revels In The Fruits Of His Labor On The Prevailing ‘Can’t Rush Greatness’

Central Cee 'Can't Rush Greatness' review
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The RX is Uproxx Music’s stamp of approval for the best albums, songs, and music stories throughout the year. Inclusion in this category is the highest distinction we can bestow, and signals the most important music being released throughout the year. The RX is the music you need, right now.

Central Cee spent the better part of three years finding the footing he now claims in the rap spotlight. For the most part, he’s achieved that by positioning himself alongside household names, both in the UK and stateside. His 2022 hit record “Doja” was named after the pop star with the same name. Then came “Sprinter” and Split Decision with fellow UK rapper and Mercury Prize winner Dave, both of which preceded Cench’s “On The Radar Freestyle” with Drake. Subsequent releases paired Cench with J. Cole, Lil Baby, 21 Savage, Asake, Ice Spice, PinkPantheress, and The Kid Laroi. Soon enough, there wasn’t a soundscape that Central Cee hadn’t found himself in. Over those three years, he demonstrated the necessary patience in building toward the “greatness” he aims for on his debut album Can’t Rush Greatness.

Amid the 17 songs on Can’t Rush Greatness, Central Cee raps with reaffirmed confidence and self-assurance. His tone is less of the brash and confrontational “I told you so” and more of the grateful soldier emerging from the ruins of battle to a victory he prayed he’d secure. “Came from the mud and my whole hood witnessed / Now all the kids know anything’s possible,” he raps on “Up North.” The sentiment remains the same on “Limitless” as Cee unloads introspective raps over stirring vocals from fellow UK singer Sekou (an addition so good that it could be mistaken for a classic sample). “I still didn’t lose ambition / When the shower never got warm and the ceiling leakin’, the roof was drippin’,” Cee says with an icy bluntness. Can’t Rush Greatness celebrates the confirmation that hard times are now in the rearview mirror, an acknowledgment best made for a debut album.

What elevates Can’t Rush Greatness is the balance on multiple fronts that Cee maintains throughout the album. UK drill and its notes of brashness and aggression on “Band4Band” with Lil Baby the Skepta-assisted “Ten” are complementary to the introspective title track featuring Dave and album closer “Don’t Know Anymore.” Meanwhile, the undercurrent of Latin music on “Gata” adds to the album’s diversity, as does the R&B-leaning – to Cench’s standards at least – “Truths In The Lies.” The vulnerable anecdotes of heartbreak on “Now We’re Strangers” add life to the album in the same way that tough-talking stories of the streets that “Up North” provide. Truths about success on “Top Freestyle” rival his requests to be acknowledged appropriately on “5 Star,” a record that earned an understandable diss from UK spitter Aitch, whom Cench distastefully name-drops on the song. With Can’t Rush Greatness, Central Cee showcases his winding road to the top and the adept journeyman he’s become both through sounds and life experiences.

Central Cee’s debut signals better days in terms of success for UK rappers in the States. On “Walk In Wardrobe,” he quips portentously, “Top ten in my scene, that’s еvident / When I relеase, I compete with Americans.” As of this writing, projections for Can’t Rush Greatness place it in the top 10 of the upcoming Billboard album charts, a first for a rapper based in the UK. Paired with a presumed chart-topping bow on the UK album charts, this feat makes Cench a star on both sides of the Atlantic — and opens the door for similar success as other well-known UK stars like Dave, Skepta, Stormzy, and others ready their returns with upcoming albums. Cench’s influence on pushing rappers to find success outside the UK is to be acknowledged, and as he notes on “No Introduction,” the proof is already in the pudding. “If it weren’t for the work that I put in Paris, none of these guys would’ve gone to Europe,” he brags.

Can’t Rush Greatness is the product of trusting the process, as the album arrives nearly three years after Central Cee first made a splash with most of the world. This period extends to almost four years for early supporters who saw Central Cee’s potential with “Loading” from his 2021 debut mixtape Wild West. Things are much calmer for Cench nowadays; that is, the UK rhymer can rest assured knowing that his spot in rap is cemented and his future in the genre is promising. Can’t Rush Greatness is an early rap album of the year contender. Central Cee’s exact destination on the scale of greatness remains to be seen, but there’s no doubt that he’s heading in the right direction.

Can’t Rush Greatness is out now via Columbia Records/CC4L Limited. Find out more information here.

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SNX: This Week’s Best Sneakers, Featuring The Air Jordan 3 Treat Yourself, Travis Scott’s Latest & More

SNX_travis_scott(1024x450)
Uproxx

Welcome to SNX DLX, your weekly round-up of the best sneakers to hit the internet. We don’t want to jump the gun here and say we’re out of the early year doldrums, but this week has us cautiously optimistic that the week’s momentum is going to carry on through the rest of February.

For the first time this year, this week’s SNX is jam-packed with eight fire drops! That’s nearly double the January average of four. My fellow sneakerheads, we’re so back (maybe/hopefully)!

What this week is still lacking is brand diversity. Once again, Nike is dominating, snagging seven of the eight spots this week. Luckily for Nike fans, there is a lot of silhouette diversity, so whether you’re a hardcore Jordan head or a fan of the new class, this week has something for you.

So without further ado, let’s dive into this week’s best sneaker drops.

Adidas Fear of God Night Brown

Adidas

Price: $250

Jerry Lorenzo’s new Fear Of God trainer just dropped! The sneaker features a full grain leather upper with hairy suede paneling over a lightweight Lightstrike midsole and an elastic heel for easy slip-on wear. Rounding out the design is a braided heel counter, which adds to the luxurious vibe of this design.

Adidas really scored by snagging Lorenzo away from Nike.

The Adidas Fear of God in Night Brown is out now for a retail price of $250. Pick up a pair via the Adidas CONFIRMED app.

Nike Air Jordan 1 Lunar New Year (Year of the Snake) Photon Dust

Nike

Price: $160

Nike is continuing its Lunar New Year celebration this week with the release of the Jordan 1 “Year of the Snake” aka Photon Dust. The sneaker features a premium leather upper with shimmering leather details on the Swoosh meant to evoke the scales of a snake alongside iridescent heel branding.

Snakeskin details aside, what really has us hyped for this sneaker is its gorgeous colorway which combines Photon Dust grey elements, white, and a bit of faded Tiffany blue.

The Nike Air Jordan 1 Year of the Snake is out now for a retail price of $160. Pick up a pair via the Nike SNKRS app.

Nike Air 180 University Blue and Hyper Pink

Nike

Price: $150

This vibrant take on the 180 features a neoprene mesh upper with suede panels, 180-degree visible Air cushioning (hence the name), and a bold, attention-grabbing colorway of University Blue, navy, and Hyper Pink.

This isn’t a sneaker that everybody is going to be able to rock, but if you can find a way to fit this radical design into your wardrobe, you’re definitely going to stand out.

The Nike Air 180 University Blue and Hyper Pink is set to drop on January 30th at 7:00 AM PST for a retail price of $150. Pick up a pair via the Nike SNKRS app.

Nike Zoom Field Jaxx White and Light Chocolate

Nike

Price: $170

As is often the case with Travis Scott collabs, this sneaker was set to drop in the middle of January but was postponed at the last minute until February, breaking the hearts of many a sneakerhead. But, Travis Scott Jordan heads rejoice, because now the sneaker is finally coming out and we can say that with some confidence considering Nike is actually advertising the sneaker on its website this time.

The Field Jaxx first debuted as a ComplexCon exclusive last year and features a colorway that mixes brown, beige, and white tones. What differentiates this from your typical Travis Scott collab is the lack of a backwards Swoosh. So if that gimmick has always been the one to turn you off from the Cactus Jack branded sneakers. This one is a bit different!

The Zoom Field Jaxx White and Light Chocolate is set to drop on January 31st at 7:00 AM PST for a retail price of $170. Pick up a pair via the Nike SNKRS app.

Nike Air Tech Challenge 2 Racer Pink

Price: $150

Nike is bringing back one of its 90s classics from the vault this week, the Air Tech Challenge 2. The Air Tech Challenge 2 features a leather upper, Max Air Cushioning, and a chunky design with wingtips that evoke the Jordan 4. It’s like an alternate universe version Jordan 4, and given the strength of that design, it still looks damn good.

The Nike Air Tech Challenge 2 Racer Pink is set to drop on January 31st at 7:00 AM PST for a retail price of $150. Pick up a pair via the Nike SNKRS app.

ACG Izy Baroque Brown and Black

Nike

Price: $130

If we are hurtling towards spring faster than you’re comfortable with, the ACG Izy might be for you. Featuring a cozy moccasin-inspired design, this sneaker features a suede upper, a comfort-focused midsole, and a stylish design that looks at home both on the trail and on the streets.

The ACG Izy Baroque Brown and Black is set to drop on January 31st at 7:00 AM PST for a retail price of $130. Pick up a pair via the Nike SNKRS app.

Nike Women’s Air Jordan 3 Treat Yourself

Nike

Price: $200

You can always count on sneaker brands to drop a few dope silhouettes aimed at Valentine’s Day for sneakerhead couples, but what happens if you’re single? Nike has an answer for that in the Air Jordan 3 Treat Yourself.

This sneaker features full-grain leather in a monochromatic washed-out coral colorway with Gym Red eyelets, accented by jeweled lacy charms and a semi-translucent pink outsole. It’s probably the best Valentine’s day themed sneaker we’ve ever seen.

The Women’s Air Jordan 3 Treat Yourself is set to drop on February 1st at 7:00 AM PST for a retail price of $200. Pick up a pair via the Nike SNKRS app.

Nike Book 1 Flagstaff Fir and Phantom

Nike

Price: $140

The Book 1 is proving to be one of Nike’s most inspired new silhouettes, thanks in part to Devin Booker’s shifting interests. This sneaker was inspired by the mountainous pine forests of Flagstaff, Arizona, and features a green nubuck upper and a woven tongue label sporting hints of white, meant to evoke Flagstaff’s Humphrey’s Peak.

The Nike Book 1 Flagstaff Fir and Phantom is set to drop on February 1st at 7:00 AM PST for a retail price of $140. Pick up a pair via the Nike SNKRS app.

Disclaimer: While all of the products recommended here were chosen independently by our editorial staff, Uproxx may receive payment to direct readers to certain retail vendors who are offering these products for purchase.

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‘It’s Always Sunny In Philadelphia’ Season 17: Everything To Know Including The Gang’s Crossover Episode With ‘Abbott Elementary’

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fxx

It’s always busy for the It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia cast.

Charlie Day and Glenn Howerton are in movies; Rob McElhenney is buying soccer teams with Ryan Reynolds and working on Mythic Quest; Kaitlin Olson is roasting Jean Smart and starring in her own just-renewed TV show; and Danny DeVito is doing whatever Danny DeVito does all day. Probably eating free subs from Jersey Mike’s. Does that leave any time for more It’s Always Sunny?

It turns out: yes! It’s Always Sunny is returning to FX (and Hulu) for season 17. Here’s everything we know.

Plot

Danny DeVito (jokingly) thinks the first 16 seasons of It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia were “very tame.” Now, in season 17, “we can ruffle a few feathers, rattle a few cages, you know, shoot some fireworks.” That includes a joke that Standards & Practices had an issue with (I hate to side with the censors, but…) and part two of the show’s crossover with Abbott Elementary.

In the Abbott Elementary season 4 midseason premiere, “Volunteers,” Charlie, Dennis, Mac, Dee, and Frank are forced to do community service at the Philadelphia-based school. The Abbott cast will return the favor by “jumping into our world” in It’s Always Sunny season 17, Kaitlin Olson told Variety. “It’s been really fun for both of our casts to be able to do.”

Abbott Elementary producer Patrick Schumacker said that the “viewing experience” of the crossover is “watching these two episodes back to back, even though I don’t know if they’ve even solidified their date yet, but eventually, they’re going to end up on Hulu together and it’ll be very easy to access both of them back to back. They do very much play off of each other.”

Except the It’s Always Sunny episode will have a lot more Dennis.

“Glenn [Howerton] had a show that he is a series regular on called Sirens,” Schumacker said about Dennis’ camera-shy absence from the Abbott part of the crossover. “It’s the Netflix show, and it was shooting in New York. He flew in specifically to work on this and had to fly back. We had him for half a day, so we had to build that in. That was one of those ones where we didn’t know if we had him, and so, we had to stay a little bit nimble as far as breaking the story. But he’s very heavy in their episode.”

As for the rest of It’s Always Sunny season 17, no other plot details have been shared, although filming did finish in December.

Cast

Like U2, the It’s Always Sunny gang is still together after all these years: Rob McElhenney (Mac), Charlie Day (Charlie), Glenn Howerton (Dennis), Kaitlin Olson (Dee), and Danny DeVito (Frank). The other degenerates in the extended It’s Always Sunny universe who could return in season 17 include Mary Elizabeth Ellis as The Waitress, David Hornsby as Rickety Cricket, Artemis Pebdani as Artemis, Lynne Marie Stewart as Charlie’s mom, Sandy Martin as Mac’s mom, and Jimmi Simpson and Nate Mooney as the McPoyles.

Release Date

It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia season 17 is expected to premiere in 2025, although no release date has been officially announced yet.

Trailer

There’s no trailer, so instead, why not learn how the Abbott Elementary and It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia crossover came together?

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‘The Institute’: Everything To Know So Far About Stephen King Revisiting ‘The Shine’ On The Small Screen

Stephen King
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Stephen King’s The Dark Tower might never receive the series adaptation that Mike Flanagan wants to make. Not all is lost, however, and not even close. Very soon, Osgood Perkins’ graphic take on The Monkey will arrive in theaters, and this year, Max’s Welcome To Derry series will take fans back to the earlier terror wrought by Pennywise the Clown (still portrayed by Bill Skarsgård, whew).

As Constant Readers also know, King is not merely the “King of Horror.” His non-The Dark Tower fantasy novels (Rose Madder, anyone?) deserve more attention, and now, his sci-fi leanings will make their way onto the small screen. Let’s piece together what is known so far about MGM+’s The Institute.

Plot

This limited series filmed last year in Nova Scotia and revisits the concept of psychic abilities referred to as “The Shine.” Those qualities, of course, were most famously showcased in The Shining while afflicting young Danny Torrence, whose telepathy and ability to see spirits were targeted by the Overlook Hotel. Those issues carried into adulthood in Doctor Sleep, which didn’t hold back on revealing other variants of The Shine. With The Institute, as revealed by series creator Benjamin Cavell (via Variety), the abducted patients of a mysterious “cement, brutalist-style building” have degrees of “The Shine” including telekinetic powers.

At last December’s Content London gathering, Variety viewed a trailer that showed protagonist Luke (Joe Freeman) “as well as villain Ms. Sigsby (Mary-Louise Parker) for the first time, who encourages him that he is doing something good for the world as he is hooked up to machines and made to move objects.” Notably, the series has aged-up these characters a few years past their tween stage in the book because (as director Jack Bender revealed), “We didn’t want it to be a sadistic experience. There’s a fine line and, god knows, as storytellers we didn’t want to go there.”

A series synopsis was revealed by Deadline:

[W]hen 12-year-old genius Luke Ellis (Freeman) is kidnapped, he awakens at The Institute, a facility full of children who all got there the same way he did, and who are all possessed of unusual abilities. In a nearby town, haunted former police officer Tim Jamieson (Barnes) has come looking to start a new life, but the peace and quiet won’t last, as his story and Luke’s are destined to collide.

Cast

Joe Freeman stars alongside Mary-Louise Parker, Ben Barnes, Jason Diaz, and Simone Miller. Series regulars will include Hannah Galway, Fionn Lard, Julian Richings, Viggo Hanvelt, Robert Joy, Martin Roach, Arlen So, Birva Pandya, Dan Beirne, and Jane Luk.

Release Date

This eight episode series will stream in 2025 with no further detail yet.

Trailer

MGM+ hasn’t publicly released the trailer described by Variety, so let’s revisit Danny Torrence hearing about “The Shine” from Hallorann (who returns later in Doctor Sleep) in The Shining.

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Lady Gaga’s Wax Figure At Madame Tussauds Is So Realistic, It’s Being Called The ‘Best One’ Yet

Lady Gaga Oscars 2023
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Typically, when a Madame Tussauds wax figure goes viral, it’s because it looks nothing like the person being depicted. That is not the case with the Lady Gaga replica in London. It bears such a strong resemblance to the “Die With A Smile” singer that when I first saw a photo, I thought it was Mother Monster herself. But nope, it’s Gaga at the 2022 Grammys, immortalized in wax form.

You can see Gaga at Madame Tussauds London here.

“Lady Gaga has owned the spotlight for decades across music, fashion, and most recently, film, so we wanted to create a show-stopping look to reflect her iconic status and flair for reinvention,” Madame Tussauds London general manager Steve Blackburn said in a statement. “In time for this year’s awards season, we wanted the multi-talented superstar to accompany our host of other celebrities in the Awards Party zone. It is here where Little Monsters and other fans across the world can now become ‘Paparazzi’ themselves and join our brand-new Lady Gaga figure on the red carpet.”

Based on reactions online, the Little Monsters will be there. “Isn’t this their best one? whoever did this needs a raise,” one person wrote, while another added, “This might be the most realistic one I have seen so far, if I had been told it was just a pic of her I would have believed it 100%.”

More Gaga fans shared their thoughts: “For the first time, they got it right.” “This is giving old hollywood im stanning.” “This has to be the most perfect figure they’ve created by far… wow.” Simply put, it’s “flawless.”

The wax figure goes on display on February 3, a day after the 2025 Grammys. Gaga is up for Song Of The Year and Best Pop Duo/Group Performance.

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Steven Hyden’s Favorite Music Of January 2025

Ethel Cain, Destroyer, and FKA(1024x450)
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Every month, Uproxx cultural critic Steven Hyden makes an unranked list of his favorite music-related items released during this period — songs, albums, books, films, you name it.

1. Ethel Cain, Perverts

The record is aptly named — it will sound to more pop-inclined ears like the most perverse project put out by a budding star in quite some time. The songs, often, barely sound like songs at all, but rather 10-plus-minute blocks of noise and doom-y room tones with only ghostly snatches of threadbare melodies hovering in and out of the blurry morass. It feels less like a proper album (or EP) than an act of public insouciance, akin to an ear-splitting squall of feedback you unleash on an unsuspecting audience when you want 80 percent of them to leave. Depending on your perspective, that will either register as a devastating criticism or the highest praise imaginable. I, for one, lean toward the latter.

2. Destroyer, “Bolonga”

Whatever else you want to say about Dan Bejar, the man is a genius at naming things. Take “Bolonga,” the first single from his forthcoming album, Dan’s Boogie. “Bolonga”? Dan’s Boogie? Putting titles on songs and albums simply does not get any better than that. As for the song itself, “Bolonga” has the same louche swagger than long-time listeners will recognize from 2011’s landmark Kaputt, with the nocturnal vibe of Bejar’s more recent electronic albums. It is, in other words, great.

3. FKA twigs, EUSEXUA

Speaking of naming things, I’m afraid I must report a crime against album titles with EUSEXUA. It’s awkward to pronounce, and it makes talking about this record with the seriousness it deserves feel vaguely silly. Having said that: This is the club-friendly art-pop album of 2025. For those of us who wished that Brat summer had more of a Kate Bush vibe, this music is for you.

4. Craig Finn, “People Of Substance”

My friend and podcast co-host Ian Cohen often talks about being suspicious of certain music because it seems a little too catered to his own interests. I, on the other hand, have no problem embracing songs that might as well have been designed by an algorithm programmed to satisfy me. So, for instance, if you give me a Craig Finn song that is produced by Adam Granduciel, and you have the entire War On Drugs band backing him, and the final product sounds like a cross between A Deeper Understanding and the version of “When The Night Comes Falling From The Sky” where Dylan is backed up by three members of The E Street Band, I’m all in, baby.

5. Rose City Band, Sol Y Sombra

This is the fifth Rose City Band record. I have all the others, and I really like them all. I also can’t tell them apart. This band does one thing — breezy, indie-accented jamband music — and they do it extremely well. My only complaint is on seasonal grounds: The patio at my house is currently closed until (at the earliest) late March, and Sol Y Sombra demands to be heard outside.

6. Silver Synthetic, “Yr Gonna Be Happy”

More patio music, and more “extremely my thing” material. I was a fan of this band’s self-titled LP from 2021, which set out to choogle as hard as possible but in a slightly stoned, sitting-in-a-comfortable-lawn-chair kind of way. It sounds like they have doubled down on the approach on this song from the forthcoming Rosalie, which resembles the Rolling Stones’ early seventies country-rock era if Mick and Keith had invited Jerry Garcia to sit in on pedal steel.

7. The Tubs, “Narcissist”

This London band’s 2023 debut Dead Meat made my Top 10 list that year, so I am definitely interested in the upcoming follow-up, Cotton Crown, due in March. The early songs released from the record indicate that they haven’t shaken up their formula, which is zippy punk-rock with a distinct British folk flavor, akin to Richard Thompson-influenced music that Bob Mould made after Hüsker Dü. If that comparison means anything to you, I assume you are already rushing to pre-order this album.

8. Cameron Winter, Heavy Metal

I have defended putting out year-end lists at the beginning (rather than the end) of December, and I’ll stand by that position. However, it’s inevitable that albums released at the end of the year sometimes miss out unfairly. This is the first of two mid-December releases I will highlight now in this column. I’m a fan of Winter’s band Geese, whose 2023 album 3D Country is one of the wilder and most fascinating indie rock records of the past few years. As a solo artist, however, Winter pivots from the jammy, muscular funk-rock of his usual band. Instead, Heavy Metal is a theatrical, convoluted, and totally idiosyncratic singer-songwriter album. If he hadn’t already used the title 3D Country, it would have been possibly more apt here.

9. The National, Rome

This is the second mid-December 2024 release that I’m shouting out later rather than sooner. Is this the most satisfying National album in a decade? If you belong in the “I just wish they would rock again on record” camp, then the answer is a resounding yes. If nothing else, this is the first time that Bryan Devendorf — one of modern indie’s greatest, and frequently under-utilized, drummers — has been fully unleashed on record. And he dominates like Neil Peart on All The World’s A Stage, particularly on unearthed deep cuts like “Murder Me Rachael” that positively explode out of the speakers. More of this on the next studio record, please!

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‘The Madison’: Everything To Know So Far About Taylor Sheridan’s Next ‘Yellowstone’ Show (Jan. 2025 Update)

Taylor Sheridan
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Taylor Sheridan’s Yellowstone series proper is done and dusted. Prequel series 1923 will return for a (final and) second season in February, and both Lioness and Landman are awaiting renewal news. A Beth and Rip series is supposedly in the works, yet the specifics remain vague on when that will happen. Still, don’t worry too much about a Yellowstone followup having an enormous wait.

The Madison (previously known as 2024) has finished filming its first season, so let’s get down to business on what to expect from this rodeo.

Cast

The stars clamor to star in Sheridan’s shows. That includes Harrison Ford and Helen Mirren for 1923, and Zoe Saldana and Nicole Kidman for Lioness, and that’s only scratching the surface, so of course The Madison has a solid lineup.

Michelle Pfieffer (Scarface, Batman Returns) portrays matriarch Stacy Clyburn, whose multiple daughters have been embedded in the NYC lifestyle. They will be portrayed by Beau Garrett (Firefly Lane) and Amiah Miller (War For The Planet Of The Apes). Presumably, the daughters have regrouped with Stacy at the family ranch for this series.

Matthew Fox is onboard as Paul “a self-reliant bachelor who loves the outdoors.” Kevin Zegers (Frozen, the horror movie not the Disney franchise) stepped on as Cade, a neighbor and groundskeeper of sorts for Stacy. Elle Chapman (Florida Wild) will portray Paige McIntosh, the wife to Russell, who is a high-powered investment banker embodied by Patrick J. Adams (Suits).

Plot

Well, The Madison might be a multi-season affair, as suggested by Patrick J. Adams marking the conclusion of filming (via his Instagram) with a Six Flags Over Texas party: “Proud of my family and fellow cast and crew of The Madison for leaving no stone unturned, no loop unlooped, no funnel cake undevoured. We came to win and win we did… Tell Bugs and Tweety we’ll be back soon for more of it all.”

The season filmed quickly, too, with cameras rolling in Fort Worth, Texas in November, although part of the show filmed last summer and fall in and near Boseman, Montana, where a casting notice sought extras. Montana is also where the series will be mainly focused with Paramount+ describing the show as a “heartfelt study of grief and human connection following a New York City family in the Madison River valley of central Montana.”

Sheridan has remained silent on whether the “grief” is connected to anything that has gone down on Yellowstone (it surely ain’t John Dutton), but The Madison is part of that same universe rather being one of many standalone series from the prolific screenwriter and producer.

Release Date

Aside from 1923, no other Sheridan shows have firm release dates (including renewal seasons), so presumably, Paramount+ will want this Yellowstone universe series out there as soon as possible. The Beth and Rip series hasn’t started filming yet, and The Madison show is done rolling cameras, and that makes a late 2025 release possible.

Trailer

No trailer right now, Dallas-Fort Worth’s Fox 4 channel offered a glimpse of production last fall: