{"id":2219942,"date":"2026-01-02T15:23:36","date_gmt":"2026-01-02T15:23:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/?p=2219942"},"modified":"2026-01-02T15:23:36","modified_gmt":"2026-01-02T15:23:36","slug":"the-best-new-music-releases-of-december-2025","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/the-best-new-music-releases-of-december-2025\/","title":{"rendered":"The Best New Music Releases of December 2025"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><\/p>\n<div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<div class=\"article-thumbnail-caption\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\tBuried in Lies closed out 2025 with some pulse-pumping metalcore. \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"article-thumbnail-credit\"><\/p>\n<p>Courtesy Buried in Lies<\/p>\n<p><\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div><\/div>\n<div>\n<p>The last year has brought a lot of heavy hitters from across the the state and in a multitude of genres. So it is fitting that we close out the year with one more month in the same vein, including a young punk duo that is just getting started.<\/p>\n<p>Here are the best December releases by Colorado musicians:<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-spotify wp-block-embed-spotify wp-embed-aspect-21-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\">\n<p>\n<iframe title=\"Spotify Embed: Finding Beauty in Pain\" style=\"border-radius: 12px\" width=\"100%\" height=\"352\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"\" allow=\"autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; fullscreen; picture-in-picture\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/embed\/album\/2zsal8CPo9AbpRx4xH8ejg?si=28L6um6HQcuDYD9zzhZQyQ&amp;utm_source=oembed\"><\/iframe>\n<\/p>\n<\/figure>\n<p><strong>Buried in Lies<\/strong><br \/><a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/album\/2zsal8CPo9AbpRx4xH8ejg?si=28L6um6HQcuDYD9zzhZQyQ\"><em>Finding Beauty in Pain<\/em><\/a><br \/>Denver metalcore crew <a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/buried_in_lies_band\/?hl=en\">Buried in Lies <\/a>turns tragedy into triumph on latest EP, <em>Finding Beauty in Pain<\/em>, released on December 10 via local independent label <a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/auricularimpalement.com\/\">Auricular Impalement<\/a>.<\/p>\n<div style=\"--main-bg-color:#fdc00f;--button-text-color:#ffffff;--button-bg-color:#c2001a;--thermometer-fill-color:#c2001a;--thermometer-percentage:80\" class=\"fundraising-thermometer-block wp-block-vmg-fundraising-thermometer\">\n<div class=\"container\">\n<div class=\"fundraising-thermometer-wrapper\">\n<h2 class=\"fundraising-thermometer-headline\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tDenver, make your New Year\u2019s Resolution Count!\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/h2>\n<p class=\"fundraising-thermometer-body\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tWe\u2019re $10,000 away from reaching our $50,000 year-end fundraising goal. Your support could be what pushes us over the top. If our work has kept you informed and connected this year, please consider making a contribution today.\u00a0\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div><\/div><\/div>\n<p>Initially inspired by a Devil\u2019s Night hospital visit that forced vocalist Tyler Trejo to cope with the possibility of losing his grandfather, the seven tracks are more emotionally charged than anything Buried in Lies has done before.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cReality is a cruel thing, isn\u2019t it?\u201d is the question at the core of the EP\u2019s ethos, according to Trejo.<\/p>\n<p>From the somber <a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/track\/26ik16JTT0I3RNVmDePUNc?si=e9cdcbf7db1a4f5a\">\u201cA World Without You\u201d<\/a> to the sharp shredding of <a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/track\/1rhW5424QJnSfnj2lPL5VD?si=8c4fd4a4225c40bb\">\u201cYou Wasted Away,\u201d<\/a> Finding Beauty in Pain sees Trejo, guitarist-vocalist Dylan Jordan, guitarist Dan Boren and drummer Andrew Campos explore more sonic territory \u2014 straight metalcore, hardcore, nu-metal, and at times, shoegaze. The closing <a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/track\/7CkcVDxBgRt5goB9woSvU3?si=0ecc3fb6f8f94c57\">title track<\/a> encapsulates what Buries in Lies is all about best.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-spotify wp-block-embed-spotify wp-embed-aspect-21-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\">\n<p>\n<iframe title=\"Spotify Embed: The Garden\" style=\"border-radius: 12px\" width=\"100%\" height=\"352\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"\" allow=\"autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; fullscreen; picture-in-picture\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/embed\/album\/5vE8Fp7EbaNO4PGbqv5cqW?si=-qKGQsEoRXWc7jopLnEP_g&amp;utm_source=oembed\"><\/iframe>\n<\/p>\n<\/figure>\n<p><strong>Cherokee Social<\/strong><br \/><a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/album\/5vE8Fp7EbaNO4PGbqv5cqW?si=-qKGQsEoRXWc7jopLnEP_g\"><em>The Garden<\/em><\/a><br \/>While it might have taken two years, <a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/cherokee.social\/?hl=en\">Cherokee Social<\/a>\u2019s latest EP, <em>The Garden<\/em> (released independently on December 9), was worth the wait.<\/p>\n<p>The official three-song offering from indie-pop duo Julian Navarro and Alex Creighton follows this year\u2019s five previously shared singles, including November\u2019s <a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/track\/1n7mgAPlYK9GKPZ6tMbL16?si=4f352d8f4c804351\">\u201cRed Ferrari,\u201d<\/a> giving Cherokee Social a total of eight new songs in 2025. That\u2019s a pretty productive twelve months, not to mention the West Coast tour with <a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.coyoteislandmusic.com\/\">Coyote Island<\/a> in August and September.<\/p>\n<p>That run and road time inspired The Garden, particularly track <a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/track\/5wAYv77pQCsyo4jHhhDlh0?si=a9ae4111636b42fc\">\u201cSeattle,\u201d<\/a> a love song about a what-if long-distance romance. <a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/track\/0pvwCM7oe7RAFLaRyQxGHC?si=69947c4a10eb4cc0\">\u201cA Never Ends,\u201d <\/a>with a soothing lullaby of a guitar lick from Creighton, is the type of bedroom pop that Cherokee Social is known for, an upbeat outlook on otherwise weary dispositions.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-spotify wp-block-embed-spotify wp-embed-aspect-21-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\">\n<p>\n<iframe title=\"Spotify Embed: Kung Fu Juice Box\" style=\"border-radius: 12px\" width=\"100%\" height=\"352\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"\" allow=\"autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; fullscreen; picture-in-picture\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/embed\/artist\/5QgLzT0PqIzryp55aGZLxW?si=kh3m4_teSjCdGohDnXHzYw&amp;utm_source=oembed\"><\/iframe>\n<\/p>\n<\/figure>\n<p><strong>Kung Fu Juice Box<\/strong><br \/><a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/track\/0Y9hpYzSp4wUHXQpJRgwIh?si=8f5cc8eda7eb4970\">\u201cHigh Expectations\u201d<\/a><br \/>Here\u2019s a fun one: <a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/kungfujuiceboxofficial\/\">Kung Fu Juice Box<\/a> bills itself as a straight-edge punk band from Longmont and just played its first-ever show at <a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.moesoriginalbbq.com\/\">Moe\u2019s Original BBQ<\/a> earlier this month, which this writer unexpectedly caught while enjoying a pre-<a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.westword.com\/music\/denver-khemmis-concert-was-an-epic-celebration-40821541\/\">Khemmis<\/a> meal. From what was collected from the contingent of family and friends in attendance, the two-piece comprises young brothers not even of legal age who love three-chord punk.<\/p>\n<p>And Kung Fu Juice Box \u2014 what a great name, by the way \u2014 premiered its inaugural single, \u201cHigh Expectations,\u201d live the same night, December 20, while filling out the opening set with some covers.<\/p>\n<p>The duo owned it, and the biggest takeaway was just how much fun they were having. It takes some serious guts to jump up on stage and play loud music, but Kung Fu Juice Box has that type of moxie in spades, not to mention all the youthful energy needed to make such raw and real punk. And they\u2019re just getting started.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-spotify wp-block-embed-spotify wp-embed-aspect-21-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\">\n<p>\n<iframe title=\"Spotify Embed: The Candlelight\" style=\"border-radius: 12px\" width=\"100%\" height=\"352\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"\" allow=\"autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; fullscreen; picture-in-picture\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/embed\/album\/3NyLWsIxYYtd0TFXuomznU?si=9mQmiHSZTIG9rEm9ig42sg&amp;utm_source=oembed\"><\/iframe>\n<\/p>\n<\/figure>\n<p><strong>NightWraith<\/strong><br \/><a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/album\/3NyLWsIxYYtd0TFXuomznU?si=9mQmiHSZTIG9rEm9ig42sg\">\u201cThe Candlelight\u201d<\/a><br \/><a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/nightwraithband\/?hl=en\">NightWraith<\/a> capped 2025 with a searing single, \u201cThe Candlelight,\u201d released independently on December 19. Initially written during the record cycle for last year\u2019s LP, <a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/album\/5GudIl7FBjtLVzFuAC5LkY?si=ea84a7RxTd2qDrKEeAreqA\"><em>Divergence<\/em><\/a>, the track is a soaring groove-and-doom melodeath epic that now signals what\u2019s next \u2014 the Denver band\u2019s upcoming fourth album to be recorded in Spring 2026. <\/p>\n<p>Vocalist-guitarist Ben Pitts was inspired to create \u201cThe Candlelight\u201d while reminiscing about his early days in the Denver DIY scene, particularly when he called the once-lauded punk spot The Yellow Bordello home.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt can be hard to take a leap of faith and think outside the box, but if an artist won\u2019t take risks, then nothing new is ever going to happen. I hope listeners will understand our vision for \u2018The Candlelight\u2019 and are receptive to the risks we\u2019ve taken by releasing a non-traditional sounding heavy metal song,\u201d Pitts shared.<\/p>\n<p>With Lauren Vieira, also of local band <a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/dreadnoughtdenver\/?hl=en\">Dreadnought<\/a>, joining as full-time keyboard and synth player, NightWraith looks to push the boundaries even further next year. \u00a0<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-spotify wp-block-embed-spotify wp-embed-aspect-21-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\">\n<p>\n<iframe title=\"Spotify Embed: The Last Noel\" style=\"border-radius: 12px\" width=\"100%\" height=\"352\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"\" allow=\"autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; fullscreen; picture-in-picture\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/embed\/album\/1BUWturMDcY6ZBZVUszJpz?si=r5oHveepTJeThxUxIBmxKw&amp;utm_source=oembed\"><\/iframe>\n<\/p>\n<\/figure>\n<p><strong>Worst Worry<\/strong><br \/><a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/track\/1rXEPtIWItQSorBhA3g7J9?si=b9b8dbadbc424ac7\">\u201cThe Last Noel\u201d<\/a> and <a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/track\/5Wp2ombXMXZUkASRabnoaG?si=862f1f34ee4e4013\">\u201cThe Hardest Thing Of All\u201d<\/a><br \/>Lafayette musician Lisa Lynn Wallace, the creative behind solo darkwave project <a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/worst_worry?igsh=NHJmdjZkdzZsdGVo&amp;utm_source=qr\">Worst Worry<\/a>, released a fuzzed-out festive single, \u201cThe Last Noel,\u201d independently on December 7, paired with the punkier \u201cThe Hardest Thing Of All.\u201d <\/p>\n<p>Formerly of London vamp-rock band <a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/blacktime.bandcamp.com\/music\">Black Time<\/a> (as Janie Too Bad) and \u201creject\u201d riot grrrl two-piece Sexaphone, Wallace leans more lo-fi with latest endeavor Worst Worry, which features minimal synth textures and her wispy goth vocal first introduced on her self-titled <a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/album\/1yB14SG3xd8GQWbJ7QDmW7?si=DhU4wzSwS6enk-XqvKYKTA\">debut<\/a> earlier this year.<\/p>\n<p><strong><em>Want your music to be included in our monthly roundup? Email it to editorial@westword.com.<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p><script async src=\"\/\/www.instagram.com\/embed.js\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p><em> \u2018 The preceding article may include information circulated by third parties \u2019 <\/em><\/p>\n<p><em> \u2018 Some details of this article were extracted from the following source www.westword.com \u2019 <\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Buried in Lies closed out 2025 with some pulse-pumping metalcore. Courtesy Buried in Lies The last year has brought a lot of heavy hitters from across the the state and in a multitude of genres. So it is fitting that we close out the year with one more month in the same vein, including a [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":2219943,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"jnews-multi-image_gallery":[],"jnews_single_post":[],"jnews_primary_category":[],"jnews_social_meta":[],"footnotes":""},"categories":[25179],"tags":[42328,24104],"class_list":["post-2219942","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-music","tag-lists","tag-local-music"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/The-Best-New-Music-Releases-of-December-2025.jpg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2219942","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2219942"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2219942\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2219944,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2219942\/revisions\/2219944"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2219943"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2219942"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2219942"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2219942"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}