Mixmaster Morris & Peter Namlook’s Dreamfish was one of my favourite reissues of the last year. The man behind it, Nils Wortmann of Silent State, is a total ambient expert / connoisseur.  Super keen to discover what else he’d been listening to I asked Nils for a “lucky 7” from 2025, and instead he hit me with this amazing list. I recognised only a dozen of the artists, and had heard only a handful of the releases. 

A crazy, comprehensive list of 2025’s ambient output, plus a deep, diverse selection of reissues, care of Silent State’s Nils Wortmann. 

BEST AMBIENT ALBUMS

1. Mike Majkowski – Invisible (Hands In The Dark)

2. Taylor Deupree & Zimoun – Wind Dynamic Organ, Deviations (12k)

3. Aris Kindt – Now Claims My Timid Heart (Quiet Times Tapes)

4. Pulsatilla – Fernweh (Isohyet)

5. Gryphon Rue – I Keep My Diamond Necklace in a Pond of Sparkling Water (Gryphon Rue)

6. Fabiano – Landmarks (E35)

7. Sonja Tofik, Lo Kristenson, Klara Lewis, Joachim Nordwall – On “Dissolving Strawberry” (Irrlicht)

8. Jefre Cantu-Ledesma – Gift Songs (Mexican Summer)

9. Ethan Syann – Farewell to the Night (LiKKi)

10. Joel Shearer – Listening (ISC Hi-Fi Selects)

11. Deeb – Camera Uno (Mabui)

12. Taylor Deupree & The Humble Bee – Re: Case Studies (Dauw)

13. WNDFRM – WVLT (ASIP)

14. Pruski – Drifting Stones (iikki)

15. Willow Skye-Biggs – Elsewhere (Inner Islands)

16. Oberlin – Ten More Dreamwebs (OPE)

17. rsn | Helu_elu – compaction #1 (Mahorka)

18. Florian TM Zeisig – A New Life (Stroom)

19. Ida Urd, Ingri Høyland – Duvet (Balmat)

20. Richard Chartier – Eventual (Farmacia901)

21. Läuten der Seele – Unterhaltungen mit Larven und Überresten (World of Echo)

22. Rod Modell – Northern Michigan Snowstorms (13)

23. Kenji Kihara – Winds Of Eternity (Constellation Tatsu)

24. Thme & Virginia Aveline – Diving Wounds (VAAGNER)

25. KiF – Still Out (Sound Records)

BEST ARCHIVAL RELEASES

1. Susumu Yokota – Skintone Edition Vol. 1 (Lo Recordings)

2. E.G Oblique Graph – Bryn Jones – Complete Oblique 1980-1983 (VOD)

3. The Humble Bee – Morning Music (Dauw)

4. Bizimungu Dieudonne “Inzovu Y’Imirindi” (Mississippi)

5. Romance – You Must Remember This (Ecstatic)

6. Ken-ichiro Isoda – Beach of the Pliocene (We Are Busy Bodies)

7. Karate – If You Can Hold Your Breath (Numero)

8. The World is But a Place of Survival: Begena Songs from Ethiopia (Death Is Not The End)

9. Music For a Revolution Vol 1 – Guinea’s Syliphone Recording Label (1967-1973) (Radio Martiko)

10. Arthur Russell – Open Vocal Phrases, Where Songs Come In And Out (Audika Records)

11. Cujo – Adventures In Foam (Ninja Tune)

12. Kenny Burrell with Art Blakey – On View At The Five SpotCafe. The Complete Masters (Blue Note)

13. Lone Capture Library – All Natures Most Mundane Materials (A Colourful Storm)

14. James Bernard – Atmospherics (PITP)

15. Stars of the Lid – Music for Nitrous Oxide (Artificial Pinearch Manufacturing)

16. Muslimgauze – Hamas Arc (Staalplaat)

17. The Fun Years – Baby, It’s Cold Inside (Keplar)

18. K Frimpong – The Blue Album (Soundway)

19. Monolake – Gravity (Field Records)

20. Recondite – Daemmerlicht (Plangent)

BEST CONCERTS

Kraftwerk @Jahrhunderthalle | Frankfurt | 1.12.25

Karate @Jubez | Karlsruhe | 17.4.25

Stereolab @Zoom | Frankfurt | 30.5.25

Bill Callahan @Zoom | Frankfurt |16.7.25

Fennesz @Stadtkirche | Rüsselsheim | 21.3.25