Albums of the Year 2025: #45

Sparks, brothers Ron and Russell Mael, are back with their 28th album MAD!, their first release with Transgressive Records.

Most acts, by their seventh decade in the biz, would have slowed to a crawl, creakily playing their past hits on the heritage circuit and releasing nothing more than the occasional Greatest Hits collection. This is not the case for Sparks, who have triumphantly returned yet again, proving their resilience and relevance in a modern world with a fresh record and summer world tour to accompany it.