#COMUSIC TOP 50 2025

• CHRIS K’S FAVORITE CAR-TUNES OF THE YEAR
• FAN & LISTENER FAVORITES OF 2025
• SOME OF THE BEST OF SHOW + HEADLINES

Airplay is tough.  I track airplay on fourteen community/public radio stations.  The Colorado Playlist is aired by eleven stations. These stations cover thirty FM and LPFM (low power FM) frequencies. They cover areas around Colorado and New Mexico. 

I tracked airplay for four hundred twenty titles (LP, EP and singles) from December 2024 through November 2025.  Those titles accounted for seventeen thousand spins throughout the year, for an average of forty spins per title (about 3.5 a month).

The top three stations in our state when it comes to sharing, airing and supporting homegrown Colorado music are 88.9 KRFC (Fort Collins), Indie 102.3 (Denver) and 105.5 the Colorado Sound (my home station, based in Greeley).  

88.9 KRFC is mostly free form in design. It has a central mandate to support and promote Colorado music, focusing particularly on Northern Colorado artists and bands.  The volunteer DJs usually air about thirty current-year Colorado releases a week. They can air upwards of fifty to sixty in a month. This activity leads the state in that metric. Top titles generally get upwards of seven or eight plays a week.  On average, Colorado releases get about six spins a month. A #1 title can get thirty to thirty-five spins a month. Their hottest titles of 2025 included

• Gasoline Lollipops – Kill the Architect  LP (Spotify, YouTube)
• The Grocery Story – Situation on Isle #3 LP (Spotify, YouTube)
• The Lumineers – Automatic LP (Spotify, YouTube)

Indie 102.3 showcases six artists a month.  They typically feature two songs from each artist or band.  Each song will typically get five to seven plays a week; roughly twenty-six or so plays a month.  They change the featured artists every month on the first. Major national acts from Colorado receive airplay also, typically longer and with much higher spin counts. Hot titles for the year were,

• The Lumineers – Automatic LP (Spotify, YouTube)
• The Velveteers – A Million Knives LP (Spotify, YouTube)

105.5 The Colorado Sound rotates about thirty current year Colorado releases (LP, EP or singles) at a time.  Each song gets two to five plays a week; between eight and twenty spins a month. Titles can stay in rotation for several months. The Colorado Sound also airs national Colorado releases in their general rotation. Some tracks get spin counts as high as fifteen a week. Hot titles for the year =

• Gasoline Lollipops – Kill the Architect  LP (Spotify, YouTube)
• Heavy Diamond Ring – Wildflower Lane LP (Spotify, YouTube)
• The Lumineers – Automatic LP (Spotify, YouTube)

OFF THE FRONT RANGE AND INTO THE MOUNTAINS

Once you leave the Northern Front Range (Denver to Fort Collins), spins for Colorado artists and less well-known bands become less consistent. 

Besides KRFC, Indie 102.3 and 105.5 The Colorado Sound, I also track airplay on KAFM (Grand Junction), KBUT (Crested Butte), KDNK (Carbondale), KDUR (Durango), KFFR (Winter Park), KLZR (Westcliff), KOTO (Telluride), KRZA (Alamosa), KSJD (Cortez), KSUT (Ignacio) and KVNF (Paonia).

Collectively these stations air approximately forty titles a month, with an average monthly per title spin count of 4. Americana, bluegrass, funk and jambands are at the top of the list of favored genres. Top titles of the year =

• The Lumineers – Automatic LP (Spotify, YouTube)
• Yonder Mountain String Band – Nowhere Next LP (Spotify, YouTube)
• Leftover Salmon –  Let’s Party About It LP (Spotify, YouTube)

TOP 50 2025

(D) 1. The Lumineers – Automatic LP (Spotify, YouTube)
(D) 2. Gasoline Lollipops – Kill the Architect  LP (Spotify, YouTube)
TIE – CP FAN & LISTENER FAVORITE ALBUM OF THE YEAR
CP FAN & LISTENER FAVORITE AMERICANA ALBUM OF THE YEAR
CP FAN & LISTENER FAVORITE SONG OF THE YEAR – Tennessee Nights
(1) 3. Nathaniel Rateliff & the Night Sweats – South of Here LP (Spotify, YouTube)
(D) 4. Yonder Mountain String Band – Nowhere Next LP (Spotify, YouTube)
(D) 5. The Velveteers – A Million Knives LP (Spotify, YouTube)
CP FAN & LISTENER FAVORITE ROCK ALBUM OF THE YEAR
TIE – CP FAN & LISTENER FAVORTE VOCAL PERFORMANCE SHE/HER/FEMALE
(D) 6. Leftover Salmon –  Let’s Party About It LP (Spotify, YouTube)
(D) 7. The Crooked Rugs – Hear & Now LP (Spotify, YouTube)
(D) 8. A.J. Fullerton – Magnetic Light LP (Spotify, YouTube)
(D) 9. Grant Sabin –Work LP (Spotify, YouTube)
TIE – CP FAN & LISTENER FAVORITE ALBUM OF THE YEAR
CP FAN & LISTENER FAVORTE VOCAL PERFORMANCE HE/HIS/MALE
(D) 10. Andy Frasco & the U.N. – Growing Pains LP (Spotify, YouTube)
CP FAN & LISTENER FAVORITE POP ALBUM OF THE YEAR
CP FAN & LISTENER FAVORITE POP SONG OF THE YEAR – Try Not to Die
(D) 11. Heavy Diamond Ring – Wildflower Lane LP (Spotify, YouTube)
TIE – CP FAN & LISTENER FAVORITE VOCAL PERFORMANCE SHE/HER/FEMALE
(D) 12. Sour Magic – The Hive EP (Spotify, YouTube)
(D) 13. The Dirty Turkeys – Cowboy Caravan LP (Spotify, YouTube)
T-(D) 13. Marfa – Daisy SP (Spotify, YouTube)
(D) 14. THE DELTA SONICS – Concrete Hotel LP *not available online*
T-(D) 14. Planes Mistaken for Stars – Do You Still Love Me?  LP (Spotify, YouTube)
(D) 15. The Galentines – 1140 LP (Spotify, YouTube)
(D) 16. A.J. Fullerton – Closer LP Spotify, YouTube
(D) 17. Bevin Luna – Just Movin’  SP (Spotify, YouTube)
(D) 18. Eva Rose King – After Tale LP (Spotify, YouTube)
(D) 19. The Grocery Story – Situation on Isle #3 LP (Spotify, YouTube)
(D) 20. Claire Heywood – Water Is All I See LP (Spotify, YouTube)
T-(6) 20. Megan Burtt- Witness LP (Spotify, YouTube)
(D) 21. Graveyard Choir – Restorative Art (Spotify, YouTube)
(D) 22.Hunter James & the Titanic – IV (Spotify, YouTube)
T-(D) 22. Velvet Daydream – Sunflower Sky SP (Spotify, YouTube)
(D) 23. Charlie Stevens – Ship of Fools LP (Spotify, YouTube)
(D) 24. Andy Sydow – Night Skin LP (Spotify, YouTube)
(D) 25. Christine Alice – Wood, Strings & Simple Things  (Spotify, YouTube)
CP FAN & LISTENER FAVORITE DEBUT ALBUM BY AN EMERGING ARTIST
(D) 26. Holly Lovell – Hello Chelsea LP (Spotify, YouTube)
T-(D) 26. Teresa Suydam – Lost Bird LP (Spotify, YouTube)
(D) 27. David Starr – Must Be Blue LP (Spotify, YouTube)
(D) 28. piKziL – Along the Dark Horizon (Spotify, YouTube)
T-(D) 28. The River Arkansas – Tin Years LP (Spotify, YouTube)
(D) 29. Tennis – Face Down in the Garden (Spotify, YouTube)
CP FAN & LISTENER FAVORITE INDIE/ALTERNATIVE ALBUM OF THE YEAR
CP FAN & LISTENER FAVORITE INDIE/ALTERNATIVE SONG OF THE YEAR – 12 Blown Tires
(D) 30.The Still House String Band – The Still House String Band  (Spotify, YouTube)
T-(D) 30. Stillhouse Junkies – The Ballad of Charlie Avalon (Spotify, YouTube)
(D) 31. Daniel Rodriguez – Harboring Pearls (Spotify, YouTube)
(31) 32. Big Richard Band – Girl Dinner (Spotify, YouTube)
(D) 33. Sweet Virginia – Sweet Virginia EP (Spotify, YouTube)
(D) 34. Bison Bone – Lean EP (Spotify, YouTube)
(D) 35. Rootbeer Richie & The Reveille– Never Needed Me LP (Spotify, YouTube)
(D) 36. Lolita – My Head f. DMD the Producer SP (Spotify, YouTube)
(D) 37. Packaging – Packaging (Spotify, YouTube)
(D) 38. Barbara – So This Is Living (Spotify, YouTube)
T-(D) 38. Big Gigantic – Florescence (Spotify, YouTube)
CP FAN & LISTENER FAVORITE EDM ALBUM OF THE YEAR
CP FAN & LISTENER FAVORITE SONG EDM – Move Around
T-(D) 38. Blankslate – Look Out Mountain Charley (Spotify, YouTube)
(D) 39. 2MX2 – Dale (Spotify, YouTube)
(D) 40. Bevin Luna – Shimmer SP (Spotify, YouTube)
T- (D) 40. Dragondeer – Jolee SP (Spotify, YouTube)
CP FAN & LISTENER FAVORITE ROCK SONG OF THE YEAR

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