2025, our seventh. The year World of Echo finally DJed a Japanese toilet showroom. A not inappropriate way to remember another 12 months of watching the wider world do increasingly odd things to itself and its people. Nonetheless, there were other things at play. 

We relocated from Columbia Rd to Cheshire St and ushered in a new era of seven-days-a-week opening hours, Brick Lane street art tour run-off and an expanding staff. From these new walls we hosted more instores than ever before, the added space and in-built natural stage not especially countering our longstanding amateurist approach to such things (mostly presentation, not often performance, though sometimes that too and brilliantly so). The live event incarnation of WOE also took on added dimension with the launch of the inaugural Expected Music at Walthamstow Trades Hall, and welcomed artists from all over the world and just down the road. Sometimes you get lucky, do exactly what you want to and it works out perfectly. This was one of these times and not to be taken for granted. Can lightning strike twice? We can only try. The label arm of the operation took a little longer than usual to shift into gear, though we seemed to hit a stride in the second half of the year with a shellacking of releases from August to October from both new and returning names. On that front, we can promise 2026 will be more active than ever, and straight out the gate with it. You know where to keep up to date on these happenings.  

That state of our nation addressed, now onto Hindsight 2025 and what everyone else managed to do. We say it every year and so, somehow, it continues: the underground remained an undying source of energy, inspiration and community even as it became increasingly hard to do so. Like in all our preceding years, we've attempted to commemorate our preferred music into a non-hierarchical shorter and longer list of new releases, and a round-up of archival projects. It's available to read online and as part of a now-traditional booklet, all written by us and designed by Matthew Walkerdine. If you buy something, you're welcome to a copy gratis. Otherwise you can purchase one for just a touch above production costs. A sample playlist is available here.  You may also note that we have made a double-sided printed sweatshirt that appropriates the image from the front of the booklet: Shirt No. 7 - high quality fashions in a range of sizes for the S/S A/W ∞. 

The year-end-round-up is a popular conceit in existence for various transparent and sometimes opaque reasons, but know also that it's an endeavour of appreciation and shared, collective memory. Perhaps you'll find some version of your experience and joy of this year's music reflected in these pages. Perhaps you'll also find otherwise missed new avenues of enquiry. Either way, enjoy, and thank you, and let's hope for more of the same good in 2026.