Only Dust Remains

Only Dust Remains is the fifth studio album by the Zambian-Canadian rapper Backxwash. It was self-released through Ugly Hag Records on March 28, 2025.

Release

In October 2024, Backxwash announced that she would be releasing a new album, with a release date set for February 2025. The album was to include the single "Wake Up", which she had released earlier that year, on April 17, 2024. Only Dust Remains was officially announced on January 28, 2025. On February 27, she released the single "9th Heaven" from the album. Backxwash released Only Dust Remains on March 28, 2025, through her label Ugly Hag Records.

Critical reception

Mischa Pearlman of Kerrang! called it "a morbid, bleak and brilliant post-trilogy album" and further described it as "a dark album. A very dark album," yet highlighted its global awareness, with tracks like "History of Violence" mixing personal pain with political trauma. Pearlman concluded Only Dust Remains as a "brave, powerful and uncompromising album that holds nothing back". Anthony Fantano praised Backxwash's creative evolution, noting that the album features "more of those different sides of her that we caught just a tiny, teensy-weensy bit of on the last record". John Amen of Beats Per Minute wrote, "Mutinta isn’t retracting her take on the world; she’s unapologetic in her condemnation of our institutions and the way they impact our sense of worth. At the same time, she’s researching new sonic directions as well as a somewhat more paradoxical take on human life". He concluded, "Dust is ultimately a 'between' project; we’ll see where it leads".
The album was longlisted for the 2025 Polaris Music Prize.