THE REPORT: 6/20/25
ENERGY DRINK ROCK REPORT
Suzy Clue’s brand of active rock could exist on a shoegaze bill or at a rock festival sponsored by Monster Energy Drink. Who is headlining that festival? Evanescence? Anything is possible. “Uneasy” sounds like the kind of track one of my coworkers at Subway—callback—would’ve put on between rushes. Last night, I drank something from the “Gatorade Mashups” line of beverages.
Existing in another corner of the contemporary guitar music arena, Cool Whip features two legends of the game, Dan Wise of Kill Me Tomorrow and Joe DeNardo of Growing, playing real-deal New York City rock and roll. This is the kind of band that plays covers (Velvets, Diddley). This is the kind of band whose originals retain a certain damaged bar rock spirit. “Flame in My Heart” is a smoggy anthem for muggy nights.
Gabrielle Lucas “Milwaukee’s Baddest”
Here at John’s Music Blog, we’ve been covering the new wave of Chicago juke rap on a fairly granular level. With “Milwaukee’s Baddest,” Gabrielle Lucas has moved the sound a few hours north to a city more known for hectic 8th note clap patterns than high-tempo house-dervied drums. My hope is for a synthesis of these two modes, a new Midwestern dance music.
Not bad! Pharrell laces a track that sounds like the “Paul Revere” beat through the Virginia Beach filter. It samples a track from the Saudi Arabian musician and composer Talal Madah. All of that Travis Scott stuff is none of my business, though I did enjoy watching Pusha T talk to Jon Caramanica and Joe Coscarelli about it on TikTok. “So Be It” is John’s Unc Rap Pick of the Week.
Fortified Structures is part of the New York crew Helltekk, whose renegade outer-borough forest raves changed the energy of the city’s underground music scene for the better. “CHICAS” is pure rugged ragga jungle that, to quote some writing from the artist, was originally part of “a jungle tape dedicated to my dad, him being from Panama he always made it clear to me that reggaeton as a whole was created by sounds from Jamaica and Panama.”
Wednesday “Wound Up Here (By Holdin On)”
As far as I’m concerned, Wednesday is a classic Pandemic Rock Band. They are a band I associate with long walks, extended periods of time alone, and mental breakdowns. Within the sludge country language they have developed over many records, their newest single keeps the quality high. You will never hear me use the term “y’allternative” on this blog. Shit!
MIX OF THE WEEK: Popstar Benny for NTS - June 16 Mix
A lot of my favorite memories of listening to rap music have happened when it is “in the mix.” Look, people, I’m not anti-playlist, but sometimes you can’t beat the extra context that can only come from a chaotic flurry of drops and blends and quick cuts. Artists that drizzle by me on streaming can become, in the hands of an expert DJ, alive and coherent. Here, Atlanta’s Popstar Benny does a good job representing his city, keeping it moving, and playing a nice cross-section of music, both new and old, local and not. It’s been on repeat at HQ.