New Jersey’s own The Modbeats are shaking up the scene with their newest single, “Hold Me Roll Me.” A glam-soaked, garage-rock banger, it blends the swagger of ‘60s rock with the urgency of the present moment. Full of jangly guitars, stomping grooves, and a rebellious spirit, the track is a rallying cry to live loudly, love fiercely, and dance like there’s no tomorrow. “Hold Me Roll Me” is available to download on all streaming platforms.
Musically, the track bursts with color, opening with a stomping groove and crunchy guitars before blooming into a swirling mix of harmonies, tambourine hits, and bold keys. It’s equal parts danceable and defiant, channeling free-spirited energy while maintaining the unpolished rawness that defines The Modbeats’ sound. The production is intentionally gritty and garagey, capturing the feeling of a band playing loud in a sweaty club, fully in their element. This anthem is a whirlwind of classic rock textures and genre-defying flair. The band layers a shimmering glockenspiel, performed by frontman Philip Dunn, over chugging guitar rhythms, tambourines over pounding drums, creating a vintage-but-fresh atmosphere that’s both chaotic and full of charm. There’s a deliberate grit in the mix, the kind that feels sweaty, human, and real. From the opening chords, the song barrels forward with the confidence of a band that knows exactly who they are and what they stand for. Lyrically, the track is both a personal declaration and a universal cry. It’s about not waiting around for permission to feel things deeply. It’s about confronting disillusionment, finding meaning in music, and clinging to joy when everything else feels fragile. The band puts it best themselves: “[Hold Me Roll Me] is an acknowledgment of the passing of time and a longing lament for rock ‘n’ roll as we once knew it… In the meantime, we will keep on keeping on, rocking and dancing into the night… no matter what. Someone or something will hold us and roll us till the day we die.”
legendary Japanese artist Merzbow announced Sedonis, his latest full-length album, set for release on June 27 via Chicago sound art label Signal Noise. The album stands as a formidable entry in Masami Akita‘s vast catalog, which has forever redefined the boundaries of music and remains as vital and uncompromising as ever. Lead track “Sedonis A,” released alongside the announcement, opens the album with a thrilling glimpse of the expansive, unrelenting, and meticulously layered tracks that follow.
Masami Akita’s work as Merzbow looms over all avant-garde, noise and heavy music like a dark cloud. Since 1979, the Tokyo-based sound artist’s fusion of industrial fervor and playfully Dadaist chaos across hundreds of releases has done more than pioneer harsh noise music — it has made him nearly synonymous with the genre. However, that famous reputation never quite conveys the actual thrill of sinking into a Merzbow album and absorbing its extreme contours, spiking peaks and layered valleys. It’s a feeling familiar to any fan, in a discography so deep and varied that no one ever explores it the same way. Merzbow’s new album Sedonis is an airy, ominous highlight and an essential release for both longtime listeners and those taking their tentative first steps into Akita’s boiling ocean of sound.
Sedonis caps one of the most exciting recent periods in Merzbow’s career, growing from the same set-up of computer, modular electronics and homemade instruments that produced the startlingly atmospheric Nine Studies of Ephemeral Resonance album series. It sparks to life on “Sedonis A” with propulsive drum machines and Akita’s prickling homemade guitar-string koto, played with a violin bow. The Penderecki-like strings melt into a nearly Hendrix haze at the start of “Sedonis B” building a crushing bridge to the centerpiece “Sedonis C.” The searing track brings to mind releases such as Dust of Dreams’hazy percussion loops or the pulsing, jazz-influenced Door Open At 8AM, before igniting in a finale that achieves the same rippling funhouse terror as Aaron Dilloway’s Modern Jester. The three-part piece is paired with the 16-minute closer “Monolith 4”, which forms a spacious, burned expanse in contrast.
https://merzbow-sn.bandcamp.com/track/sedonis-a
Two of Chicago’s most dynamic forces—Joey Purp and Thelonious Martin—have reunited for a brand-new collaborative project titled Champagne Seats, which will be released on 6.6.25. Today, the duo officially announced their project with a new single, “Make The Lakers,” which is now available.
Longtime friends, frequent collaborators and Savemoney Collective members, Purp and Martin first connected on the critically acclaimed iiiDrops mixtape in 2016, where Martin produced three standout tracks. Their creative chemistry continued on Purp’s 2018 debut album Quarterthing, with Martin again contributing production, on a record that featured appearances from RZA and GZA. Both projects landed on numerous year-end “Best Rap Albums” lists, establishing the duo as key voices in Chicago’s ever-evolving hip-hop landscape.
Now, Champagne Seats finds the two artists picking up right where they left off. Blending Purp’s introspective, no-frills lyricism with Thelonious Martin’s progressive beats, the project presents a cultivated sound steeped in growth, experimentation, and the spirit of collaboration.
A proud member of the Savemoney collective—alongside Chance The Rapper, Vic Mensa, and Nico Segal—Joey Purp has continued to evolve as one of Chicago’s most uncompromising and reflective voices, most recently with Heavy Heart, Vol. 1 and standout singles with Chance The Rapper, “GIRLS” and “Bad Boys 2.”
Meanwhile, Thelonious Martin has become one of the most sought-after producers in hip-hop, with credits spanning A$AP Rocky, Mac Miller, Cam’ron, Curren$y, Halsey, Joey Bada$$, G Herbo, and Cordae, among many others. His solo albums—including Wunderkid, Late Night Programming, and Molotov—have showcased collaborations with legends like Freddie Gibbs, Smoke DZA, Ab-Soul, and Mac Miller, whose track “Malcolm’s Interlude” has amassed nearly 100 million streams.
Chicago-based psych rock trio Daisychain shares their rip-roaring, droney guitar-heavy single “Rivers” out now, with its matching music video, where they let unspoken words hang in the air as interpersonal divides deepen. The trio’s thrilling debut album All In A Name, produced by renowned producer, mixer and engineer Sylvia Massy (Red Hot Chili Peppers, Tool, Prince) is due out June 27 and available for pre-save now.
Daisychain is currently on the She’s A Freak tour across the Southwest and stopping throughout Texas, California and more, including Chicago for a special hometown album release show on June 20. Today, the band announces a second leg through the Midwest and Colorado this July. Tickets are on sale now via daisychainmusic.net/shows.
“Rivers” launches the band’s sound into a new dimension–bluesy, droning, heavy guitars dominate the soundscape, with roaring guitar riffs that emulate a free-flowing river into a sea. On the track’s subject matter, rhythm guitarist and vocalist Sophia Williams says, “‘Rivers’ embodies the unspoken words and dynamics between two people. It describes the static energy that you feel when you say one thing, but the words you really want to say hang in the air around you.”
Visionary NYC New Music pillar Metropolis Ensemble and Michigan musician/composer Erik Hall team up to present a world-premiere live arrangement of Hall’s award-winning re-creation of composer Steve Reich’s masterpiece of American minimalism Music for 18 Musicians. Originally scored for chamber orchestra, the piece will be re-imagined for multiple prepared pianos, Fender Rhodes electric pianos, electric guitars, synthesizers, and vocals, under the direction of conductor/pianist Georgia Mills, and including NYC electric guitar quartet Dither. The meditative, hour-long opus will be performed as the sun sets on the longest day of the year.
Composer/saxophonist Matthew Evan Taylor begins the day with a sunrise performance of his brand new work Afropneuma (2025 Metropolis Ensemble and Brooklyn Botanic Garden co-commission), exploring the profound connection between breath, sound, and Black identity and inviting participants to become part of a communal soundscape.
Jet Black Roses – the genre-blending, self proclaimed Coolest Dad Rock Band in America is here to bring the world their own brand of “rock n roll with a country soul”. With major tour slots alongside legends like Styx, Sammy Hagar and Collective Soul and a rapidly growing fanbase, the southern rock band is poised for an explosive 2025 following the release of their latest single, “PsychoBoogieHoochieCoo.” The tune, produced by Greg Archilla (Neil Young, Collective Soul, Matchbox Twenty) is paired with a mind bending music video created by Steffan Heil, released just in time for 420 celebrations.
On the heels of his standout performance (“BLK Xmas”) on Billy Woods’ new release Golliwag, Detroit Maverick, Brusier Wolf will release his most expansive album to date with POTLUCK, which will be released on 5.30.25. You can now stream Bruiser Wolf’s new single “Lock In” at all DSP’s.
A vital member of Danny Brown’s (Bruiser appeared on Brown’s 2023 album Quaranta on the standout track “Y.B.P.”) Bruiser Brigade, the eccentric wordsmith and rising star will release his highly anticipated third album via Fake Shore Drive/Bruiser House. Known for his signature voice, vivid street narratives and off-kilter humor, Bruiser continues to carve out his own space and singular voice-and POTLUCK is his most flavorful creation yet.
POTLUCK brings together a feast of collaborators from acclaimed producers such as Knwxledge, Harry Fraud, Nicholas Craven, Jake One, F1lthy, and guest appearances from Sir Michael Rocks, Fat Ray and more.
With POTLUCK, Bruiser invites you deeper into his world, a place where truth, absurdity, and wisdom are doled out in even portions. POTLUCK is the latest example of how nobody in the game cooks like Bruiser Wolf.
POTLUCK will be released on 5.30.25 via Fake Shore Drive/Bruiser House.
Bruiser Wolf’s new single “Lock In” is now available.
The wait is over for Resolution, the new EP from pop punk group Old Neon. Featuring recent singles “Better Son” and “Nobody’s Burden” and latest single “Blizzard”, the EP was produced / engineered by Matt Brasch and mixed by Nick Steinborn (The Wonder Years), in addition to mastering by Will Yip (Scowl, Balance & Composure, Movements, L.S. Dunes, The Menzingers). Fans can listen to the EP in full now, here: https://skylyne.lnk.to/Resolution
“Resolution is about fighting and making things work,” explains drummer Zach Pollack. “Whether it’s regarding our internal struggles through making this EP, or the moments in time spoken to in the lyrics of each song – Resolution is about pushing forward when it’s really tough, because it’s worth it.”
Producer Matt Brasch continues: “Not only did the band make things work on this EP, they succeeded in stepping up their craft as songwriters and performers throughout the process. Months of workshopping different ideas went into writing and rewriting the songs. The details that came out of those efforts are what makes this EP so special. They dug deep for beautiful and explosive performances and even kept their minds open to making changes that stemmed from a few “mistakes.” Those specific changes quickly became some of my favorite parts of the EP. Old Neon pushed through grueling 13-hour days and did it all with passion… and the help of a bunch of Coke Zero, Wawa mac n cheese and jokes that had everyone in stitches. We’re so proud of how everything organically came together and that only happens when everyone is willing to work hard and battle for every idea.”
French-Congolese producer/DJ KARABA has unveiled her latest single ‘Surfacing’ out now via ONErpm. The single serves as the third off her TidesEP, following ‘Siren’ and ‘Dark Waters’.
‘Surfacing’ is an uplifting tide in KARABA’s forthcoming five-part journey, embracing the emotive and allegorical themes of the project to develop another layer of sonic storytelling. The track is embedded with textured oceanic samples that provide an immersive balance to the rhythmic drum patterns and ethereal vocal chants drawn from KARABA’s Afro house signature. The result is a deeply meditative and transcendent listening experience that captures both the physical and spiritual essence of emergence that will conclude the upcoming Tides EP.
“‘Surfacing’ is the final single of my EP, where everything comes together. After the tension and high energy of the journey, it feels like a moment of rebirth and arrival—floating above the water, chanting, and embracing the calm after the storm. It’s the sense of finally reaching the destination.” – KARABA
Set for release on June 13, Tides is KARABA’s third EP and her most personal to-date. Weaving together themes of identity, transformation, and fluidity, the five-track project is both a sonic evolution and a statement of intent from one of Afro house’s most compelling voices.
The songs on Bandits on the Run’s forthcoming EP, The Shakespeare Tapes, were born out of a joyous collaboration with director Peter Anderson, who tapped the theatrical indie-folk trio to create songs for a production of As You Like It at Carnegie Mellon University.
In this unique production, which also featured songs inspired by the prose from Twelfth Night, actors were cast in roles best suited to their spirits, resulting in an ensemble that looked different from what one might expect from a traditional binaried lens. Inspired by the task of writing songs that broke a mold of being strictly for male or female voices, Bandits on the Run’s Sydney Shepherd (she/her) became the voice of Orlando (the play’s bad-boy protagonist), and Adrian Blake Enscoe (he/they) voiced Rosalind, the gender bending heroine of the story.
“The opening and queering of that casting process opened up a whole boundless sonic universe to play with,” Regina Strayhorn (she/her) states. “The songs ended up a little bit country, a little bit rock and roll, and we came to describe the sound as ‘Shakespeare Americana.’”
In a twist of fate, as they worked on queering up the material and developing the mold-breaking songs, Bandits on the Run found themselves in Nashville, TN, to record, right when national attention was being called to the state for its government’s attempts to ban the art of drag. “It feels like the songs have an inherent spirit of rebellion in them. They’re a mix of new and old, honoring our artistic ancestors who pushed the limits in their time, and reminding us to push the limits of our own,” says Enscoe. “The Shakespeare Tapes is in honor of love, chaos, dread, exaltation, confusion, identity, and romance beyond traditional gender roles.”
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