The opening moments of "Forsaken" announce themselves with an ominous weight that refuses to dissipate. Rooftop Screamers have never been a band to shy from uncomfortable subjects, but this collaboration with vocalist Stephen McSwain represents their most unflinching work to date—a searing examination of colonial violence that pulls no punches in its sonic assault or lyrical interrogation.

The Bare Minimum have never been a band to take themselves too seriously, and their latest mini-album *Doomed City* doubles down on that commitment with a ferocity that borders on the gleefully nihilistic. Following their Nicolas Cage-worshipping EP *UNCAGED*, this four-track offering strips away the conceptual scaffolding to reveal a band operating at their most raw and immediate—though whether this represents artistic evolution or creative exhaustion remains tantalizingly ambiguous.

When the Santiago-based producer behind RIVERLABS watched their previous release vanish from Spotify over spurious streaming fraud allegations—despite documented proof of legitimate playlists and zero label support—the response could have been bitterness and retreat. Instead, RIVERLABS went underground and emerged with *Fractured Reality: Human Code*, a twelve-track masterwork that transforms adversity into artistic triumph. This is how you rebuild: with intelligence, passion, and a vision so fully realized it demands to be heard.