the uncle algorithm
Plus the best dance track I've heard all year
This blog post starts with a sad admission: I still lurk Twitter. This is increasingly embarrassing as the site progresses into its final form as a shitpost/rightwing hell. However, because of that, I got to see a very funny turn on the timeline this week when it was overtaken by people arguing about the Best American Band.
I don’t know whose classic rock uncle took over the algo, but all I saw were rankings of best-ofs, which then devolved into claims people could write better songs than Ray Davies(????) and why Gen Z doesn’t “get” the Stones (do they?). Did Elon hire David Fricke??
Anyway, in case you’re wondering, the best American band is inarguably* the JBs. Reply, comment, I’ll fight whoever.
Here are the best American links of the week:
Wilco debuted two new songs at Solid Sound, here’s a fan video of (IMO) the best one
Josh Terry of No Expectations made a July 4th “grilling and chilling” playlist Apple Music // Spotify // Tidal
A little older, but this video of Angie Rito (of Don Angie fame) making meatballs had a crazy twist at every step – making these ASAP after the heat breaks
Walton Goggins in a Strokes video, if that’s your thing
As always, you can follow along on our playlists on Spotify and Apple Music, which update (usually) every Tuesday(ish) along with the newsletter. Enjoy.
Nirosta Steel – BOSS TRIX (BENNY’S SONG)
There’s a very cool backstory to this record. Nirosta Steel is a musical alias of Steven Hall, a close collaborator of Arthur Russell, and MY SCYSCRAPER collects over 40 years of his solo recordings into a 17-song career-spanning album. But all that fades away with the opening notes of “BOSS TRIX (BENNY’S SONG),” a perfect soft house chiller that feels beamed in from outer space. Every tone, every move feels predestined and it’s the type of track you could sit in forever. There are other gems on the record – “ENGLISH PARTY” is looping trip-hop originally written for Madonna – but “BOSS TRIX” is an all-time afterhours drop that floored me when I first heard it.
Artificial Go – Jane Ate The Appleseed
More excellent slinky post-punk from Cincinnati’s Artificial Go. The groove is properly dinky, and they know the trick to making tracks like this work: the guitar must be dumb, the bass must be pushed up front, and the hi hat should be just a tad awkward.
Jon Hopkins & Imogen Heap – Reckoning
One of those collaborations that I couldn’t believe didn’t already exist: the opening seconds are adrift in trance haze, but stick around for the incredible drop into a vocal-chop groove at the one minute mark.
Westside Cowboy – Pin Up Boys
Between this track and their last single “Kick Stones (The Boys),” Westside Cowboy’s August debut LP has quickly become one of my most anticipated albums of the year. Is the post-Trump vibe shift part of the reason we’re getting so many cool earnest rock records in 2026? Who’s to say, but something’s in the air, and our speakers are better for it!
throwback
The Village People – Fire Island
* Sorry ok the Band, Steely Dan, Metallica, and the Velvet Underground are also acceptable answers. Fuck the Grateful Dead.