As vibrant and popular as the Milwaukee Hip Hop scene is right now, its DIY Alternative scene is alive and thriving more than ever as well. Artists like Diet Lite, The Keystones, and ADORNER have been thriving as of late. All three of these artists make very distinct styles of music, and they all have been putting more and more Alternative Rock fans onto the awesome stuff coming out of Milwaukee. A unique Milwaukee Alternative artist with his own sound is Laus Rota & The Melancholy Echoes. They are a new artist generating a ton of hype since debuting with their dynamic new single recently. Although Laus Rota & The Melancholy Echoes is new in its own right, its mastermind, Nicklaus Rueda, has been involved in music and media for a long time. Nicklaus Rueda was a touring musician as a part of various Metal bands for many years. He also toured the country as a DJ for about a decade as well. In addition to making and curating music, Nicklaus Rueda is also a comedian, having put out many videos in the 2020s with over a million views. Nicklaus Rueda recently lost a friend to mental health and addiction(his 9th friend that he has lost this way), and he decided to write a song about how he was feeling because of this situation. He has stated that the stage name Laus Rota is in reference to his actual name(Rota is his last name in Latin) and that The Melancholy Echoes refers to all of the awesome people he has collaborated with over the years. Below, I wanted to briefly talk about the aforementioned new single that is making waves from Laus Rota & The Melancholy Echoes, which is titled ‘Hotboxin & Suboxone.’ Please let me know in the comments below what you think of this new song from Laus Rota & The Melancholy Echoes, and also comment the names of any other Milwaukee-based artists or up-and-coming artists you think I should check out!

‘Hotboxin & Suboxone’ is a song that transported me right to 2003 the first time I listened to it(I mean that in the absolute best way). It is not tough to see why this song would be a hit with a lot of Pop Punk and Alternative music fans online, as it provides a sense of nostalgia that I just adore. The instrumental for this track is smooth and pleasant but also has a harder element due to the distortion on the guitar riff and the beat. There is an element of this melody that almost has a Folk Rock feeling to it. It feels like a fusion of the Punk music you would expect from artists like Blink 182 or Sum 41 and the more Folky stuff you may expect from La Dispute or Car Seat Headrest. I enjoy how charming yet intense this instrumental is, as it just feels so heavy and huge. As nice as the instrumental is, the vocals are what really stand out on this track. The vocals on ‘Hotboxin & Suboxone’ are so luscious, zestful, and full. Nicklaus and his guest vocalist, Mario Lanza of De La Luz, show off many elements of vocal prowess on this track. On Hotboxin & Suboxone,’ Nicklaus raps while Mario sings. Both vocal styles are very enjoyable; I especially love the screaming that comes in and out of this track. The screaming sections give the song so much texture and emotion, really making it pop. On ‘Hotboxin & Suboxone,’ Nicklaus Rota is singing about diving into symptoms of addiction to get over all of the pain you are feeling. He is feeling guilty about wanting to go back to these ways to heal himself, as he knows it is the reason so many of his friends passed away. ‘Hotboxin & Suboxone’ is an intense and bold debut track from Laus Rota & The Melancholy Echoes, and it makes me excited to see what Nicklaus has coming next.