Milwaukee pop-rock outfit Lake Drive is back with their four-track EP Cherry Colored Sweater, and if you’ve been sleeping on this band, now’s the time to wake up.

Formed in 2023, the four-piece—Rayven Burdette (vocals), Brandon Detaege (guitar), Trevor Gallagher (bass), and Adam Secord (drums)—continues to build on the momentum of last year’s Post-Internet Romance with a collection that’s bursting with energy. The title track clocks in at just under three minutes of high-octane, feel-good rock that lands somewhere between a sunlit drive down, well, Lake Drive, and an adrenaline-fueled night out in the Third Ward.

What makes this release hit different? It’s the balance. There’s a danceability woven into the DNA of these tracks that keeps your head nodding while the guitars crunch with enough force to remind you this is still a rock record. The production is loud, present, and unapologetically bright—this isn’t music for wallflowers.

Lake Drive has been putting in the work on Milwaukee’s DIY circuit, and Cherry Colored Sweater feels like a band fully hitting their stride. For those who caught them at Summerfest or any of their local haunts like Cactus Club, this EP delivers the energy of their live show in studio form.

Stream Cherry Colored Sweater now: