Car Culture

**Car Culture** is a scrappy indie rock trio from San Diego known for their gritty, riff-driven sound that blends garage rock energy with post-punk introspection. Formed in 2018 around the core trio of Alex Peterson (vocals/guitar), Jamie Lopez (bass), and Riley Chen (drums), the band built a cult following through relentless DIY touring and self-released EPs. Their music often grapples with themes of modern ennui, from the sarcastic burnout anthems of 2022’s *Coping Mechanism* EP to the desert-bleached distortion of their 2023 single *Dead Rock*. Recent releases like the *Nothingburger EP* showcase their knack for pairing slackery humor with unexpectedly sharp social commentary, all delivered through blown-out amps and sneaky melodic hooks. While they’ve stayed proudly underground, their Bandcamp-friendly ethos and sweat-soaked live shows have cemented them as scrappy underdogs in the West Coast garage-punk scene.