Have you ever felt like you were trapped riding shotgun in a car spinning out of control? STUCK, the Chicago post-punk group comprised of Greg Obis (vocals, guitar), David Algrim (bass), and Tim Green (drums, keys) know the feeling well. This nightmarish joyride with a malicious stranger at the wheel comes straight from the lyrics of "gg", the closing track on their latest full length album Optimizer, their second release for Exploding in Sound and third album overall. The feeling of being unable to stop a machine hurtling toward danger by it's own momentum pervades across the whole record. Optimizer reports live from the front lines of a society on the decline, where every attempt toward self-improvement only locks you into a more efficient downward spiral.As with every STUCK release, the central theme flows through every aspect, from the art to the music. Optimizer's cover, designed as always by Green, depicts a classical statue trapped in buffering hell while the album's title below it sinks along a declining trajectory. Obis' lyrics trace the same futility, taking stock not just of the delusional patterns around him but the diminishing returns of sticking to your guns with nothing but air left in the chambers. Turning his eye for political lyrics instead to more directly social subjects, Obis sees the world as one big commercial gym packed to the gills with debt-ridden and desperate marks who only tear their gaze away from the mirror to watch the latest pitch from the latest digital huckster promising a better you at a reasonable fee. Obis doesn't spare himself either. Written directly on the heels of the band's tour for 2023's Freak Frequency, the album also grapples with the personal costs of devoting your life to music while the music industry crumbles around you.