30 June 26 – July 2, 2025 miaminewtimes.com | browardpalmbeach.com NEW TIMES miaminewtimes.com | browardpalmbeach.com NEW TIMES B E S T º F M I A M I ® 2 0 2 5 BEST LIVE MUSIC VENUE Culture Room 3045 N. Federal Hwy., #60-E Fort Lauderdale 33306 954-564-1074 cultureroom.net Tucked away in a nondescript strip mall off Federal Highway, Culture Room is one of the region’s small-but-mighty venue options — and the best here in 2025. This 650-person-capac- ity venue punches far above its weight having hosted eclectic headliners that span the dance beats of Charli XCX to the pop-noise of Sleigh Bells to foundational horror punk rockers the Misfits. Inside, the elevated stage ensures every spot feels front-row, while the intimate balcony nestled just off it offers a killer vantage point for those who prefer a birds-eye view. Need a breather? Step into the outdoor courtyard where a bar and live feed projection let you uniquely soak in the show under the stars. With multiple bars, a welcoming atmosphere and a track record of hosting both legends and rising stars, Culture Room isn’t just a venue, it’s a rite of passage for local music lovers. In a re- gion teeming with venue options often tiny AF or mega-beyond belief, this unassuming hotspot strikes all the right chords (literally). BEST VENUE FOR LOCAL ACTS American Legion Pºst 92 211 N. 21st Ave. Hollywood 33020 954-923-2760 legion92.org Oh, where, oh, where is an underground band supposed to play in South Florida? Music ven- ues, especially the kind local bands rely on, are an endangered species around here. Luckily, promoters are making the most of the spaces we still have. Spaces like the American Legion Post 92, a social club for veterans and military members in downtown Hollywood. Led by event promoters Equinox and Breakeven Booking, the club regularly hosts local bands as well as DIY acts traveling the country. Most fall in the metal, punk, and hardcore genres, but on occasion, you’ll also hear indie-rock, ska, and post-punk. It feels very similar to the time that the now-demolished American Le- gion on Biscayne Boulevard in Miami’s Upper Eastside also served as a music hub for raucous local acts. Luckily, with its busy stage and de- voted barflies, the Hollywood outpost doesn’t seem like it’s leaving the chat anytime soon. BEST INTIMATE MUSIC VENUE Luna Star Cafe 775 NE 125th St. North Miami 33161 305-799-7123 lunastarcafe.com In a city dotted with construction cranes and transplanted high-end dining and entertain- ment concepts, the existence of a place like Luna Star Cafe feels nothing short of miracu- lous. For nearly 30 years, the tiny North Mi- ami restaurant and music venue has hosted laudable singer-songwriters, both locals and touring acts. While the city around it has changed drastically, Luna Star keeps things refreshingly old-school. It’s still a cash-only establishment, it boasts an enviable interna- tional beer and wine selection, and people ac- tually listen to the tunes: “Please keep your voices to a low whisper while the musicians are performing,” the venue’s website warns. “Otherwise you will be shushed. Really!” BEST RECORD STORE Connect Record Shop 710 NW Fifth Ave. Ste. 1021 Fort Lauderdale 33311 954-368-8630 connectrecordshop.com Rising from the ashes of the dearly departed Radio-Active Records in Fort Lauderdale, Connect immediately made a splash on the regional record shop scene thanks to its fan- tastic curation and socially-oriented space. There are regular events such as DJ sets, sound healing, and monthly block parties, and its records range from yacht rock and im- ported records from Japan and Brazil to punk, metal, and indie rock classics. And, in case you were wondering, there’s even a bin for vaporwave. BEST RECORD LABEL Terrestrial Funk terrestrialfunk.com Beloved local DJ Brother Dan’s homegrown record label and online shop is one of the most sonically adventurous musical projects to ever emerge from the city. In the past year, Terrestrial Funk has put out discs featuring reissued British street soul from System Exclusive, Detroit-style techno from Swiss producer Dan Piu, and ambient weirdness from fellow Miamians and art- ist pair Coral Morphologic. But their most impactful move had to be bringing their otherworldly realm into the physical plane with a pop-up record store in the Design Dis- trict this past year. The shop was only open for a few weeks, but it quickly became a fix- ture for the local scene and a wonderful place to convene. BEST LOCAL ALBUM Palomino Blond, You Feel It Too palominoblond.com Released in October on Brooklyn-based Kanine Records — which put out music by the likes of Chairlift, Grizzly Bear, Surfer Blood, and Beach Day — You Feel It Too is the product of a young band that’s grown com- fortable in its skin. Still following the trio’s dream-pop, grunge, and shoegaze formula, Palomino Blond, made up of Carli Acosta, Emma Arevalo, and Peter Allen, feel tighter and more in sync than ever. Tracks like “Plain View,” “Midheaven,” and “Automatic (If This Is Too Much)” show Acosta barely straining to sing atop the glittering melodies. Palomino Blond’s sound feels as indebted to acts like Sonic Youth, the Jesus and Mary Chain, and My Bloody Valentine as it does to the Shan- gri-Las. Where will the band go next? Who knows, but You Feel It Too is a good reason to be excited. BEST PRODUCER Cole Knight instagram.com/coleknight Cole Knight has had nothing short of a mete- oric rise from Miami to top clubs worldwide, like Club Space and Pacha in Ibiza. Knight’s blend of synergic house and corrosive techno has proved to have no bounds. It’s one thing to make beats on the regular, but Knight keeps one step above most, featuring her smooth and matter-of-fact voice that makes her tracks lost-in-the-moment club smashes. Look no further than her 2023 Detroit-styled number, “Keep It Cute,” where the vocals — “We keep it cute; we keep it classy; we keep it cool; we keep it nasty” — bounce around a hypnotic percussion and bass. Her tracks have made it to the best DJs’ USBs, from Sol- omun to Ben Sterling. If you’re trying to find that spellbinding track that was just dropped in the club, follow the voice. Cole Knight will lead you the right way. BEST ROCK BAND Cannibal Kids cannibalkids.com South Florida’s indie-rock darlings Cannibal Kids recently released their third album on Shaemax Records. Titled Chiral, referring to a concept of molecule asymmetry in chemis- try, the double-sided album expands upon their trademark indie-rock sound through experiments with jazz, alt-rock, and Japa- nese city pop influences. One side of Chiral focuses on rock, while the other creates a blend of their genre influences. The album’s accompanying visual album creates a mosaic of the sounds, images, and emotions that in- fluenced the band’s songwriting process. With vocalist/lead guitarist Damien Gutier- rez, drummer Luke Faulkingham, bassist Marty Quinn, lead guitarist Bennett Wyler, and keyboardist/trombone player Eli Fein- gold, Cannibal Kids are already growing up into Cannibal Adults, touring and performing alongside major artists like Young the Giant and Flipturn. BEST EMERGING ACT Iliad linktr.ee/thebandiliad Indie-rock quartet Iliad — consisting of Arkii Cala, David Cisneros, Tobias Steensma, and Juliet Bradley — has been making a loud mark on the South Florida music scene with its brand of nineties alternative rock reinter- preted by Gen Z. Their Bandcamp offers a glimpse of what the foursome is capable of when they come together. “Tiger Balm” feels indebted to the Pixies, while the reverb- happy “Pink Mustang” wouldn’t have felt out of place during college radio’s peak. Last fall, Iliad finally released its debut album, Slug, a tight 22-minute, seven-track introduction. It’s a solid effort from the young band that will leave you wondering where their career will take them as they get more experience under their belt. BEST LATIN ACT Tony Succar tonysuccar.com Back in February, Peruvian-born, Miami- raised percussionist and composer Tony Suc- car won the Latin Grammy for “Best Tropical Album” alongside his mother, the incompara- ble Mimy Succar, for the live album, Alma, Corazón, y Salsa (Live at Teatro Nacional). While today’s reggaeton superstars are min- ing traditional Latin sounds like bachata, cumbia, merengue, salsa, and rancheros to great success, Succar has been a fixture in the Latin music scene ever since taking over his family’s band when he was still studying at Florida International University. At 38 years old, Tony still has a long career ahead of him, one that will undoubtedly stand the test of time regardless of where the trends go. BEST HIP-HOP ACT Denzel Curry denzelcurry.com Few Miami rappers had a better year than Denzel Curry. The Carol City native looked back to his Raider Klan days for inspiration on King of the Mischievous South, an intense and bombastic record that played with all sorts of Southern rap conventions and recruited rising talents such as 454, Bktherula, and Lazer Dim 700. But he truly conquered the game at Rolling Loud Miami’s tenth anniversary, giving the undisputed best performance of the entire festival and putting every
