London/Melbourne rap duo Teether & Kuya Neil’s debut album ‘Yearn IV’ is a futuristic and experimental hip-hop record. The 13 track LP is imprinted with the duo’s grimy expression of multicultural urban Australia via drum-heavy industrial production. Staples of the underground scene, the duo released their first EP in 2021, with four songs from the mixtape featuring in the acclaimed Australian Netflix series Heartbreak High. They collaborated again on 2023’s ‘STRESSOR’, which was nominated for Best Hip-Hop Album at the 2024 AIR Awards.
Recorded between Melbourne and London (where Teether is now based), the project flips hyper-local influences into a sound that feels global but rooted, and is laced with the digital haze of the early internet era they grew up on. Guest appearances come from Nerdie of Sydney K-Rap crew 1300, Wergaia/Wemba Wemba artist Alice Skye, and Naarm producer Stoneset. ‘Yearn IV’ is a gritty and enigmatic entry for the rising stars and the musical maturity is evident.
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The album opens on ‘Scratch The Flea Point’, an early 2000’s inspired track which features Teether’s deep vocals and a strong intro from Neil. Lead single ‘ZOO’ again flaunts Kuya’s avant garde production on an entrancingly paranoid trap instrumental, with Teether delivering a smooth and bouncy flow. The beat is reminiscent of a Ski Mask track, whilst the vocals are more akin to Giggs. A playful and upbeat track, it is definitely a highlight on the album. On the creation of the song they shared “there’s millions of people waking up and doing whatever they deem most important, all at once. It’s going to be chaos. We’re animals running wild, acting like it all makes sense. ZOO is a song we made one day where this idea felt extra strange.” Yearn IV boasts diversity and dexterity, moving from slower melodic tracks SEA LEGS and BULLET POINT to punchier rhythms on COSPLAY and DIAL UP.
Teether and Kuya Neil’s music intentionally stands out and contrasts greatly to the mainstream music scene, with the duo aiming to provide a voice to outsiders through an eclectic fusion of various genres. ‘Yearn IV’ is rough around the edges, but nonetheless, this is an impressively forward-thinking and unique debut.
8/10
Words: Melvin Boateng
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