Artist You Should Know: Young Fathers

Last Friday, I read a flurry of tweets between extraordinary DJ/producers Ewan Pearson, JD Twitch and Joakim all losing their marbles and fawning over the latest single by Scottish hip-hop trio Young Fathers, “Get Up.”

Their comments ranged from “amazing” to “the best thing to come out of my hometown since forever.”

This kind of effusive chatter no doubt peaked my attention. But, I can’t say I was ready to hear what I heard when I pressed play. It is disconcertingly awesome and totally mesmerizing.

Just about the most warped, but perfectly radio-friendly single I’ve ever heard, “Get Up” plays like “Hey Ya!“ if it was a 2004 TV on The Radio track produced by “Maxinquaye”-era Trickyat his most psychically damaged.

Waves and layers of sound all melt at different rates and different places in the mix, making it one of the wildest headphone listens in recent memory. Deliciously sing songy and catchy, it chugs like a churchy pop song as it is potentially inching you towards the shadowy edge of the party where someone is waiting to shank you in the back and take your wallet and iPhone. An upsetting proposition no doubt, but at least you’d be having a great time.

Young Fathers’ latest LP, Dead is available now on Anticon.