DFTK

On his full-length debut, the Washington, D.C. native and Young Thug protégé sounds like the future. Yung Kayo’s still a teenager, but his sound is fully evolved; his heartfelt melodies and primal yelps exist at the highly unexpected meeting point between the avant-garde trap of his mentor and the glitched-out euphoria of a PC Music pop record. It’s not so much about what Kayo says as *how* he says it (or howls it, or croons it, or *skrrt*s it, always with utmost feeling), over crystalline beats from go-to producer warpstr that mix neon shades of trance and hyperpop into the palette. And the early award for Most Pleasantly Weird Collab of 2022 goes to “hear you,” where Kayo’s warbles intermingle with the alien banshee wails of experimental electronic musician Eartheater.

The debut album from the Young Thug protégé is an exhilarating opening salvo by an artist who only occasionally seems in full control of his considerable talent—which is half the fun.