REVIEW: Joey Valence & Brae — Hyperyouth

Brat Summer ain’t finished yet

44:03 // August 15th, 2025 // RCA

Joey Valence & Brae’s No Hands was almost my album of the year in 2024. Almost: that young girl from Essex didn’t leave much chance for anyone else to dominate the musical landscape. Still, discovering JVB was a rush — the kind of refreshing jolt that, as a seasoned music nerd, I need at least once a year to remind myself why I continue to jam new shit I’ve never heard about before. Their riotous energy, driven by furious raps and bouncy electronics, made me feel young again, tapping into what mattered most to my teenage self: pure fun. They didn’t try to be profound or reinvent the wheel — they were too busy setting that wheel on fire, adding neon LEDs, and riding it straight into a house party.

With Hyperyouth, their first major-label release on RCA, that good-vibes-first ethos is still intact, but the album distinguishes itself by expanding their musical range. The influences of the Beastie Boys and mid-school hip-hop, which shaped most of their earlier work, are less noticeable now. Sure, past records already flirted with house, Jersey club, and even hardcore punk, but the Beastie’s shadow was always looming too large to ignore. Here, that reference point gets swapped out for a Miami bass backbone — energetic rhythms, booming low end, and playful vocal flows. Around that core, though, JVB pull in a wider palette: flashes of ratchet, Atlanta bass, cloud rap, and even fidget house seep into the mix. Add in sharp samples (from Skrillex to Afrika Bambaataa), wobbling synths, and sudden beat flips, and you get the real reason Hyperyouth works: it’s not just about the party vibe, but the sheer fun of throwing all these sounds together and making them stick. The zoomer energy also plays in that overall “fun” vibe — cartoon references, silly ad libs, and schoolyard insults — but it’s grounded by a tight control of groove, texture, and pacing that keeps the duo outside of “meme muzak” territory.

The instant highlights are, as expected, the bangers: “BUST DOWN”, “GIVE IT TO ME”, and “WASSUP” all hit with the youthful immediacy that’s become JVB’s signature. As the album progresses, it takes a different turn with tracks like “IS THIS LOVE”, which leans into a more UK-indebted sound, channeling the conversational flow and emotional candor of The Streets. In the same vein, “HAVE TO CRY” flips a Bobby Caldwell sample into a rare moment of vulnerability. These slower, more contemplative cuts mark a shift from the duo’s escapist persona. And while the experiment isn’t always successful, — five moodier tracks are simply far too many for a record built on debauchery — it at least shows a willingness to stretch their sound. When they strike a balance, as on the heartfelt “LIVE RIGHT”, you glimpse a duo ready to grow beyond party anthems. The catch is that right now it’s just a sketch of a future sound, not the full picture. Whether they can actually walk that tightrope remains the question for future releases.

Taken as a whole, then, Hyperyouth is still mostly dumb fun — the sound of two kids rapping over beats they wish blasted at their dream house party. Beneath the chaos is a self-awareness: the party won’t last (crushing realization when you’re 20, wishful thinking when you’re 30). That tension — between carefree hedonism and creeping adulthood — is exactly what gives this album its generational charge. For zoomers, it might just be “existential club music”, but for thirtysomethings like me, it evokes something deeper: nostalgia for a time when letting loose felt like the only thing that mattered. BRAT summer isn’t just a meme-era vibe; it’s a reminder that joy, even if fleeting, can have meaning. And if Joey Valence & Brae can make me feel like an adolescent again, that’s more than just a guilty pleasure — it’s proof their music has lasting cultural significance.

7.5/10

Vibes: Neon—lit house party with equal parts dumb fun and creeping existential dread
PokeVibes: Toxtricity

Further Listening:

• The rest of their discog, it’s short’n’sweet!

• The blueprint: Beastie Boys — Check Your Head

• More rave swag? The Prodigy — The Fat of the Land