Sink Ya Teeth - Sink Ya Teeth (2018)

Sink Ya Teeth’s music is ready-made for a good time, with its irresistible blend of shuffling Chicago house beats and smarting post-punk melodies. But lurking beneath the Norwich, England duo’s brightness is something more personal: Maria Uzor and Gemma Cullingford’s songs are about their coping mechanisms for dealing with stifling social anxieties and daily pressures. On “Substitutes,” the latest single from their self-titled debut album, they celebrate the friends who support them through an intense night of partying.

Teetering between hedonism and self-destruction, “Substitutes” describes not only dancing at a rock show but also falling down the stairs at the venue, and feeling replaceable in a crowd, where everyone could easily be a “substitute.” Snaking synths and staccato drums build suspense during the menacing instrumental introduction; when Uzor’s vocals come in, they are almost operatic. Though the song starts on a reassuring note as Uzor chants, “You and me/We are friends/To the end,” the chorus gets decidedly darker when she adds, “We might fall through/We might be substitutes.” As the plucky instrumental tumbles forward, it underscores the sense of communal discomfort. Luckily, the tension is diffused by a “heaven-sent” friend who never leaves Uzor’s side. On “Substitutes,” Sink Ya Teeth know that when the rest of the world feels like it’s in flux, friends will be there to keep you sane.