Ryan Hemsworth goes heavy with Tegan and Sara on "Never Learned"

Ryan Hemsworth has released "Never Learned", a collaboration with Tegan and Sara that previews Numbskull, his new album out October 21 via Topshelf Records. The track leans into a hyper-compressed emo and metalcore sound, blast beats included, and hits far harder than anything either act is typically associated with.

Numbskull had already drawn attention through its early singles, and also features guest turns from MSPAINT and Illuminati Hotties. Hemsworth said he has followed Tegan and Sara since seventh grade, after first seeing them on Much Music, and that the instrumental was not originally written with the duo in mind. Sending out ideas that do not seem like obvious fits is part of the record's working philosophy, and the Quins took to the track immediately, trading notes on melody and structure.

Sara Quin described the song as a rare chance to scream. She wrote the lyrics alone in a new house during the pandemic, a year before becoming a parent, and says that five years and two kids later she no longer fully recognizes the person in them. "Working with Ryan on this song gave me an excuse to scream", she said.

The single arrives with an animated video directed by 3DCG with art by HIRUCHI. Hemsworth traced the concept back to watching Backrooms videos with his seven-year-old, which left him thinking about escaping a labyrinth. He asked animator friends in Tokyo for their take on a video game version of himself trapped in an endless loop.

Numbskull is available for pre-order now.