Benny - Tana Talk 4 (2LP) - 45RPM

By the time this landed in March 2022, it felt like Benny the Butcher had drawn a neat circle around his story. The Tana Talk series has always been the Buffalo heart of his catalogue, and this fourth instalment goes straight for the jugular again. After the glossy rush of Burden of Proof, he swung back to the grainy, sample‑rich pocket that put him and Griselda on the map. The cover once more honours Machine Gun Black, a reminder of the family stakes that haunt these records. It is a mission statement as much as an image.

The Alchemist and Daringer split the bulk of the production, which means the beats are carved from dusty soul and cold jazz loops that never get in the way of the writing. There is air in these mixes. You hear the scrape of a hi‑hat, a piano phrase that sounds half remembered, and then Benny threading bar after bar of vivid detail. He raps like he is cataloguing inventory in a back room, precise and unhurried, with the occasional flash of dark humour to keep the blood flowing.

“Johnny P’s Caddy” set the tone early. J. Cole turns up with a bar-raiser of a verse, the sort of guest spot that gets people texting links around, but the point is how Benny stands tall beside it. The Alchemist’s beat feels like late‑night radio through a cracked speaker, and both emcees treat it with respect. “Back 2x” with Stove God Cooks is another easy highlight, the two trading luxury talk and street codes with the kind of rhythm that only comes from long hours in the same rooms. Stove God’s ear for a hook is sharp, but Benny’s punchlines give the track its weight.

Across the set he keeps the guest list tight and purposeful. “Uncle Bun” with 38 Spesh clicks like old partners splitting the bill, their flows dovetailing over a mournful loop that lingers after the last snare. “Guerrero” pulls in Westside Gunn for that eerie, fly‑god commentary, a reminder of how well the Griselda voices colour each other. “Thowy’s Revenge” is pure flex, dense writing with the kind of internal rhyme chains you catch on the third rewind. “Super Plug” and “Bust a Brick Nick” feel like cipher pieces, all craft and menace, no wasted motion. If you come to Benny for surgical detail and the chill of consequence, this is the vein.

Then there is “10 More Commandments,” a smart update of a New York classic that could have gone corny in lesser hands. Instead, Benny treats it like homework well done, moving the rules into the modern surveillance era. Diddy drops in with veteran counsel, and the track becomes a conversation across generations about how things change and how they do not. It is respectful without being reverent, which suits the album’s plain‑spoken tone.

Critics called this a return to form, but the truth is simpler. Tana Talk 4 is Benny choosing the room that best suits his voice. The Alchemist and Daringer give him monochrome backdrops that make the writing pop. You feel the slush of a Buffalo winter in the pacing. There are no grand radio gestures, just a steady build of scenes and decisions, which is why the record holds up past first week chatter. It is also a neat companion to Tana Talk 3, like two volumes of the same dog‑eared paperback, and a reminder of how Griselda’s rise pulled the centre of gravity back toward raw, writerly rap.

On vinyl the album breathes even better. The loops have texture, the bass sits a touch warmer, and the spaces between the drums let the storytelling bloom. If you are crate‑digging in a Melbourne record store, keep an eye out for Tana Talk 4 vinyl tucked near the other Griselda spines. And if you prefer a click over a dig, it is easy to buy Benny the Butcher records online from local shops that specialise in vinyl records Australia. Benny the Butcher albums on vinyl tend to vanish fast, so this is one worth nabbing before you start seeing second‑hand prices creep up.

In a crowded year, this one still feels essential. Not because it chases the moment, but because it trusts the fundamentals. Benny raps like the light in the room is harsh and the stakes are non‑negotiable. That is the draw with Benny the Butcher vinyl in general, and it is why Tana Talk 4 should sit right near the front of the crate, close enough to reach on a grey morning when you want the truth told plainly.