New York, NY (Top40 Charts) Boy Harsher, the Northampton-based duo of vocalist/lyricist Jae Matthews and producer Augustus Muller, announce their new album The Runner (Original Soundtrack), out January 21st, 2022 on Nude Club/City Slang. Boy Harsher's fifth release is not a traditional album - it's the soundtrack to a short horror film written, produced, and directed by the duo titled The Runner which will be released January 2022. The album balances cinematic instrumentals with pop songs that push the boundaries of Boy Harsher's sound. In conjunction with today's announcement, they unveil the album's lead single, "Tower," and share new tour dates.
Both the film and album open with the heavy presence of "Tower." The song is an incantation; with its pulsing synths, it's a spell about desire and impending destruction. By the climax, Matthews' pleas transform into desperate screams. "We wrote 'Tower' several years ago and although it's evolved over the years, its initial intent remains the same - that feeling of being enveloped, suffocated, entrapped in a relationship, which in turn manifests into reckless attack," explains Matthews. "What you love the most can make you into a monster. And that's what this song is about, being a paralyzed fiend." The visualizer comes from within the world of The Runner, presented as an exclusive session from the NUDETV program Flesh First.
Last year, in the midst of the obvious chaos, but additionally with Matthews' MS diagnosis, Muller started working on moody, cinematic sketches. It was uncertain what these pieces would become other than catharsis - the duo were unable to tour and making "club music" did not feel right. In Matthews' period of convalescence, she kept thinking about a sinister character: a woman running through the woods. Together, the duo developed this idea further into a film that explores lust, compulsion, and the horrific tendencies of seduction. The movie is intercut with a meta-style "documentary" about Boy Harsher's recording process.
Featuring the dark pop that Boy Harsher is known for, the album embraces the soundtrack ethos by including eerie instrumentals with tracks featuring guest vocalists that feel like they are from different musical groups — "Machina" is a HI-NRG homage performed by
Mariana Saldaña of BOAN, sung in both Spanish and English. "Autonomy" is a bright and heartfelt new wave anthem featuring
Cooper B. Handy aka Lucy. Boy Harsher's latest project is a reconciliation of uncertain times made into sound and moving image. The Runner and its soundtrack are both a return to form and an evolution for the duo.
This month, Boy Harsher will play their first live shows since 2019, including performances at III Points Festival in Miami and Levitation in Austin. A 2022 tour of North
America and
Europe in support of The Runner (Original Soundtrack) will follow with select venues screening the film - tickets go on sale this Friday at 10am local time . More information on the release of The Runner is to come.
The Runner (Original Soundtrack) Tracklist
1. Tower
2. Give Me a Reason
3. Autonomy (Feat. Lucy -
Cooper B. Handy)
4. The Ride Home
5. Escape
6. Machina (Feat. Ms. BOAN -
Mariana Saldaña)
7. Untitled (Piano)
8. I Understand
Boy Harsher Tour Dates
Wed. Oct 20, 2021 - Atlanta, GA @ 529 Club
Fri. Oct. 22, 2021 - Miami, FL @ III Points Festival
Thu. Oct. 28, 2021 - Austin, TX @ Levitation Festival *SOLD OUT* ^
Sat. Oct. 30, 2021 - Holyoke, MA @ Gateway City Arts *SOLD OUT* #
Sun. Oct. 31, 2021 - Brooklyn, NY @ Brooklyn Made *SOLD OUT*
Thu. Dec. 30, 2021 - Chicago, IL @ Empty Bottle *SOLD OUT*
Fri. Dec. 31, 2021 - Chicago, IL @ Empty Bottle *SOLD OUT*
Sat. Jan. 1, 2022 - Chicago, IL @ Empty Bottle *SOLD OUT*
Thu. Jan. 20, 2022 - Boston, MA @ Crystal Ballroom at Somerville Theatre %
Fri. Jan. 21, 2022 - Philadelphia, PA @ Union
Transfer %
Sat. Jan. 22, 2022 - Richmond, VA @ The Broadberry %
Sun. Jan. 23, 2022 - Durham, NC @ Motorco %
Mon. Jan. 24, 2022 - Asheville, NC @ The Grey Eagle %
Tue. Jan. 25, 2022 - Atlanta, GA @ Terminal West %
Wed. Jan. 26, 2022 - Nashville, TN @ High Watt %
Fri. Jan. 28, 2022 - Washington, DC @
Black Cat %
Sat. Jan. 29, 2022 - Brooklyn, NY @
Music Hall of Williamsburg %
Sun. Jan. 30, 2022 - Brooklyn, NY @
Music Hall of Williamsburg %
Fri. Feb. 4, 2022 - Los Angeles, CA @ Belasco Theater (+ film screening) %
Sat. Feb. 5, 2022 - San Francisco, CA @ Gray Area %
Mon. Feb. 7, 2022 - Portland, OR @ Wonder Ballroom %
Tue. Feb. 8, 2022 - Portland, OR @ Wonder Ballroom %
Wed. Feb. 9, 2022 - Vancouver, BC @ Rickshaw Theatre %
Thu. Feb. 10, 2022 - Seattle, WA @ The Crocodile %
Fri. Feb. 11, 2022 - Olympia, WA @ Capitol Theater %
Mon. Feb. 14, 2022 - Paris, FR @ Cabaret Sauvage (+ film screening @ La Peniche Cinema) ^^
Tue. Feb. 15, 2022 - Nijmegen, NL @ Doornroosje (+ film screening @ Lux Cinema) ^^
Wed. Feb. 16, 2022 - Leipzig, DE @ WERK2 (+ film screening @ UT Connewitz) ^^
Thu. Feb. 17, 2022 - Berlin, DE @ Astra (+ film screening @ Intimes Kino ) ^^
Fri. Feb. 18, 2022 - Frankfurt, DE @ Zoom ^^
Sat. Feb. 19, 2022 - Hasselt, BE @ Muziekodroom (+ film screening @ Zed Cinema) ^^
Sun. Feb. 20, 2022 - London, UK @ Earth (+ film screening @ Rio Cinema) !
Sat. June 4, 2022 - Barcelona, ES @ Primavera Sound
^ = w/ Drab Majesty
# = w/ Lucy
% = w/ Hiro Kone
^^ = w/ Kris Baha
! = w/ Helm.
