Boy Harsher (Photo by Courtney Brooke)
Boy Harsher — the duo of Jae Matthews and producer Augustus Muller — recently released the video for “Autonomy,” a standout track from their new album, The Runner (Original Soundtrack), out now via Nude Club/City Slang. The synthpop duo bring their new tunes to a show at Black Cat on Sunday, April 10.
“Autonomy” is a bright and heartfelt new-wave anthem featuring fellow Western Massachusetts based-artist Cooper B. Handy aka Lucy. The self-directed video weaves in footage of Boy Harsher and dancers performing with clips of Cooper from the band’s accompanying horror film The Runner (available to stream now via Shudder).
“’Autonomy’ is a product of pandemic isolation,” Augustus said. “I was feeling lost, lonely, and loveless. ‘Autonomy’ was my escape during a period where I truly felt stuck.” Cooper added: “The songwriting process was very easy and breezy — it came together kind of magically. It was awesome to be able to collaborate and have this song with both Jae and I singing.”
Watch the official music video for “Autonomy” by Boy Harsher featuring Lucy on YouTube:
The Runner (Original Soundtrack) balances eerie instrumentals with pop songs that push the boundaries of Boy Harsher’s sound. The film follows a strange woman as she travels to a rural town where her violent compulsions are slowly revealed while Boy Harsher’s music scores the strange woman’s descent deeper into the unknown. The Runner features break-out performances by Cooper alongside musician Kris Esfandiari (King Woman) and performance artist Sigrid Lauren (FlucT).
Since 2014, Jae Matthews and Augustus Muller have steadily released what some might call the gold standard of darkwave and new industrial under the moniker Boy Harsher. Their first EP, Lesser Man, was originally released on a small run of cassettes, but then uploaded by a fan onto YouTube. The album, and most notably the single “Pain”, rapidly gained online traction and became an underground hit. The exposure from this and their subsequent releases (Yr Body is Nothing, 2016, Country Girl EP, 2017) propelled the band into extensive tours, selling out shows in the United States and Europe.
Boy Harsher rode this momentum to their previous recent album — Careful, released in 2019. Described as their most polished and produced record to date, Careful received critical acclaim.
Boy Harsher
w/ Club Music
Black Cat
Sunday, April 10
Doors @ 7:30pm
$20
All ages