We first covered the work of boyhood. back in 2024 with ‘wes anderson (your dog)’, a single which introduced the manner in which the Pittsburgh-born, NYC-based songwriter and musician looks to explore the trans experience. “The project has become an examination of both the present and the past, following the line from the repression of a stymied childhood to the freedom of an intentional adulthood,” as we put it. “An attempt, that is, to consider what has been gained and lost through the slow process of self-actualisation. To save the parts worth saving, and potentially fill in the gaps.”
After ‘wes anderson (your dog)’ brought this to life via a “slow creeper which looks to escape the sluggish rhythm of its present situation, evolving with an organic grace into something dreamy enough to transcend the moment,” following single ‘looking for you’ showed a more emotionally immediate side to the boyhood. sound. “An exploration of love and grief most striking for its authenticity,” as we wrote of the song, “delivered with the ambience of the moment left intact.” Both tracks found an artist inspired by specific moments in their life, be they looking to preserve these memories or else process their impact within a wider whole.
With the release of EP communal roosting fast approaching via AWAL, boyhood. has returned with new single, ‘magdalene’. Described by the artist as “a song about trying to fit a square peg into a round hole,” the song continues the process of thinking through ideas of identity and belonging, and is fittingly boyhood’s most collaborative track to date. Deloyd Elze, AYUSH and McCall all provided additional production, while Melina Duterte (Jay Som) and Nick Garcia mixed and mastered it respectively. The result is unsurprisingly vivid in execution. Because while the opening is slow and hazy, the sound gradually rises as the track progresses, rising towards energy and clarity as though experiencing some kind of epiphany in real time.
communal roosting will be released on the 16th May AWAL. ‘magdalene’ is available from the usual places.