Amber Bain is back with “Boyhood,” a new song from her project The Japanese House. Listen to the track below.
“Boyhood” pairs bubbling synths with driving acoustic guitar as The Japanese House looks back at her adolescence, made all the more confusing by her queer identity. Fortunately, with the opening line, “I could’ve been somebody else but I’ve been out looking for me,” she sings the track with the confidence of someone who’s come to accept themselves.
Watch the music video for The Japanese House’s “Boyhood” below.
“When my best friend Katie and I were young and in love, we dreamed of riding off into the distance on her horse Bam Bam, away from all the problems that came from being gay and in love back then,” Bain explained of the track.
“This song talks about how sometimes, however hard you try, you can’t help but be a product of the things that happened to you or held you back earlier on in life. But also, and more importantly, it’s about hope for overcoming those things. And look at us now,” Bain continued. “Not riding away, but towards… something. This horse was very lovely to us, but I think deep down Bam Bam was the horse we were riding all along, and wherever I’m recklessly galloping off to in my life, Katie will be riding bareback behind me like a lunatic, arms around me, like we’d always planned. Rip Bam Bam xxx.”
“Boyhood” marks The Japanese House’s first release since the 2020 EP Chewing Cotton Wool, which featured “Dionne,” a collaboration with Bon Iver’s Justin Vernon.