The British alt-pop outfit hard life is back with its gripping new single, “othello.” The track, made during a creative trip to Japan with producer Taka Perry, heralds an exciting new era for the band as they prepare for their third studio album.
Fronted by Murray Matravers, the band, which also includes Oliver Cassidy (drums), Lewis Alexander Berry (guitar), and Jordan Birtles (percussion), jumps right into the gray area of human connection with “othello.” This is a multi-layered pun. Taking cues from the board game and borrowing a nod from Shakespeare’s tale of tragedy, the song grapples with themes of trust, fractured identity, and the free-for-all created by unbidden emotions like jealousy and regret.
“othello” thuds like a brooding heartbeat. The production is slick but emotionally open, frothing with synthy atmospheres, throbbing drums, and that same hard life ache where sadness always feels one chord away from something pleasurable in a weird way. Matravers’ vocals sweep across the song’s expanse with an urgent restraint, the inner monologue of someone close to giving up. But what pushes this track over the top is the emotional precision. Matravers explained that in-person, romantic, or work relationships are not often clear-cut. “othello” is here to reflect you. It’s about when someone leaves, and the silence is deafening.
There’s a heaviness in the simplicity here, evidence that the evolution of hard life is not purely aural but also spiritual. They acknowledge the chaos and create space for discomfort. “othello” is the soundtrack to that slow walk back from the precipice, not knowing if you’ll return the same.
In this release, hard life reminds us why their voice remains relevant and necessary in the alt-pop landscape not only through their genre-bending sounds but also through their penchant for articulating the tangled, beautiful mess of being alive. “othello” is, perhaps, just one move on the board, but it is bold, and we’re all watching the next move.
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