Perfume Genius - Ugly Season

Mike wades into even more abstract waters on Ugly Season.

Perfume Genius - Set My Heart on Fire Immediately

Set My Heart on Fire Immediately covers even more aesthetic ground than No Shape did, only occasionally coming across as disjointed.

Perfume Genius - No Shape

No Shape is Perfume Genius' grandest and most eclectic musical statement to date.

Perfume Genius - "Slip Away"

My boy Mike Hadreas is back with a stirring single about breaking away from the world's hate, set to the most primal (though still elegant) instrumental I've heard him take on yet! It's off the album No Shape, which drops May 5 via Matador. 

Christine and the Queens - "Jonathan" ft. Perfume Genius

French pop artist Héloïse Letissier, a.k.a. Christine and the Queens, has a new track out featuring none other than one of modern indie's dreariest singer-songwriters: Perfume Genius. The song is to be featured on a forthcoming album dropping October 16th. It's actually a touching track, loaded with somber vocal harmonies, weeping strings, and some sparse electronic beats that really enhance the drama of the song, too. The ending's a bit premature, but maybe it only feels that way because I don't want the sad ecstasy of the track to end. Enjoy!

Perfume Genius - "Fool" (Video)

The previously loved Perfume Genius tags some visuals onto the Too Bright cut "Fool," which had me curious considering the track features a completely unexpected ambient pop-style interlude right in the middle of its run-time. How exactly would this musical transition be handled? Well, with violet curtains, a feather boa, and candles, of course!

It's a pretty abstract set of visuals here, which only brings up more questions in the face of the song's already esoteric storyline. While I don't find it as gratifying as PG's other recent music videos, it's still an opportunity to see Mike Hadreas interacting with a strange cast of characters while rocking golden roller blades. Kudos to director Charlotte Rutherford.

Perfume Genius - Too Bright

On Perfume Genius' third album, singer-songwriter Mike Hadreas uplifts his emotionally charged piano dirges with even more backing instrumentation.

Perfume Genius - "Queen"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SfJ9HX13Z8U "Queen," the lead single off Perfume Genius' forthcoming third LP Too Bright, is without a doubt singer-songwriter Mike Hadreas' most extravagant song to date. This time around, he is forgoing the spartan piano arrangements we've found powerful in his prior releases in favor of bright synths, punchy drums, and comparatively pristine production. But the emotion that came with his sparse, reverb-y work of the past has not dissipated with this more ornate compositional palette. Hadreas' vocals are assured, forceful; giving "Queen" the last of the makings for a great pop anthem. While I'll admittedly miss the forlorn piano melodies should the album entirely go in this glitzier direction, this is a pretty interesting change of pace for Hadreas and a plenty evocative piece in its own right.

Too Bright is due out September 23 via Matador.