True artists never stop discovering. Though Mike Hadreas' seventh album as Perfume Genius delivers plenty of the cathartic, revelatory moments his work is renowned for, Glory continues the opening up of his music that began with 2020's revered Set My Heart on Fire Immediately and continued with 2022's Ugly Season. Isolation during the depths of the COVID-19 global pandemic lockdowns inspired Hadreas to write these songs, but when he recorded them, he reached out to time-tested collaborators like Blake Mills, Alan Wyffels, and his live band as well as newer ones such as Aldous Harding, whose gossamer soprano gracefully complements "No Front Teeth"'s backwoods swagger. There's a different kind of brashness to this song and the grungy, chugging dread "It's a Mirror" that feels more fully realized than it did it on Set My Heart on Fire Immediately, and on the whole, Glory's strengths build on Perfume Genius' past instead of departing from it. The lingering influence of Hadreas' Ugly Season days is apparent on "Capezio," a weightless interlude that revisits Jason, a character who appeared on that album and Set My Heart on Fire, and on "Full On," which sets imagery of weeping quarterbacks to instrumentation that flutters and sways like intricate choreography. Shades of Put Your Back N 2 It's breathless intimacy and the bold gestures of Too Bright and No Shape also make themselves known -- "In a Row" combines them brilliantly -- but for longtime fans, it's a special thrill to hear Hadreas revisit the softly devastating territory of Learning with a fresh perspective. This time, he trades the defiance of his debut album's confessions for self-assured compassion that's just as brave on "Me & Angel," an unguarded love song to Wyffels. This blend of poignancy and resilience is especially moving on "Glory"'s meditation on aging as a gay man and on "Left for Tomorrow," where feelings and memories bleed together in an eye-wateringly genuine portrait of grief. With Glory, Hadreas discovers a rare balance between approachable songwriting and musical ambition that reinvigorates his music.
It’s A Mirror    
No Front Teeth    
Clean Heart    
Me & Angel    
Left For Tomorrow    
Full On    
Capezio    
Dion    
In A Row    
Hanging Out    
Glory