photo by Owen Ela

Mike Hadreas is back with the first Perfume Genius album since 2014’s Too Bright. The new album, No Shape, was produced by Fiona Apple collaborator Blake Mills and is set to be released by Matador on May 5th.

In a statement to NPR Hadreas says:

My favorite movie is Dogfight with River Phoenix and Lili Taylor. The ending is kind of bittersweet, but so real and moving and complicated. I tried to see if I could make something similar. It’s about a love that other people tell you is devious or not natural, being very pure and true — physical or otherwise.

When I was doing press for my last album, everybody kept asking me why I was writing about all this when gay people can get married and it’s not illegal to suck d*** in Wyoming or wherever, but there are still a lot of really horrible things going on right now. So there’s a joy to this song, but it’s a protest, too.

The first single “Slip Away,” has also been given an official music video that was produced and debuted by the Fader with director Andrew Thomas Huang. Inspired by surrealist fairy tales, the video shows Hadreas and Teresa holding hands as they escape away from a pair of schoolboys. Huang says of the video:

Mike said that the album, and “Slip Away” particularly, had a lot to do with finding kinship and companionship with his female friends. He told me the song was about that intimate, blood-oath kind of friendship where it’s you two against the world. We talked about movies like Thelma & Louise, and Celine and Julie Go Boating — movies about friends who are close in an “I would die for you” way. There’s usually some kind of outer force that’s threatening them, that they have to run away from.

No Shape Track Listing

Otherside
Slip Away
Just Like Love
Go Ahead
Valley
Wreath
Every Night
Choir
Die 4 You
Sides (feat. Weyes Blood)
Braid
Run Me Through
Alan

Tour Dates
Buy tickets on Ticketmaster | Buy tickets on Ticketfly

05/10: Magic Stick Lounge – Detroit, MI
05/11: Virgin Mobile Mod Club – Toronto, ON
05/12: Theatre Fairmount – Montreal, QC
05/13: Royale – Boston, MA
05/15: 9:30 Club – Washington, DC
05/16: Brooklyn Steel – Brooklyn, NY
05/18: Union Transfer – Philadelphia, PA
05/19: Cat’s Cradle – Carrboro, NC
05/20: Terminal West – Atlanta, GA
05/21: Exit/In – Nashville, TN
05/23: The Back Room at Colectivo – Milwaukee, WI
05/24: Cedar Cultural Center – Minneapolis, MN
05/25: Lincoln Hall – Chicago, IL
06/16: Eaux Claires Festival – Eau Claire, WI
06/17: Eaux Claires Festival – Eau Claire, WI
06/15: Imperial – Vancouver, BC
06/16: Revolution Hall – Portland, OR
06/18: The Independent – San Francisco, CA
06/19: The Independent – San Francisco, CA
06/23: Capitol Hill Block Party – Seattle, WA
*support on all May dates will be serpentwithfeet