NO SHAPE (CD) | Mint (M) Mint (M)

Perfume Genius – No Shape

Label: Matador – OLE-1113-2

Format: CD, Album

Country: US

Released: May 5, 2017

Genre: Rock

Style: Art Rock, Ethereal, Pop Rock

1                       Other Side

Choir – Becca Luce, Blake Mills, Chris Doerr, Clay Blair, Joseph Lorge, Mike Hadreas

Piano, Synth, Vocals – Blake Mills

Vocals, Piano – Mike Hadreas

2:40

2                       Slip Away

Drums, Percussion – Stuart Johnson

Marimba, Guitar, Synth, Piano, Drums, Percussion – Blake Mills

Vocals – Mike Hadreas

2:45

3                       Just Like Love

Cymbal – Stuart Johnson

Drums, Tabla, Percussion, Bass, Synth, Baritone Guitar, Guitar, Marxophone – Blake Mills

Violin, Viola, Arranged By [String] – Rob Moose

Vocals, Synth – Mike Hadreas

3:14

4                       Go Ahead

Drums, Percussion, Guitar, Bass, Synth, Programmed By – Blake Mills

Percussion – Stuart Johnson

Violin, Viola, Arranged By [String] – Rob Moose

Vocals – Mike Hadreas

2:53

5                       Valley

Guitar, Bass, Piano, Mellotron – Blake Mills

Violin, Viola, Arranged By [String] – Rob Moose

Vocals – Mike Hadreas

3:09

6                       Wreath

Backing Vocals – Alan Wyffels

Percussion, Synth, Piano, Guitar, Bass, Backing Vocals, Programmed By – Blake Mills

Vocals – Mike Hadreas

4:26

7                       Every Night

Guitarrón, Synth – Blake Mills

Synth – Alan Wyffels

Violin, Viola, Arranged By [String] – Rob Moose

Vocals, Piano – Mike Hadreas

2:47

8                       Choir

Violin – Rob Moose

Vocals, Synth – Mike Hadreas

2:28

9                       Die 4 You

Drums, Percussion, Guitarrón, Guitar, Synth – Blake Mills

Violin, Viola, Arranged By [String] – Rob Moose

Vocals – Alan Wyffels

Vocals, Electric Piano [Wurlitzer], Noises [Trumpet] – Mike Hadreas

3:32

10                     Sides

Drums, Bass, Guitar, Organ – Blake Mills

Featuring – Weyes Blood

Synth – Alan Wyffels

Violin, Viola, Arranged By [String] – Rob Moose

Vocals – Mike Hadreas, Natalie Mering

4:52

11                      Braid

Piano, Organ, Kora – Mike Hadreas

Vocals – Natalie Mering

Vocals, Electric Piano [Wurlitzer] – Mike Hadreas

2:58

12                     Run Me Through

Bass – Pino Palladino

Drums, Percussion – Chris Dave

Guitarrón, Guitar, Celesta [Celeste], Piano, Omnichord, Synth, Woodwind – Blake Mills

Vocals, Synth – Mike Hadreas

4:44

13                     Alan

Synth – Alan Wyffels, Shawn Everett

Vocals, Piano – Mike Hadreas

2:46

Recorded At – Zeitgeist Studios

Recorded At – Boulevard Recording Studios

Recorded At – Desirée Ind.

Mastered At – Bernie Grundman Mastering

Manufactured By – The ADS Group – 6745-CD-1374

Artwork – Inez + Vinoodh*

Design – Mike Zimmerman (2)

Engineer – Blake Mills

Engineer [Boulevard Studio Assistants] – Clay Blair, Omar Yakar*

Engineer [East West Studio Assistant] – Brendan Dekora

Engineer, Mixed By – Shawn Everett

Mastered By – Patricia Sullivan

Mixed By – Shawn Everett

Producer – Blake Mills

Written-By – Blake Mills (tracks: 4, 9, 10)

Written-By, Lyrics By – Mike Hadreas, Natalie Mering (tracks: 10)

Recorded October 2016 - December 2016 at Zeitgeist Studios, Boulevard Recording + Desirée Ind. Los Angeles, CA.

Barcode (Scanned): 744861111320

 

Trauma and its transformative powers have been at the heart of Perfume Genius' music since the beginning, and in its own way, No Shape is no exception. On early albums like Learning, it felt like Mike Hadreas had to fight through the pain to get out his hushed confessions, while the fierce Too Bright brought his anger to the surface. No Shape finds Hadreas moving toward acceptance, allowing his music to bloom and grow. Musically and emotionally, it's a move that's as bold as Too Bright was, even though this album's sound is more incandescent than its predecessor's molten rage. Producer Blake Mills' Technicolor arrangements and sonic tricks help Perfume Genius make good on the subversive lavishness Too Bright promised: "Otherside" begins the album with a tender piano ballad that feels almost predictable -- until it explodes into glittering choruses that are anything but. From there, Hadreas explores different sounds that reflect the need for change after pain, whether it's the luminous "Slip Away," the psychedelic orchestral synth-pop of "Just Like Love," the daring electro of "Go Ahead," or the brilliant Kate Bush homage "Wreath." This newfound flexibility extends to No Shape's expressions of sensuality, which span the slow-burning trip-hop of "Die 4 You," the late-night sultriness of "Run Me Through," and "Sides," where '80s funk and synth-pop influences, strings, and Weyes Blood's ethereal vocals combine in a swooning, complex standout. However, the most compelling proof of Hadreas' transformed state of mind may lie within No Shape's ballads. On songs like "Every Night" and especially the spine-tingling love song to his partner, "Alan," he sings with the gentleness of someone who's healed after being fragile and broken. Though No Shape shows how much his music has expanded since the Learning days, it also proves he hasn't lost any of his ability to connect with listeners. Instead, it reveals him as a sonic adventurer and truth teller who's made some of his most compulsively listenable music. ~ Heather Phares

• Media Condition: Mint (M)
• Sleeve Condition: Mint (M)
• Format Detail: CD standard Digipak
• Format: CD
• Genre: ROCK
• Released: 05/05/2017
• Internal ID: JITRE