Perfume Genius – Glory Review

Intense feelings are the core of any strong album. For Glory, the latest release from Perfume Genius, the conflict oppressing every person, consciously or not, is clear. We are in a fight between the internal want and the external show. It does us no good to decry one as the way to live and the other as a false prophet. Glory gets to grips with that over the course of its runtime, a wonderful piece of work from Mike Hadreas and Alan Wyffels. Magnificent work which brings about the best of Perfume Genius. It’s not just an instrumental improvement but one of those rare masterstrokes which captures the rough and real cultural edges. Finding a suitable route through life is not a personal journey, not the whole way. Hadreas realises this on Glory, and the major changes he makes to writing, leaving room for compositions from others to add their thoughts on an ongoing story, is a major part of Glory’s charm.  

Warmth is a crucial part of Glory. Inevitable it may seem when an acoustic guitar and floaty presence are brought on, but hard work from the Perfume Genius ensemble keeps it lively. Inspired and upbeat spots on Clean Heart are the goal, not the feeling. It’s impressive to hear how Perfume Genius creates the feelings they wish to feel, rather than what they are immediately experiencing. Looking forward to the future is the best way to live, and that’s exactly what Glory does in these early moments. Lighter moments like that are crucial because they give listeners a rougher drop back to earth when the slower tempo begins. An inevitability, but brought about well on Me & Angel. This is where Glory really begins to fall apart. Not because it’s any less of a showcase than its earliest songs, but because it’s a risk Perfume Genius must run in adapting to the back-and-forth. Internal and external wants are often at odds, and so too is the instrumental and lyrical points.  

Breezy moments on Full On covers for a cruelness embedded in the song. There is a heartbreak weighing heavy on this piece, but not heavy enough to make it obvious. A towering moment, the core of Glory and a feeling brought on by Full On lingers throughout the rest of the songs. Capezio is a lush and responsive instrumental, a few ghostly words to begin with are the emotional context of the moody chirping to follow. Pair that with the warbling voice and piano-led tone of Dion and Glory finds that emotionally raw tone. Easy to find, harder still to fill it with resounding moments. Perfume Genius does not struggle. Sincerity prevails here just as much in the loud thrills as it does in those charming, quiet tones. A delicate balance is then struck for the rest of Glory, and it hammers home that emotional spirit. 

In a Row, an uplifting yet fearsome song, highlights how well Perfume Genius has captured the balance. Intensity is kept alive and booming through Glory by the occasional pang of instrumental explosiveness. Percussion on Hanging Out goes beyond the boom of a drumkit being hit with force, it feels like a gunshot blasted through an indifferent character. Glory accepts it will take some time getting used to this back-and-forth, the internal and external voices screaming for completely different needs. Disappointing both is not the only option. Glory notes there is a finer line to walk, and when it gets there, the difficulty of keeping both extremes at bay is the challenge, not appeasing them. Much of that comes to light in the latter portion of the album, a blistering and well-balanced gut-punch of a listen.