More about: Perfume Genius

Following on from last year’s Set My Heart On Fire Immediately - our second favourite album of 2020 - Perfume Genius returns with an intriguing collection of techno, synth-heavy and euro-pop leaning remixes entitled IMMEDIATELY Remixes.

Offering fresh spins on the aforementioned 2020 album, Perfume Genius aka Mike Hadreas tangoes with a finely selected all-star party of producers to curate an innovative reworking of the album's already-ethereal and expansive composition. Often moving just below the radar of public awareness, PG and co. deliver a refreshing smattering of danceable and offbeat pop that at times is as bizarre as it is wondrous. 

The opening track, ‘Whole Life’ produced by Jaakko Eino Kalevi, dishes up a fine example of PG’s signature vocal stylings; a mash-up of Jamie XX and Eurythmics’ Dave Stewart, and builds to an emotional climax of descending melodies whilst still cruising with the nods to the lo-fi groove that makes his sound so genuine. Its drums and kooky rhythmic alterations galore on the falsetto-adoring ‘Describe’ and producer A.G Cook drapes the latter half of the track with cinematic-like falling scales and distorted guitar injections. 

Manoeuvring amongst a post-modern carefree playground of ambience on ‘Leave’, producer Jenny Hval’s experimental use of dissonance and uncertainty manipulates PG’s warble to create an unsettling reverb-obsessed twist on an otherwise standard album track .‘Moonbend’ verges on exploratory jazz with a calculated peppering of polyrhythms and producer Nidia bends PG’s vocal phrases every-which-way to create an ominously atmospheric procession of noise. 

Tracks ‘On the Floor’ and ‘Your Body Changes Everything’ falter slightly in their straightforward pop composition and the immediacy of their unconventional characteristics fade as they progress. However, there’s just enough creative passion behind each reworking on the album for each track to be admired and appreciated. 

An album of remixes released so soon after it’s source material dropped is a bold and perhaps questionable decision. Nevertheless, Perfume Genius’ extravagant harmonies and lavish melodies all provide a sturdy platform for remixes to flourish, and enough room for each producer to present a unique enough case for their standing in the album to be justified. 

IMMEDIATELY Remixes is out now. 

More about: Perfume Genius