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CRITIC REVIEWS
100
Perfume Genius’ magic lies in transforming struggle into folklore, mythologizing a daily endurance against patriarchal bullshit. These are vital hymns to unite and strengthen.
100
‘No Shape’ is a more inward-gazing masterclass in kitschy indulgence and raw honesty alike; a bold, brash record that veers from shrieking gusts of operatic frenzy to crackling emotion, without batting an eyelid.
100
Hadreas started out making fragile lo-fi piano ballads about suicide, trauma and sexual abuse, and with each album his confidence as a singer and adventurousness as a songwriter/arranger have unfurled, all leading to this, his most vivid, joyous release to date.
95
Where Too Bright was often cold, stark, mechanical and dark as tar, No Shape is warm, technicolour, alive and filled with light.
90
With strident chords, spiralling melodies, and a shiver inducing delivery, No Shape might spend a lot of its time searching, but in being open about that the record presents Perfume Genius at his most realised.
90
Just like on, Too Bright, this album is another leap forward, only this time round he hasn’t just outdone himself, he’s outdone everyone else. No Shape is an astonishing record.
90
No Shape is Mike Hadreas’ fourth – and arguably greatest – album as Perfume Genius. It sees the Seattle songwriter explore themes of spirituality, religion and intangible deities, across a mesmeric, drifting soundscape which expands robustly and takes new forms.
90
No Shape is simultaneously quiet and loud, tender and driving, a force of musical power which shines the brightest in it’s still moments.
88
Mike Hadreas’ fourth record is pure decadence. It’s his most realized album yet, a tender and transcendental protest record of love and devotion.
83
No Shape may feel, to some listeners, less cohesive than past Perfume Genius records, but it makes up for that with endless inventiveness and daring passion, and it indicates that Hadreas is a musician who is only growing more vital as he develops and expands his sound.
83
The new Perfume Genius often brings to mind the sort of music one listens to in a bedroom while fantasizing about escape. It has moments of populist ambition and self-consciously arty experimentation, and it’s a credit to Hadreas and producer Blake Mills that its 13 tracks sound as seamless and cohesive as they do.
83
No Shape feels more celebratory than any Perfume Genius record to date; that celebration often runs deliciously wild.
82
On ‘No Shape’, Perfume Genius sounds both barmy and operatic, sumptuous and expansive, without sacrificing any of his trademark tenderness; his wistful creations suit this epic pomp and grandeur.
80
No Shape sounds like a unique talent coming into full bloom. However weird it may seem, he’s here.
80
There are simultaneous moments of pure beauty and pain, as there have been throughout Perfume Genius' work. Only now perhaps the songs don't search for beauty in suffering, but in vitality despite it.
80
No Shape, his fourth and most immediate album, embraces the lush orchestration that he's previously only teased.
80
With such a range of musical stylings on one record, No Shape occasionally sounds more like a collection of songs than a unified album, at times this can be a bit stifling to the listener ... But these are minor flaws in a record with many a moment of gorgeousness.
80
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.
80
With his third record he edged slowly towards the mainstream, but with No Shape, he might just have snuck in. Now sober and settled down, it feels like this is his natural home; his previous records were part of a cathartic process, almost medicinal, to help him reach this point.
80
These pop-forward moments are frontloaded on No Shape, extravagant and baroque. The soaring production value is not accompanied by conceptual upending or reinvention, but rather extends into a grand sort of sequel vision of Perfume Genius.
80
No Shape is Perfume Genius' grandest and most eclectic musical statement to date.
80
Here, we have Hadreas’s desire to transcend his body and self – the no shape of the title – and glorious, inventive, shape-shifting music to match.
70
Key to Hadreas’ appeal is his ability to sing a refrigerator manual and probably bring you to tears. ... Overall ‘No Shape’ sees a new exciting chapter for Perfume Genius, one that’s happy to fully throw off the image of the tortured artist for brighter, bolder entity. The future looks a little brighter.
70
As its title suggests, No Shape is playfully elusive, and the album is often content simply to create beauty while remaining agnostic about what lies beneath its surface. The result is an ironically more luminous and even joyful listen than the darker Too Bright.
70
His fourth Perfume Genius LP ... by his standards feels startlingly optimistic, with pop and rock tropes queered into dreamlike scenarios.
70
While there’s so much about this album that’s amazingly fearless and beautiful, these are sparing moments in a grander, and not overly cohesive piece.
40
I shouldn’t have first listened to Perfume Genius’ fourth album with a hangover. In this depleted state all ‘No Shape’ does is push the burgeoning headache around my brain, very slowly, producing a sensation like thin metallic worms boring right into the grey matter.
hi everyone, to celebrate pride month, i will listen to one critically acclaimed album (or just one that is on my to listen list for one reason or another) made by an lgbtq+ artist that i have not yet heard for every month of june. to kick this series off, i chose no shape by perfume genius. now, there isn’t any specific reason i chose to start off with this album other than the fact that it was the one i was most excited to listen to. i absolutely adored last years set my heart on fire ... read more
PERFUME GENIUS CREATED A MASTERPIECE - Previous albums are great, but this one is full of variety - You can hear the inspiration of Arca, Fka Twigs, Kate Bush Bjork Aphex Twin and the whole trip hop world, but he connects these worlds to the whole. EVERYTHING IS IN THIS ALBUM IS FRESH AS NEVER - there is no copying of patterns here, just creating a new one.
Choir sets new roads in music.
I'm afraid no one will break this album this year, because Perfume Genius has reached the heaven.
Loud and Quiet get the fuck outta here
http://soulfeederweb.com/2017/05/perfume-genius-no-shape-album-review/
EDIT: Still think this is a gorgeous album, just not as in love with it now opposed to when it first came out.
Personal(ity)
No Shape bursts with vibrant eccentricity, while remaining grounded in emotion.
For his fourth album, the delicate Perfume Genius gathered what was left from his strength and took his pop drama out for a walk, wishing to meet that sophisticated professionalism which will lead him to the legion of lost souls.
Oh yeah this is his best yet, the production is incredible on this one (shoutout to Blake Mills); in my opinion his musicality got better with every record, but there’s still a few songs that keep me from giving it a 90, it’s close though
BEST SONG: Otherside
FAVORITE SONGS: Otherside / Slip Away / Just Like Love / Wreath / Die 4 You / Choir / Sides / Run Me Through / Alan
WORST SONG: Go Ahead
“Otherside” is INCREDIBLE, followed by “Slip Away” and ... read more
Contributions By
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Track List
| 1 | Otherside 2:40 | 96 |
| 2 | Slip Away 2:45 | 98 |
| 3 | Just Like Love 3:14 | 91 |
| 4 | Go Ahead 2:53 | 80 |
| 5 | Valley 3:09 | 87 |
| 6 | Wreath 4:26 | 89 |
| 7 | Every Night 2:47 | 84 |
| 8 | Choir 2:28 | 86 |
| 9 | Die 4 You 3:32 | 89 |
| 10 | Sides 4:52 feat. Weyes Blood | 92 |
| 11 | Braid 2:58 | 86 |
| 12 | Run Me Through 4:44 | 82 |
| 13 | Alan 2:46 | 92 |
Total Length: 43 minutes
Year End Lists
| #3 | / | Baeble Music |
| #3 | / | Digital Trends |
| #3 | / | Time |
| #4 | / | Stereogum |
| #4 | / | The Independent |
| #4 | / | The Skinny |
| #5 | / | God Is In The TV |
| #5 | / | The 405 |
| #5 | / | The Guardian |
| #6 | / | Earbuddy |
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2mo
this album is #14 of 2017 by user score AND critic year-end rank...what a lucky coincidence
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Added on: March 21, 2017