By Andy Sears

I’m not going to pretend I’m one of those people that knew about the artist known as Perfume Genius before “Queen” was released this past fall, but after the second or third time listening to it, an inevitable curiosity came over me to find out more about the artist behind the epic glam-rock anthem. I came to find out that the song is off the third record recorded under the moniker whose creator was revealed to be a man named Mike Hadreas. And despite the three records and world tours under his belt, he still seems relatively new to the game. His relocation from New York to Washington State was the cause of the musical awakening in 2008 and only then did he even have the thought of making music. From that moment on he’s been able to connect with audiences by opening up about his brutally honest struggles that seem to pour out of him like a lifetime of built up frustrations. All of this seemed to culminate with a song like “Queen” but there’s more to him than meets this basic music bloggers eye.

Where his first two records seem to be stream of consciousness emotional outpourings full of compulsive expression behind simplistic synth and piano ballads, the third record released this past fall on Turnstile records seems a bit more thought out. As a result, there’s a stronger sense of confidence on Too Bright, a bit more experimentation, and an overall more complete record. The attention the record’s received has demanded Perfume Genius’ return to the Boston area this Friday at the Sinclair in Cambridge. I was fortunate enough to get to chat with Michael about it, his desire to have a song in a David Lynch movie, and burdens of writing from your heart.

Allston Pudding: Too Bright is your third record. Did you have any intentions on doing something different this time around or head in with the mind set to just make another record?

Michael Hadreas: I didn’t start off writing thinking I was going to make anything drastically different. If anything, originally I thought I would do the opposite of whatever I had been doing with a little added instrumentation or more lush or something. I was always terrified of music where I just sing. That was always a thing of mine. That’s always where I thought I was going to go. If anything I was dumbing down my music. I was thinking too much about how I was going to be received, and hoping to write something that would be me success, so I started writing kind of universal pop bull music and stuff, but it wasn’t terrible, but it wasn’t particularly exciting, but it wasn’t me.

About a month into that I kind of scrapped everything I had been doing and started, screaming and sing things I didn’t know if I could actually sing, playing piano, sort of experimenting and I found that I could make darker and louder music and the things I wanted to say became more clear to me and everything fell suit.

AP: “Queen,” when you’re recording that, do you know it’s going to end up garnering the attention that it does and the interest in you as a person and the success that it’s brought you? When you were recording that song is there a moment when you were like “oh this is the best song I’ve ever recorded?” or do you even think that?

MH: I have moments where I think that but you never knew if other people will. Like there were moments in the studio where it was exactly like it was exactly what I wanted the song to be, but you never know if that’s going to translate to other people wanting to hear it. Sometimes I think if things are safer things it’s sometimes easier to know if things will go over well. With a song like that, I didn’t know if the message… I mean the lines are pretty extreme in one direction. Some people could think they’re silly, or laugh about them or they could be really impactful and badass, and you never really know. I know I meant it in a badass way. Theres certainly a sense of humor to that song and I think we got all of that so I’m pretty happy with the way it was received.

AP: I think of it as a completely epic song, I love it. I also picture being used in a film. Has anyone reached out yet to ask to you use in a film or project? Is that something you’d be happy to hear?

MH: Hell yeah, I would be happy to hear. That’s one of all my all time dreams. I’ve had some songs in TV shows and such but never anything I’d watched. It’s a dream of mine to watch a movie and have a director a really love and my songs in it. Or even beyond just the music I’ve already written, to be asked to score a movie, or make music for movies has always been a dream of mine.

AP: If there’s one director you’d just die to have your music in their films who would it be?

MH: David Lynch

AP: So where the first two records kind of have an overall message. Is there an overall message you hope people  take away from Too Bright, as a whole record?

MM: I guess, there’s a lot of moments on there where I kind of pump up my chest and wave my finger at people and there’s some confident moments. There’s also some where I’m really vulnerable and sharing things that are kind of embarrassing and messed up and insecurities I have and I guess what I want to share with everyone is that you can be a bundle of all that shit. You can be a nerd and have anxiety problems but still be a complete badass at the same time?

AP: A theme or internal contradiction maybe?

MM: A little bit yeah.

AP: The lyrics are emotional and I think that’s what connects with people. Does it feel like a burden to write this way or a release?

MH: I think it’s a burden because I want to say something important. I’m very serious about writing, maybe someday I’ll write party music, but when I write now I really want to get to the bottom of shit and it’s pretty intense. I guess there’s pressure in that. I remember listening to music and looking for that connection, so I know when I’m there. From being a fan of things like that, based on my tastes and so usually I can telling when I’m writing when I’m forcing things or when I’m actually genuinely saying something that could be impactful.

AP: Your videos are visually compelling. When you have a song that you think should be turned into a video do you have a vision of what it should look like in your mind, or does that come after the song?

MH: I ususally have one or two clear ideas. For “Grid” I knew I wanted dancers pulsating around me, and for the “Queen” video I knew I wanted a boardroom scene where I was stomping around on the conference table. I usually have one or two visual cues and I can send them to the directors that I work with and then they’ll, ya know. I usually work with people that are as insane as I am so they’ll send me other things like that, too, to make a crazy video.

AP: Your songs touch upon some self-consciousness with your physique and I cant imagine performing now that you have this fan-base. Does that help you overcome it over embrace it on stage?

MH: It’s both, I write and I’m very open about how I have messed up body issues but the whole last tour I did I didn’t wear pants, just stocking and stuff, and it’s a weird sort of, um, conflict there. In some ways it magnifies things and shows me how ridiculous those anxieties are, how meaningless and how they’re not really there, they’re just a place a put a bunch of attention and energy and their a placeholder for what the actual issue is, y’know? It’s clear to me that I don’t see what’s actually there when I look in the mirror and stuff.

AP: So when you get off a stage is there a big sigh of relief or a feeling of “I can’t believe what I just did?”

MH: I don’t think about it, it’s one of those things I don’t think about it when I do it. Sometimes when I get home for long enough I get really dangerously close to paying attention to all the stuff I’ve done on tour, or all the people I’ve met or all the shows I’ve played, but you kind of have to detach a certain amount so you don’t get overwhelmed. I feel a little more present now than I used to. I think practice and certainly talking about these things and doing those shows sort of leaks into your daily life and ends up being more confident with the music I make and the shows I do.

AP: You’re starting to be more confident with yourself as a person and an artist?

MH: Yeah I guess a little bit of both. It’s a complicated thing because so much of how the world looked at me what in my head and a lot of the times I would think on the streets that someone was going to give me a hard time because I was wearing a dress or my nails would be painted, nobody would y’know? Half the time I would forget that the way I was born would make someone else uncomfortable. I’m proud of where I am and all of the things I’ve said.

AP: You can feel this new sense of confidence on the record.

MH: Oh yeah. I  think more than anything I’m still going to have hang ups and anxieties but I do shit anyways now. I don’t let it get me to me, I do what I want even if I’m scared of it. And I wear whatever I want even if people are going to give me shit, even if people are going to give me shit.

Perfume Genius is performing this Friday March 20th at the Sinclair in Cambridge with Jenny Hval. Tickets: $15 Advance / $17 Day of Show