Posted: by The Alt Editing Staff
On Sunday, June 7th, 2025, indie pop maestro Perfume Genius and shoegaze-y opener Urika’s Bedroom played electric sets in at Union Transfer in Philadelphia. Perfume Genius, the songwriter Michael Hadreas, released his most recent album in March of this year, ‘Glory’. L.A based artist Urika’s Bedroom was touring in support of their 2024 release ‘Big Smile, Black Mire’, which combines shoegaze, alternative emo, and electronic music.
Urika’s Bedroom opened up the night. Playing as a four piece, they started off soft and built up their sound slowly. It was interesting to have a more grunge-y shoegaze-y louder band open up for the most electronic indie pop based Perfume Genius, the two bands were a nice contrast to each other. Urika played mostly songs from the aforementioned debut album. They did not banter much between songs except to announce the title of a few of the tunes. A highlight was the song ‘XTC’. My first time seeing this band and I would definitely check out their album after the set.
After Urika was Perfume Genius. Joined by a full live band along including Meg Duffy of acclaimed indie rock band Hand Habits, this was simply an electric show. Using props such as cords and wires, an exercise ball, a chair and flashing lighting that fit the vibe of the music very well, he created a very engaging set. Most songs from the set were from the new record, with a few such as ‘Slip Away’ and ‘On The Floor’ from earlier albums. Hadreas rolled on the ground in the cords and used the props in an interesting way. His banter between songs was also funny and heartfelt. Some highlights of the set were soft piano song ‘Otherside’ and ‘Me & Angel’. Although Perfume Genius and Urika’s Bedroom had very different sounds/genres from each other, it was overall a wonderful night of music.
Photos by Jay Leiby
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