# Set My Heart on Fire Immediately

Set My Heart on Fire Immediately is the fifth studio album by American musician Perfume Genius, released May 15, 2020 through Matador Records as the follow-up to 2017's No Shape. The album received critical acclaim upon release, with some critics calling it Hadreas' best work to date, praising its exploration of queer themes and homages to 80s pop and classic rock music.
Set My Heart on Fire Immediately is an art rock and pop album that features elements of baroque pop, art pop, synthpop, funk, alt-pop, shoegaze, ambient, psychedelic, R&B, acoustic pop, disco, swamp rock, chamber, doo-wop, industrial, and heartland rock.

## Background

In an interview with Jia Tolentino, Mike Hadreas described the album as influenced by his work with choreographer Kate Wallich on a 2019 dance piece titled "The Sun Still Burns Here". Hadreas composed numerous songs for the performance, with two singles, "Eye in the Wall" and "Pop Song" resulting, though neither was included on Set My Heart on Fire Immediately but its 2022 successor Ugly Season. Of the experience, Hadreas explained that the themes of embodiment in his prior music were complicated as dance felt "rebellious against [his] body." He explained that dancing "blew up this separation between [his] work and the world," resulting in changes to his songwriting, with songs now telling stories grounded in real-life settings and about real people. He cited Townes Van Zandt, Enya, and Cocteau Twins as influences on the new album.

## Critical reception

Professional ratings :
| Aggregate scores ||
| Source | Rating |
| AnyDecentMusic? | 8.8/10 |
| Metacritic | 91/100 |
| Review scores ||
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic | |
| The Daily Telegraph | |
| The Guardian | |
| The Independent | |
| Mojo | |
| NME | |
| Pitchfork | 9.0/10 |
| Q | |
| Rolling Stone | |
| The Times | |
Set My Heart on Fire Immediately received rave reviews. At review aggregator Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from critics, the album received a weighted average score of 91 out of 100, based on 25 reviews, indicating "universal acclaim" and making it Perfume Genius' highest rated album on the website.

### Accolades

Accolades for Set My Heart on Fire Immediately :
| Publication | Accolade | Rank |
| BBC | The Best Albums and Songs of 2020 | — |
| Billboard | Billboard's 50 Best Albums of 2020 – Mid-Year | — |
| Consequence of Sound | The 50 Best Albums of 2020 | 4 |
| Entertainment Weekly | The best albums of 2020… so far | — |
| Entertainment Weekly | The 15 Best Albums of 2020 | 13 |
| Gaffa | 2020's 20 Best Foreign Albums | 16 |
| Gigwise | The Gigwise 51 Best Albums of 2020 | 2 |
| The Line of Best Fit | The Best Albums of 2020 Ranked | 7 |
| NPR | The 50 Best Albums of 2020 | 35 |
| Paste | Paste's 25 Best Albums of 2020 – Mid-Year | 5 |
| Pitchfork | The 50 Best Albums of 2020 | 5 |
| Slant | The Best Albums of 2020 (So Far) | — |
| Spin | Spin's 30 Best Albums of 2020 – Mid-Year | — |
| Stereogum | Stereogum's 50 Best Albums of 2020 – Mid-Year | 3 |
| Stereogum | The 50 Best Albums of 2020 | 15 |
| Time | Best Albums of 2020 | 6 |
| Under the Radar | Under the Radar's Top 100 Albums of 2020 | 7 |
| Uproxx | The Best Albums Of 2020 So Far | 17 |
| Variety | Variety's Best Albums of 2020 – Mid-Year | — |

## Track listing

All tracks are written by Mike Hadreas, except where noted

## Personnel

Musicians
* Mike Hadreas – vocals (all tracks), synthesizers (1, 2, 5, 7, 10, 12, 13), Wurlitzer (4)
* Blake Mills – guitar (1–3, 7–9, 11, 12), bass (1, 3, 4, 7, 9, 11), synthesizers (1, 4, 8, 10, 12, 13), drums (1), glockenspiel (1), synth guitar (6, 11), harmony vocals (6, 10, 11), organ (8, 10), piano (11, 12), synth drums (12), harmonium (13)
* Matt Chamberlain – additional drums (1), drums (4, 6, 7, 10, 12)
* Rob Moose – violin (1, 3–5, 9, 13), viola (1, 3–5, 9, 13)
* Alan Wyffels – piano (1, 12), organ (3, 9), harpsichord (4), synthesizers (5, 8, 12), harmony vocals (7), flute (8), Wurlitzer (12), Rhodes (13)
* Jim Keltner – drums (2, 3, 9, 11)
* Pino Palladino – bass (2, 6, 7)
* Gabriel Cabezas – cello (3, 4, 9, 13)
* Sam Gendel – synthesizers (4), saxophone (7, 8, 12), synth drums (7), drum machine (7, 10)
* Phoebe Bridgers – harmony vocals (6)
* Ethan Gruska – harmony vocals (6), vocals (6), percussion (6)
Engineers
* Blake Mills – production
* Joseph Lorge – engineering
* Greg Koller – engineering, mixing
* Patricia Sullivan – mastering
* Ian Sefchick – mastering
Artwork
* Camille Vivier – photographs
* Andrew J. S. – art direction

## Charts

Chart performance for Set My Heart on Fire Immediately :
| Chart (2020) | Peak position |
| Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders) | 21 |
| Portuguese Albums (AFP) | 39 |
| Scottish Albums (OCC) | 19 |
| UK Independent Albums (OCC) | 7 |
| US Independent Albums (Billboard) | 34 |
| US Top Album Sales (Billboard) | 24 |
| US Top Alternative Albums (Billboard) | 18 |
| US Top Rock Albums (Billboard) | 45 |
| US Vinyl Albums (Billboard) | 21 |

## Remix album

A remix album, titled Immediately Remixes (stylized as IMMEDIATELY Remixes), was announced on January 14, 2021. It was initially announced for release on February 19, 2021, however it was delayed until March 12, 2021. It received a limited vinyl release for Record Store Day 2021.
It was preceded by the singles, "On the Floor (Initial Talk Remix)", "Without You (Jim-E Stack Remix)", "Your Body Changes Everything (Boy Harsher Remix)", and "Describe (A. G. Cook Remix)", released April 29, 2020, December 3, 2020, January 14, 2021, and March 3, 2021, respectively.