Photography by M. Sharkey

Mike Hadreas's piano-led dirges rarely pass the three-minute mark, but they pack an emotional wallop that lingers long after their final chords are played. This year, the 30-year-old Seattle singer-songwriter, who performs as Perfume Genius, released his sophomore album, the stunning Put Your Back N 2 It. When YouTube rejected a promotional video for the record that featured Hadreas and male porn star Arpad Miklos standing close to one another shirtless, he found a staunch supporter in Michael Stipe, who took to his blog to declare the site's decision an act of "dumbheaded discrimination."

Photographed at the Dream Downtown Hotel in New York City on October 8, 2012