My new record The Pain And The Power is out today on PortuGAY at KNIK Records (Secretly Canadian x Portugal. The Man). This is my 12th studio album since 1998 and it doubles as the original motion picture soundtrack to Cai Indermaur’s documentary, also titled The Pain And The Power. 11 new songs, featuring collaborations with Kyle Andrews, Classtronaut, and Endless Atlas — available now on vinyl, cassette, and digital.
This project feels like the culmination of my entire life and career to this point. The film and album are really two parts of the same story…looking back at where I’ve been, what I survived, what I lost, and what it took to become the person I am now. I’ve spent nearly three decades making music and telling pieces of this story along the way, but I’ve never opened the door this wide before.
Two more new songs from The Pain And The Power original motion picture soundtrack are out today, via PortuGAY at KNIK Records / Secretly Canadian.
Side A: AMERIKKKA
Side B: Everything And Everyone You Have Ever Known
AMERIKKKA is perhaps the most confrontational song I’ve ever written. It’s about watching queer and trans people become political targets in real time and recognizing that, for many of us, the danger is no longer theoretical. It’s about the grief and terror of realizing that the country I call home is increasingly willing to erase my humanity — and wondering what I am supposed to do when it’s already too late to run.
Everything And Everyone You Have Ever Known turns that lens inward. While side A confronts the violence of the outside world, side B explores the interior landscape of isolation, memory, and survival. As a queer man, I’ve spent much of my life navigating loneliness, addiction, loss, and the feeling of existing on the margins. It’s about the moment when external noise fades and I am left alone with myself, carrying the weight of everyone I have loved, everyone I have lost, and every version of myself I have had to leave behind. Read the rest of this entry »
