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I like to think that the trajectory of Patrick Wolf’s career follows a path of awakening that mirrors the typical coming out process of queer youth all over the world. The bisexual young Englishman first hit the public consciousness with albums like Lychantropy and The Magic Position that had a mix of whimsy and overwrought introspection that called to mind Kate Bush’s teenage diary.

His live shows — a dramatic mix of sincere emotion and formal wear — echoed this as well, like a living embodiment of a queer teenage boy’s idealized vision of what gay life will be like outside his parents attic. On Patrick Wolf’s most recent album, this year’s The Bachelor, he seems to find out that not everything is cummerbunds and violins. His aesthetic touch-points shift from YM Magazine to Nylon. “Wind in the Willows” fairy tale flourish gives way to a near-electro sheen and an overall sense of someone, as they say, getting what they want and never wanting it again.

The albums first single “Vulture” captures this perfectly in production, lyrical content and video imagery as you see below. I don’t know where Patrick Wolf is headed now that he’s been tainted by the world, but I am assured that his journey will be an intriguing one.