Synthetic Pleasures is a record label we’ve been fans of for a good while now, and whose every release has seemingly been an undercover gem, picked with careful consideration. The person behind the label, who also performs and records as Midnight Climax is currently based in Berlin. So while I was there in the summer, we met up and this interview is a result of that.
You’ve just released a new record by Shersh. Can you tell us how this came about?
Nabil (Shersh) sent me a bunch of tracks on soundcloud over the winter. Normally, I don’t entertain random submissions, but I already liked some of his previous work on Corrupt Territories. Everything he sent completely blew me away. I picked five tracks that fit together best, and that became Basic Ritual Instructions. Through this process, we got to know each other well and have become great friends.
I loved the Isabella record that came out recently. You’re both from Rhode Island, right? What’s it like there in terms of making/experiencing music?
I was a fan of Isabella’s music long before we were friends, so working with her was a real honour. We’re actually both from Massachusetts, but ended up in Rhode Island around the same time. I started the label in Boston in 2019, then moved to Providence the following year. That’s where the label really took shape and where we met.
Providence has a small but historically vibrant music scene. I used to play there often with my bands before moving. It’s not really a city known for dance music, though. Interest was limited and mostly tied to whatever new wave of college students was around. It’s a very transient city. Still, there’s a small, close-knit community with some really talented producers. Without that community and their support, I could never have pulled off any parties. For me, it was a very productive place to live. Not much going on meant a lot of time to stay in and work on music.
You moved to Berlin last year if I remember correctly – had this been a longterm goal or was it more of an impulse?
Yeah, I moved here last April. It was a mix of both, a bit of a long-term goal but also impulsive. I’d been coming to Berlin for years, both for vacation and using it as a base during European tours, so the idea of moving was always there. Then a good friend happened to have an open room, and I just decided to go for it. I packed up quickly and moved. I feel quite lucky. The process was pretty seamless, and I’ve had a lot of great experiences since arriving here. I’ve been able to play way more than back in the States.
Tell us about the different projects/bands you’re involved with in Berlin right now.
Midnight Climax is my main project at the moment. I also have a dark ambient/industrial project called Serpent of Death that I’m starting to focus more on. I released an EP a few years ago on Primitive Propaganda and am working on a follow-up to that. I also play guitar in a hardcore punk band called Bataillon D’Amour. There are a couple of other things in the works, but we’ll see how those unfold.
Is there a vision behind the SP label? It has a very distinct visual style, which I appreciate a lot, but is the curation also very rigid?
The label is a platform for my own music and for releasing work by friends who share the same DIY ethos. Real heads who respect the underground and aren’t concerned with popularity or trends. Stylistically, it’s quite loose. I’m not concerned with the label having a particular sound or fitting in a box. If I believe in the music, I want to use my platform to help push it.
The visual style is definitely deliberate, though. I come from the hardcore punk scene, so that xerox-art aesthetic has always been part of what I do. I just carried it over into the label. I do the majority of the art myself, but also have a small network of occasional collaborators.
What are your plans for the label in the next year? I assume you’ve met a lot of interesting producers so far in Berlin, any collaborations or events coming up?
Next month I’m doing a collaborative label night in Italy, and in November there will be a label night in Berlin. I don’t have the bandwidth to do events often, since I handle them alone.
On the release side: there will be a new Midnight Climax EP, Predation 7”, VCRHeadcleaner/Spiderwrap split, Reinhaudt 7”, Combatsport EP, and a few others, though many of these will spill over into next year.
That sounds like plenty of nice things to look forward to. Thank you so much for talking the time to discuss your label and music.
