It is time to reveal our 2nd exclusive interview of this season’s Space Ibiza guests. Following on from the wise words of Kenny Dope Gonzales, Craig grab’s an insight into all things Pleasurekraft with the US half of the duo, Kaveh Soroush. Also check out the Pleasurekraft Summer Promo mix further down the page.

PLEASUREKRAFT

Hello Kaveh and welcome to SHA. How are you today?
Doing great – and brimming with anticipation!

The 2012 Ibiza season is in full swing and you guys will be featuring with the Islands godfather Carl Cox at Space on August 14th. What are your expectations for this night?
Getting to play for a legend at a legendary venue – it’s the stuff you dream about when you set out to make records and hope you’ll be noticed one day!

You also represented Space on their travels at the Space Festival in Toronto in June. How did this party go and how does it feel to represent such a famous brand as they spread their wings?
Well Toronto is one of my favorite cities in the world to play – and with all our connections with Umek – having remixed him, him having remixed us, and having a couple releases on his 1605 imprint (including an upcoming Eric Sneo remix we just wrapped up) – it was a night to remember. It was definitely my favorite gig of all the Toronto gigs I have played – and as a precursor for playing for Space in Ibiza it was definitely a good appetizer!

You have very different backgrounds; Kalle from Sweden and Kaveh from America. How did you guys first meet?
Over Myspace – back when it was still a relevant website! We both had releases on the same imprint a couple months apart and got in touch via Myspace shortly after.

The name Pleasurekraft was taken from a boat in the TV show Dexter. Can we assume you guys are big television fans?
Yeah – we also share a lot of the same sense of humour – and usually that’s dark humour – but yeah we watch a lot of TV shows – but only good ones of course. Currently we are hooked on this show “Delocated”.

Your first Pleasurekraft track Tarantula was released in 2010 and went on to become the biggest selling track on Beatport that Year. Quite an achievement for a debut release! What was the story behind the track and your reaction to the impact it made?
Well the good news is it definitely made a splash in the dance community for us and opened a lot of doors for us as far as projects for various labels and artists – including one of my idols Green Velvet who we have had the pleasure to work with 3 times now – with a 4th record to be coming this fall/winter. On the bad side – when your first track does that well – it kinda makes you compare every track you make afterward to that track. It’s incredibly difficult (especially these days!) to get to #1 overall position (especially with a non-commercial tech house track) – and we have to stay positive and not get down on ourselves because every track we make doesn’t go to #1!

Pleasurekraft tracks have a distinct sound, especially in the vocal hooks. How would you describe your own sound?
Simply put – tech-house with a hook. Sometimes there are some carnival moments but always with dark undertones.

And as well as the sound, your tracks titles evoke certain imagery. Tarantula, Satyr (half man, half goat) Song and Skeleton Key all have a hint of the macabre. What influences do you draw from in your music and the titles you give productions?
I think selecting a name for your song is incredibly important. It not only has to sound catchy and look cool when people are browsing all the music titles – but it has to capture the essence and mood of the track itself. When you watch a David Fincher film – pay attention to the opening titles. A lot of filmmakers will do something forgettable as most of them think – it’s just the opening credits right? Then go watch a David Fincher film (Se7en/Fight Club/Girl w/the Dragon Tattoo/The Game etc) – every single one’s opening credits captures perfectly the entire essence of the following 2 hours and sets the tone from the first second. That’s what titling your tracks should be like. We think very visually with our music hence the film credit analogy there.

Skeleton Key feat Green Velvet was released at the start of July on Great Stuff Recordings. How was it working with a legend like Curtis?
It was and continues to be incredible. After doing 2 remixes for him – we said it was time to return the favor and he did some vocals for us. The original set of vocals he did however, didn’t even end up in Skeleton Key and we are going to be using it in our next track with him – tentatively titled “All of the Lights” which kinda takes aim at the whole VIP club dictating what the DJs need to be playing etc with all the incidences that have occurred like with Mark Farina/Dennis Ferrer/Calvin Harris (that one was really shocking!) being kicked off the decks at clubs – and even Green Velvet himself had a similar experience.

You are not afraid to challenge the common perception of ‘the norm’ occasionally with remixes of artists like Nervo and Porcelain Black & Lil Wayne testament to that, but you always give it the instantly recognisable Pleasurekraft touch. What do you look for when selecting a remix?
First – can we do something that can stand on its own from the original? Second – and this is often the toughest part – can we do something that while being “Pleasurekraft-y” also takes our sound to a slightly newer place – as we don’t want to make the same track over and over again – and have to push ourselves to keep evolving and hope our fans come along for the ride.

Your tour has taken you worldwide already this year, from Brazil to Canada to Germany. Where are your favourite places to play and is there anywhere you haven’t yet, but would love to play?
Hands down every time I have played Mexico City it has been a surreal experience. It’s our biggest fan base for sure. As I mentioned before I also love Toronto, and to round out North America – El Paso Texas might just be the best city in America for electronic music. Believe it. Anyone who tells you otherwise is trying to be politically correct and not piss off anyone in bigger markets – but seriously – El Paso is on another level for an American city. Haven’t played Berlin YET – but will be this October at Magdalena for Tube & Berger’s club night. Also have yet to play a gig in Japan – and really looking forward to touring Asia properly.

Finally, what else is in the current pipeline? Can we expect any more releases this Year, perhaps and LP?
No album plans. A couple remixes coming up soon – one for Tube & Berger’s Kittball imprint which features vocals from Robert Owens, and another remix for Umek’s 1605 imprint for an Eric Sneo track. Originals wise we have another original with Green Velvet on vocals – and a collab with Denver based producers Jaceo & Vedic Dublin (they’re brothers) – which I’m really excited about. There is also a top secret “cover” of an old classic we are working on that will have an updated tech house vibe to it and of course the Pleasurekraft stamp.

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