The enigmatic artist known as Delayed Pleasure pursues a singular vision. Delayed Pleasure creates his environment primarily around Roland Boutique synthesizers and drum machines. Based in Leeds, UK, the aesthetic of his studio is minimal and clean. The lack of clutter allows ample room for the producer/photographer’s mind to wander and be inventive.
Origin
Where does the name Delayed Pleasure come from?
This name has been with me for various projects because I’ve always loved it. I am deep into electronic dub music, and as one would expect, this music contains a lot of echoes and delays, which gives me listening pleasure. Delays…pleasure. I joined these two into my moniker.
Studio
Tell us a little bit about your recording setup.
It’s built on the Roland Boutiques. My very first one was the TB-03. I bought it in December 2018. I’d never owned any synthesizer before that. I thought, “I can play that for a few months.” Two weeks later I got a TR-09 because naturally, I was in need of a drum machine. Needless to say, one drum machine wasn’t enough, so I had to have a TR-08 too.
A couple of months later at the end of summer 2019, I bought an SH-01. As much as I loved the TB-03, I wanted an extra layer of sound. From there, I got a JU-06A, SE-02, JP-08, and lastly, an MC-101 GROOVEBOX.
You have the whole family now. Yes. Are you running things into a DAW like Ableton?
I do use Ableton, but only to arrange the tracks I am working on, record my jam sessions, or for sound effects like delays and reverb.
Setup
Your studio presentation appears very deliberate. How important is that spartan feel to your creative process?
Thank you very much for this comment. I’m glad you noticed. Well, I guess what helps a bit is that I’m a full-time professional photographer. This taught me to have a clean set, which helps me to fully concentrate on the music gear in front of me, as well as nicely present what a viewer is looking at.
Since electronic music has always been a passion of mine, I put these two things together and this is the result. I like it when things are simple, clean, and minimalistic. Just like my favorite kind of music.
Analog
Your use of analog tape saturation is tasty, adding a layer of warmth and grit to your recordings. Do you have any hints for producers looking to dip their toes into the world of cassette recording?
I have no experience with tape recorders whatsoever. As a result, I learn as I go and ask my musician friends to tell me what cables to use, how certain things work, and what to do with smaller or bigger setup problems I might run into. That and I watch tons of YouTube tutorials.
Visuals
You capture your musical environment well in visual form.
I always want to present the instruments in the best way possible. For me, that means a clean setup where everything has got its place. Of course, that’s not for everybody. Some people love messy desks, which spark their creativity, but for me personally, there has to be order and structure.
Sometimes, you use visuals to go with your posts. Where do you find them?
It’s not a secret. I always look for cool visuals on YouTube to play along with my jam sessions. I use everything from NASA videos or a VHS tape effect from video software to mandalas for those wailing acidy lines. There are happy accidents that kind of match the beat or melody in some way.
Media
You have a strong presence on Instagram, YouTube, and SoundCloud. What does each platform offer that is unique?
For YouTube, I post there because it’s where some people listen to music, and I am hoping they will discover me this way. Instagram is still my number one and favorite. It’s the easiest place to engage with my audience. SoundCloud is where I listen to tracks or full DJ sets when I’m working from home and editing photos.
"Sometimes there are happy accidents that kind of match the beat or melody in some way."
Delayed Pleasure’s music and posts have a relaxed, almost meditative mood. Is that intentional, and does that reflect you as a person?
You’re correct. My account, and most of all, my music mirrors my personality. I try to be calm and collected. Secondly, the goal is to give people something different.
When they come to my account to look at my photos or videos, I want them to feel something unique, out of the ordinary, or maybe even dreamy. Something that takes their minds out of a daily routine, even if only for a few seconds or minutes.
Influences
What were some of the first sounds you heard which made you want to pursue music creation?
My parents, nor my immediate circle of friends, were into electronic music back when I noticed that music plays a significant role in my life. I had to discover it all by myself. At first, to be honest, it was mainstream techno from the end of the ’90s to 2001. Back then, I used to be deep into rave music.
The first artist I’m proud to mention I learned of is Richie Hawtin aka Plastikman. He changed my life, you know. From there, I kept digging into the internet, finding more non-mainstream music.
With the Telefon Tel Aviv album, Fahrenheit Fair Enough, something clicked in my mind. I thought, “From now on I’m only listening to underground music.” It all snowballed from there. Maurizio is another huge influence, not only their music but also their philosophy about underground techno.
Contemporaries
Are there any artists that are creating stuff right now that you’re loving?
There’s Yagya’s Rhythm of Snow, one of my favorite artists from Iceland. I can’t leave out Indigo by Exos. This guy came back with a new album after 19 years, and is currently on top of my “most-listened-to” albums. “Dripping Acid” by Tin Man—I idolize him. This tune melts my brain every time I listen to it.
"There's something deeper to my philosophy that comes from underground techno music. You don't have to have a persona."
If you’d like to know and learn more about non-mainstream and top-quality electronic music, I cannot recommend DUB MONITOR YouTube channel enough. Plus, Richie is tempting us with news of a new Plastikman album, which should be very, very good.
Mystery
The Delayed Pleasure online persona is very mysterious; the music does the talking. Was that something you planned or a natural outgrowth of your process?
Music is the main focus for me. Nothing should distract from that. But there’s something deeper to my philosophy that comes from underground techno music. Artists like Maurizio and both their labels (Basic Channel and Chain Reaction) were very anonymous and that spoke to me as well. You don’t have to have a persona created around yourself. I love that about techno music.
Pick
This will be a tough question. If you had to choose one Boutique as your desert island synth or drum machine, which would it be?
That’s a tough question, indeed. It would have to be the TB-03 as that’s my go-to synth. You can do so much with it, you know? If it was my only working Boutique on a desert island, I could take a coconut and bash a tree for a kick drum.
