Jennifer Touch interview – “PJ Harvey taught me how to use my voice as a singer and a woman”
The Berlin producer making Midnight Proposals
Berlin-based producer, DJ, singer and musician Jennifer Touch turned a lot of heads with the sleek, economic techno sound of her debut album Behind The Wall, but its sucessor, Midnight Proposals, will surely gain her even more attention. A mixture of unexpergated electronics and punky songwriting, it’s an intimate, emotionally raw experience and one which will broaden her appeal on both sides of the inidie/dance divide. We couldn’t resist the temptation to find out more…
Hi Jennifer, hope you’re having a good day. First of all, tell us where you are answering these questions and what have you already got up to today?
Thank you! I´m at home in Berlin at my desk, mentally preparing for my album release show tonight and trying to calm down. It´s super exciting to play a record live for the first time, and I don’t know how it will turn out. Many of my friends will be there so it’s going to be a cute night!
So, Midnight Proposals was written and completed in just four months – as opposed to Behind The Wall. Was that planned or did it suddenly happen? Was there a plan of action about how you wanted it to sound?
No. It was definitely planned, but not finalised. My label asked me to deliver something before the start of 2022, so I could release a new record the year after. So I knew I had to work on it, but couldn’t start for a long time. I felt restless and was traveling a lot. Finally in September I decided to lock myself up in my studio to see what came out. I felt like I had to surrender. I was collecting my equipment, guided by my intuition and curiosity, and suddenly it all came together. The songs came to me, meshed up with the book I was reading, some family history, and my experience as a social being. As a woman. I sensed a dark country, wave vibe in the first sketches as I added some guitar. That was the path I wanted to keep for the record and then I just got into the zone and worked on it like crazy.
And somewhat inevitably, why the title Midnight Proposals?
To me the title stands for things we promise to each other when we feel very intimate or hopeful, drunk or wild. Mostly at night I would say. It’s about the things we like to believe someone told us around a mystical fire at night. Big dreams. Offers we’d like to take. I heard the term when I saw Nick Cave’s film ‘20.000 Days On Earth’. He read a lyric or poem and these two words stuck in my head. I wrote it down and they followed me and became the title of the record. It’s also a funny title. If I give you a midnight proposal, one should consider I can’t keep them.
It seems to have a more alternative/synthpop vibe with the music feeling more like songs than tracks – would you agree? Was it a case of looking back further into your older influences? Do you feel the post-pandemic scene is more open to being a bit less dancefloor obsessed? And while we’re on the subject of influences – as mention in your press blurb – we know Depeche and PJ Harvey, obviously, but Tempers?? Tell us about them…
I´m an indie and postpunk infused person, and the record is definitely a homage to all my early influences and my inspirations when I was a teenager or even a child. I take what inspires me or what effects me emotionally, and develop my own language out of that. I love good songwriting, and that’s why I love Depeche Mode. Their writing is brilliant. PJ Harvey taught me how to use my voice as a singer and a woman. She recorded and produced so many of her records and I was like: what, that’s possible?? So I began to inhale music and songwriting, sounds and emotions from a very early age. I love electronic tracks too, but I am mostly interested in writing songs. My emotions are so confusing to me that I feel it’s better to build a structure around it, so the listener isn’t only receiving my stuff, but can also find their own way with the song.
After the pandemic a stronger network between artists developed and the dark electronic music scene is opening up and people are more keen to show feeling with different instrumentation, rather than sticking solely to cold electro sounds. There are so many versions, like Curses and Moderna. We all belong to the same family, but create our own special sound. That’s also what inspired me with Tempers. They belong to the Dais Records artists in New York. They use analog instruments and dreamy vocals in a different way. I think they are really great, and I feel inspired by artist that are really clear in what they want to do and how they want to sound. You should definitely check them out!
Your blurb also mentions it being less biographical than Behind The Wall, but the songs feel quite personal all the same – how does that work?
My songs are always personal, but this time I´m using myself as an example in the patterns we face as humans. I´m not singing about me. I’m singing about the world I´m in and “what it feels like for a girl in this world,“ to quote Madonna. Take ‘Gudrun’ for example, which is named after my grandmother. In the end it’s actually more about woman in general than specifically here. The songs talk about a society and its funny tragic illusions. Or hope and longing. A Reality check maybe?
Most of the tracks have very short and sharp titles, one or two words. That can’t be a co-incidence! The lyrics have a bluntness too – I’m currently listening to ‘A Day’. Are we living in blunt times?!!
Interesting, and yes, you are right. It’s more harsh and direct I guess. Times are blunt of course. Women, POC, the LGBTQ + scene become stronger in their bluntness and power, and it’s not a time for cute things. That’s not a bad thing. We are shifting our energy, and everything that is cheesy, fake or sugar coated is out of date and will fall apart. I’m not sure about the position of my record in this process, but I try to be more real, authentic and free as an artist. Thats what you might hear in the songs. They are also tender and soft at some point. In a blunt way.
What’s the plan in terms of promoting this LP – are you off on tour? What else is in the pipeline for you in the short/medium/long term?
Times are tricky in the live business, but I will try to play as many live shows as I can. I plan to form a band, but this depends on the income I can make and whether I can pay them. I will for now go on a little tour in the UK in March and April. Then I´ll head to Mexico for some DJ gigs, but my main focus is my live touring to get this record and its songs out. And I will work on more videos and new EPs, some collaborations with great artists! Basically I and trying to find my safe space in the business, and will work on songs and more midnight proposals for you out there.
Ben Willmott