Midnight in a Perfect World: Au Suisse

Crossing paths on and off going on three decades now, Morgan Geist and Kelley Polar (Michael Kelley) formed as Au Suisse just prior to the pandemic and produced one of 2022’s most elegant and sophisticated synth pop records. First acquainting as students in the early 1990s at Ohio’s Oberlin College — as late night DJs with shared tastes and time slots — both settled in the east coast after graduation; Polar attended and taught at Juilliard while Geist started producing and releasing records in New Jersey on his Environ label.

After hooking up with Darshan Jesrani to form the now-legendary Metro Area, Geist sought out Polar’s compositional and instrumental acumen on several now stone-cold classic Metro Area tracks like “Miura” and “Caught Up,” bearing the future hallmarks of lush arrangements and effortlessly deep, but accessibly playful, melodies found in Polar’s solo records. The success of Metro Area’s 2002 self-titled LP, and innovative offerings on the Environ label, led to Geist and Polar collaborating on the latter’s solo musical output with Geist producing Polar’s superb 2005 and 2007 LPs Love Songs of the Hanging Gardens and I Need You to Hold on While the Sky Is Falling.

And now finally, in 2022, the longtime friends and collaborators truly merged their musical talents and sensibilities as Au Suisse, self-described as “a project borne of a long creative friendship, steeped in each member’s traditions, yet simultaneously naïve-sounding and undiscovered.” A quietly rich and accomplished record in its own right, the introduction of Au Suisse doubles as a friendly reintroduction to the musical partnering of Geist and Polar, both solo and now jointly in one of those great tips shared with a friend. 

Indulge in the rich sounds and romantic moods of Au Suisse's midnight-mindset Midnight mix.

Midnight in a Perfect World, KEXP's weekly hour-long guest DJ show, airs Fridays at midnight. This multi-genre program features eclectic sets by a rotating cast of international and local DJ's, each building upon a party vibe to kick off your weekend. Midnight in a Perfect World  is made possible with support from New Belgium Brewing.