{"id":18432,"date":"2026-02-12T06:33:00","date_gmt":"2026-02-12T11:33:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/mkultramagazine.com\/?p=18432"},"modified":"2026-02-12T06:34:01","modified_gmt":"2026-02-12T11:34:01","slug":"midniters-sugar-man-is-addiction-and-consumerism-personified","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/mkultramagazine.com\/?p=18432","title":{"rendered":"Midniter\u2019s \u2018Sugar Man\u2019 is Addiction and Consumerism Personified"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"alignright size-large is-resized\"><img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"576\" src=\"https:\/\/mkultramagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/Midniter-1024x576.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-18433\" style=\"width:517px;height:auto\" srcset=\"https:\/\/mkultramagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/Midniter-1024x576.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/mkultramagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/Midniter-300x169.jpg 300w, https:\/\/mkultramagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/Midniter-768x432.jpg 768w, https:\/\/mkultramagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/Midniter-1536x864.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/mkultramagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/Midniter-2048x1152.jpg 2048w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p>Taking a dive into retro \u201870s glam, kitsch and sleaze, \u2018Sugar Man\u2019 is the new single and video from indie-electronic act Midniter: the solo moniker of Charlotte, North Carolina\u2019s Nic Pugh. Part pimp, part pusher, part psychedelic Pied Piper, the titular \u2018Sugar Man\u2019 character is addiction personified, as Nic explains:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cWhether it\u2019s drugs, booze, your phone, or literal sugar, it\u2019s about being sold the things that kill us every day, and how we eagerly accept them in most cases. This song was inspired by my addictive personality, Velvet Underground\u2019s \u2018Waiting for the Man\u2019, and Jeff Bezos. I liked the idea of making Sugar Man a character, attempting to personify a manipulative corporation, or the gaudy excess of capitalism. Remember, kids: Your drug dealer is your best friend. Consume! Consume!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<div class=\"nv-iframe-embed\"><iframe title=\"Midniter - &quot;Sugar Man&quot; (Official Video)\" width=\"1200\" height=\"675\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/satK87jmzdg?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/div>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>While still imbued with Midniter\u2019s characteristic synth-driven indie pop, \u2018Sugar Man\u2019 also recalls the guitar-fuelled early \u201870s UK glam of Marc Bolan &amp; T. Rex, or the \u201860s psychedelic pop of The Beatles: who also get a nod from the video, via Pugh\u2019s Lennon-esque \u2018Sugar Man\u2019 persona. Infused with vibrant colour, gaudy flamboyance, and a series of interconnecting lollipops, the kaleidoscopic video was directed and edited by regular collaborator, Paul Juan at Yawn Productions, and premiered yesterday (Tuesday 10 February) on The Big Takeover. Nic continues:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cPaul and I shot most of the video in a photo studio in Noda (Charlotte). What was supposed to be a quick one-day shoot turned into a four-day pain in our ass, but I at least had a good time dancing and being silly with some friends!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Reviewing the new single at Dancing About Architecture UK, Dave Franklin writes:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cSugar Man\u2026wafts in accompanied by a wave of sleazy chic and drug fug atmospheres, the smell of sweat and patchouli. It\u2019s the new glam, digital sleaze, techno trippy, a song about those vices and habits that are killing us day by day, and how eagerly we embrace them\u2026 It\u2019s every bit low-slung and scuzzy, raw and spiky as any garage guitar band, and its dense, claustrophobic folds are sprinkled with saccharine-sweet pop accessibility. If substance abuse was a sound\u2026this is it!<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u2026it is a timeless vibe: music made for the dark corners of nightclubs, the soundtrack to back-street deals, a litany to that inevitable day when you take things too far\u2026 what Midniter does here is create a scintillating soundtrack, one totally in step with today\u2019s music, whilst repeating those same words of warning, albeit in the language of today\u2019s street wise droogs!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Midniter is the indie electronic project from queer, Charlotte-based singer-songwriter, Nic Pugh. At 36, Pugh has been a traveling musician for almost 20 years, playing in mostly punk and rock\u2019n\u2019roll bands, with highlights including Paint Fumes and Jaggermouth. Creating Midniter in January 2024, the project formed as an antithesis to his previous guitar bands. Although influences (including Radiohead, Justice, The Knife, LCD Soundsystem, Aphex Twin, Square Pusher, and M83) stem from many genres, Midniter was parented by the bands of the Indie sleaze era. Together with fellow Charlotte NC musician, Nic Holman, Pugh is also the co-founder of SugarTank! Records: an independent label dedicated to supporting and celebrating artists in the LGBTQ+ community, including allies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><br>\u2018Sugar Man\u2019 by Midniter is out now (released 10 February 2026) from SugarTank! Records: available on Bandcamp, Spotify and all the usual digital music platforms.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center\">Find and follow Midniter \/ Nic Pugh \/ SugarTank! Records<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center\"><a href=\"http:\/\/www.sugartankrecords.com\" data-type=\"link\" data-id=\"www.sugartankrecords.com\">www.sugartankrecords.com<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-spotify wp-block-embed-spotify wp-embed-aspect-21-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<iframe title=\"Spotify Embed: Midniter\" style=\"border-radius: 12px\" width=\"100%\" height=\"352\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen allow=\"autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; fullscreen; picture-in-picture\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/embed\/artist\/1thL6txn9I8B0sJR8P2fbT?utm_source=oembed\"><\/iframe>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Taking a dive into retro \u201870s glam, kitsch and sleaze, \u2018Sugar Man\u2019 is the new single and video from indie-electronic act Midniter: the solo moniker of Charlotte, North Carolina\u2019s Nic Pugh. Part pimp, part pusher, part psychedelic Pied Piper, the titular \u2018Sugar Man\u2019 character is addiction personified, as Nic explains: \u201cWhether it\u2019s drugs, booze, your&hellip;&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/mkultramagazine.com\/?p=18432\" rel=\"bookmark\">Read More &raquo;<span class=\"screen-reader-text\">Midniter\u2019s \u2018Sugar Man\u2019 is Addiction and Consumerism Personified<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":18433,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_coblocks_attr":"","_coblocks_dimensions":"","_coblocks_responsive_height":"","_coblocks_accordion_ie_support":"","neve_meta_sidebar":"","neve_meta_container":"","neve_meta_enable_content_width":"","neve_meta_content_width":0,"neve_meta_title_alignment":"","neve_meta_author_avatar":"","neve_post_elements_order":"","neve_meta_disable_header":"","neve_meta_disable_footer":"","neve_meta_disable_title":"","ngg_post_thumbnail":0,"_themeisle_gutenberg_block_has_review":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-18432","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/mkultramagazine.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18432","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/mkultramagazine.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/mkultramagazine.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mkultramagazine.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mkultramagazine.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=18432"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/mkultramagazine.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18432\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":18435,"href":"https:\/\/mkultramagazine.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18432\/revisions\/18435"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mkultramagazine.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/18433"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/mkultramagazine.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=18432"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mkultramagazine.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=18432"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mkultramagazine.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=18432"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}