Ogris Debris, the Viennese electronic duo, is conquering the dance floors of international clubs with their somewhat unconventional, but very distinctive and fresh mix of techno and house music. Even though they have not produced an album yet, the two have already been on tour in Japan, have had their hit “Mitzekatze” played by BBC DJ Gilles Peterson and the popular Austrian radio station FM4 on heavy rotation and have the electronic music pioneer Peter Kruder as one of their first fans. They were nominated for the Austrian music award, the Amadeus Award, in the category Electronic/Dance, and according to these modest musicians, the trophy should have already been standing in their villa for a long time, next to their various other prizes, but there was just not enough space.
Gregor Ladenhauf and Daniel Kohlmeigner should not be taken too seriously, since the two are very effectively propagating their image of being two electronic rascals. The two exceptional musicians met seven years ago and first performed as a band in 2005. Since then, they mostly wear velvet gloves and bowler hats on stage. At the concerts and in the studio, Kohlmeigner operates the knobs and buttons of the mixers as if there were no tomorrow and Landhauf is the singer. The band has always been a little nerdy in the techno scene and they therefore tackle their music with an own sense of humor.
The duo first released their 12inch “G-Thong/Hide Open” with the German Compost Records in December 2008, followed a year later by the 12inch “Raid the Itch”. Both songs are the first club hits of Ogris Debris. Jamal Hachem, the label boss of Affine Records, where the band is now signed, saw the potential of the band right after its first release on Compost Records. Right from the start, he very much appreciated the musical approach of the band and since Affine Records is known as a very open musical channel, and Ogris Debris was interested in a fixed homebase, the commitment of the two parties was pretty obvious, as Jamal stated in a mica interview.
The collaboration with the record label, which also signed Dorian Concept or JSBL, was very productive: The EP “aery” has a principle of its own. The sounds of the effect machine Roland Space Echo were sampled and created into a very special and unique sound, that aery sound, which can be clearly heard on all four pieces of the EP. Even international fans have discovered the Viennese duo with its latest stroke of genius. None other than the Detroit techno legend Anthony Shakir said that the music of today should sound exactly like Ogris Debris.
The duo, that has dedicated itself to the straight snare drum, celebrates all kinds of music. The influences of the two are cross-genre, know no boundaries and range from funk to rock, jazz, hip hop and electronic music. Gregor Ladenhauf and Daniel Kohlmeigner are fans of bands as diverse as Autechre, Aphex Twin, Nine Inch Nails, Jimi Hendrix, Miles Davis, Michael Jackson or Prince.
At a FM4 live session at the Viennese Radiokulturhaus, Ogris Debris performed with the band JSBL, which also signed with Affine Records. The collaboration is to be fostered even more in the future, as a kind of big band of Jamal Hachem’s electronic label.
Ogris Debris likes to quote the electronic music pioneer Karlheinz Stockhausen, who claimed that a true electronic musician has to shake a leg under the disco ball at least once a week. And this is exactly what these two oblique and brilliant sound fidgeters do.
Photocredit: Andreas Waldschütz
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