Les Inrockuptibles have tagged her as the Pythia of electronica, while her sound has been labeled as “dark pop electronica following the footsteps of Chloe or Jennifer Cardini”. Her deep voice got its first release in 2003, although her story in music starts further back, as a producer and a dj. Despite being Greek, Olga is already popular – and perhaps even more so than Greece – on the French music scene. She talked to OZON Raw about her latest release “I U Need”.
Olga, how long have you been involved in music?
Since I was six years old and I started playing the piano.
Where do you draw your inspiration from?
From a whole host of different things. From classical music, all the way to electronic dance music. I’ve also drawn from New Wave and Cold Wave, as well as Dark Pop and electronica.
On the Greek scene, you were essentially classed as an “import” from France, even though you are Greek. What were you doing in Paris?
I was working for F Communication, Laurent Garnier’s record label, as a keyboard player for Reminiscent Drive, but also as a dj as well. At the same time, I was producing my own work and collaborating with artists like Poni Hoax (Budapest). Along the way, I met producer Marc Collin (Nouvelle Vague, Volgan Select), who pushed me into creating my own album. We worked on “Get a Life” and now on “I U Need”.
You are quite popular in Paris, so why did you decide to come back to Greece?
I love Athens, it’s the city I grew up in, even though Paris gave me so much. That’s why I try and spend time in both cities.
These are tough times for the Greek music scene, with plenty of obstacles for any artistic undertaking. How do you manage to forge ahead and constantly produce new projects? It’s always been hard for music. Everywhere, not just in Greece. But my passion for it is so intense, that it doesn’t allow me to stop or back down.
You changed your style quite significantly over the years. How would you describe it?
Right now, I’d say it was “Indie pop with electronic elements”
Talk to us about your latest record “I U Need”.
For “I U Need” I worked more on the basis of the songs (instrumentation, lyrics, melodies) and less on the “outer shell”. I also worked with a number of other artists (Fred Avril, Melanie Pain, Tim Keegan, Liset Alea), something that I have rarely done before and the results were magical. The album is out in France through Different/Idol/Because and in Greece through EMI. We’re currently working on some remixes that will come out on vinyl towards the end of October.
What would you ideally want to do as your next project, what would you want to achieve?
To have the chance to continue what I’m doing: creating music!
Nelly Skoufatoglou
