Kat Onoma

Originally from Strasbourg, the members of Kat Onoma met in the early 80s with the exception of the leader, Rodolphe Burger (vocals, guitar) and drummer Pascal Benoit, childhood friends. With a musical culture ranging from rock to jazz through more experimental influences, Rodolphe Burger, Pascal Benoit, Guy “Bix” Bickel (trumpet) and Philippe “Lamiral” Poirier (saxophone and guitar) formed the core of a first formation, the Dernière Bande from 1981.

Guy Bickel and Philippe Poirier had already shared the experience of the group Musik Aufhebung, more focused on improvisation. Until 1986, the group gave many concerts and forged a very unique rock sound. At the same time, the musicians continued to work together in another, more jazz-oriented group, Œuvre Complète, led by Philippe Poirier and a musician from outside the group, Yves Dormoy.

In 1986, Dernière Bande became Kat Onoma and took its current form with the arrival of bassist Pierre Keyline. Kat Onoma, which means “As its name indicates” in Greek, then entered the studio for the first time in Brussels to record a four-track album, “Beggar's law”. After being rejected by the main record companies in Paris, only the Attitude label, which has since disappeared, agreed to sign and distribute the group. The sales figures were paltry, but this first attempt did not go unnoticed. Critics were not insensitive and a certain public noticed this dark rock imbued with new wave and jazz, which was quickly compared to the Velvet Underground.