Ollie Jngbert Christian Olsen (born Ian Christopher Olsen, 20 February 1958 – 16 October 2024) was an Australian multi-instrumentalist, composer, sound designer and pioneer of electronic music in the Southern Hemisphere. From the mid-1970s until his later years, he performed, recorded and produced electronic, rock and experimental music. His post-punk groups included Whirlywirld (1978–80), Orchestra of Skin and Bone (1984–86) and No (1987–89). Olsen joined with Michael Hutchence (of INXS) to form a short-term band, Max Q, which issued an album in 1989. He co-founded the alternative electronic music record label Psy-Harmonics with Bruce Butler in 1993, and later continued with Andrew Till. In 2014 he formed Taipan Tiger Girls.

Biography

Ollie Jngbert Christian Olsen (born Ian Christopher Olsen) was born in 1958 in Melbourne.

Olsen developed an interest in electronic music as a teenager in the mid-1970s, studying with Felix Werder.

The Young Charlatans broke up in May 1978 and Olsen, on lead vocals, synthesiser, clarinet and saxophone, formed Whirlywirld, with Andrew Duffield on synthesiser, John Murphy on drums (ex-the News), Dean Richards on guitar and Simon Smith on synthesiser. with Alan Bamford, Tom Hoy and Laughton Ellery, before this group split up in 1983.

In 1984 Olsen on vocals and guitar, Marie Hoy on keyboards and vocals and Murphy as drummer formed "an avant-garde outfit", Orchestra of Skin and Bone. After recording Olsen and Hutchence travelled to New York City to mix the tracks with DJ Todd Terry.

1990s onwards

Olsen returned to Australia and turned his attentions to trance music, co-founding an Australian electronic music label, Psy-Harmonics, with Gus Till's brother, Andrew Till, and recording under the name Third Eye. From the 1990s onwards, he worked increasingly in sound design and scores for film and scores for television.

Olsen lectured on and taught electronic music at various universities and symposia, and he also performed with a wide variety of international artists.

As of 2006, Olsen was working on a number of recording projects—mostly electro-acoustic pieces—with artists from Australia, Japan and South Africa, for performance and release in 2006. Olsen's musical output that year consisted of the release of an album, I Am The Server (13 February 2006), through the Greek record label Creative Space, and the release of an electro-acoustic album entitled Simulated. I Am The Server was composed, recorded and engineered by Olsen, with additional music from Bill McDonald and Peter Luscombe; the album was mastered by Simon Pool at LGM studios, and the album artwork was produced by Maro Kassoti. Simulated was composed, performed and engineered by Olsen, between 1999 and 2006, mastered by Simon Pool at LGM studios, in January 2006, and the album artwork was, again, produced by Maro Kassoti.

In January 2019, Olsen announced his retirement from music via Facebook.

In May 2020, Olsen announced publicly online on making a return to music and the release of the Whirlywirld Complete Discography 1978-80 LP on HoZac Records due out in June 2020.

In 2020, Olsen was diagnosed with multiple system atrophy (MSA). Olsen's MSA was announced in June 2023 and the new rendition featuring Mick Harvey, Andrew Duffield and Mat Watson (Taipan Tiger Girls) was due for release in July with proceeds in support of his ongoing medical expenses. In June 2023, it was reported by Greg Phillips of Australian Musician, that Olsen's condition "continues to deteriorate as there is currently no known cure."

Olsen married his long-term partner and carer, Jayne Olsen, on 9 October 2024.

Olsen died on 16 October 2024, at the age of 66.

List of past bands

Credits:

  • The Reals (1977): guitar
  • The Young Charlatans (1977–78)
  • Whirlywirld (1978–80): lead vocals, synthesiser, saxophone
  • The Beast Apparel / Hugo Klang (1981–83)
  • Lion Feed
  • Orchestra of Skin and Bone (1984–86): vocals, guitar
  • NO (1987–89): keyboards, vocals, sampler
  • Max Q (1989–90)
  • Third Eye
  • The Visitors
  • Shaolin Wooden Men
  • Psyko Disko
  • Antediluvian Rocking Horse
  • I Am The Server
  • Primitive Ghost
  • Taipan Tiger Girls
  • Spectral Electron Chromas
  • Kitty Chrome
  • Vanish from this state of Whatever

Collaborations and projects

  • Nominated for Best Original Music Score for the movie Head On at the Australian Film Institute Awards (AFI Awards, 1998)
  • "Regenerative Generative Generative" psychedelic (re)constructions (real-time interactive sound and image) and translations of sound into visual responses. The culmination of a series of interactive and generative compositions explored over the past two decades by Andrew Garton, Ollie Olsen and John Power. Australian Centre for Contemporary Art, Melbourne, 2000 This is Not Art Festival, Newcastle, NSW, 2000
  • "From Drift to Derive" Multi-screen video, 5.1 generative sound by Andrew Garton and Ollie Olsen Australian Centre for the Moving Image, Melbourne, 2003 Small Black Box, Institute for Modern Art, Brisbane, Australia, 2003
  • Composed score for "Birthday" 2009
  • Released debut album with Taipan Tiger Girls – 2015

Psy-Harmonics record label

In 1993, Olsen formed Psy-Harmonics, an independent record label, with Andrew Till, which specialised in electronic music.

  • Ollie Olsen Official
  • Rowland S. Howard & Ollie Olsen: Interview on Music Around Us (1977)
  • Ollie Olsen Australian Music Vault Interview (2022)