Rob Dougan

Rob Dougan
Born 1969 (age 45–46)
Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
Genres Trip hop, electronica, neoclassical
Years active 1991-present
Labels Sony, BMG, Reprise, Warner Bros.
Website http://www.robdougan.org

Rob Dougan (/rɒb ˈduːɡən/; born 1969) is an Australian composer, known for his genre-blending music.[1] Mixing elements of orchestral music, trip hop, and bluesy vocals, his work is tangentially relatable to electronic music. He was known primarily for his breakthrough 1995 single "Clubbed to Death (Kurayamino Variation)", further popularised by 1999's The Matrix soundtrack. "Clubbed to Death" was re-released on his debut album Furious Angels in 2002, seven years after its initial release.

Early life and education

Dougan was born in Sydney, Australia in 1969,[2] he attended Saint Ignatius' College, Riverview, and then the National Institute of Dramatic Art, where he studied acting. In 1990, he traveled to London, and began to work in music with his friend Rollo, both of whom had worked together and released material in Australia.

Career

From 1991 to 1995, Dougan was a producer and remix artist. In 1994, his remixes started charting in the UK. He also released his first single, "Hard Times".

In 1995, his hit single "Clubbed to Death" gave him a recognised name in the UK dance club scene. He produced half a dozen remixes of it, including the "Kurayamino Variation". His label Mo' Wax Records was pleased and commissioned the follow-up, "Clubbed to Death 2" (later the bonus track on the album). CTD2 was never released as a single, but appeared on the James Lavelle disc of the 1996 DJ mix compilation album, Cream Live 2.

"Furious Angels" was not released on Mo' Wax but Dougan eventually released it as a single in 1998 on Rollo's label Cheeky Records. Dougan worked for the following six years, doing remixes and licensing his tracks, in order to self-produce the album which was backed by a full orchestra and a full choir. "Furious Angels" also featured as the musical score accompanying the intro sequence for the 2002 racing simulation game Grand Prix 3.

In 1999, his exposure increased dramatically when his "Clubbed to Death (Kurayamino Variation)" was featured on the soundtrack of The Matrix. He has also provided remixes of songs by U2, Moby and Kylie Minogue, and contributed two more tracks to the soundtrack of 2003's Matrix sequel The Matrix Reloaded, "Château" and "Kung Fu" (a shortened version of "Furious Angels" made for The Matrix Reloaded). The Matrix Reloaded DVD also includes the "I'm Not Driving Anymore" instrumental song on the background movie.

In 2002 in the UK, and 2003 in the rest of the world, Dougan released his debut album Furious Angels to critical acclaim[3] and some surprise from the new tone of his work, as well as from his own Leonard Cohen-esque gravel-voiced vocals. Later in 2003, a two-disc re-release of Furious Angels featured all-instrumental versions on the second disc.

In 2006, Dougan was reportedly writing "a couple of songs" for Sugababes (for whom he produced the single "Too Lost in You"), and working on two albums of his own — one original, one classical.[4]

As of April 2008, Dougan is mentioned in a wine blog as an owner of a wine vineyard La Peira en Damaisela, leaving questions about the supposed two albums he had been working on.[5]

A short film made for jewellery designer Solange Azagury-Partridge, "The Letter", directed by Laurence Dunmore and starring Thandie Newton and Jason Isaacs features new music by Rob Dougan; the short film, however, does not mention the title of the song.[6]
Rob Dougan "Will You Follow Me" (2002)
23 second clip of Will You Follow Me. This song was used on (jewellery and car) commercials in the USA. Dougan's Modern Classical style.
Problems playing this file? See media help.
Rob Dougan "Clubbed To Death (Kurayamino Mix)" (1996)
A 35 second clip. This track was used in The Matrix and for the trailer of Ultraviolet. This clip shows Rob Dougan's trip hop style.
Problems playing this file? See media help.

Discography

Albums

Studio albums

List of albums, with selected details
Title Album details
Furious Angels

Singles

List of singles, with selected chart positions, showing year released and album name
Title Year Peak chart positions Album
IRE
[7]		 UK
[8]
"Hard Times" 1995 — — Non-album single
"Clubbed to Death"[B] 27 24 The Matrix: Music from the
Motion Picture and Furious Angels
"Furious Angels" 1998 45 42 Furious Angels
"—" denotes a title that did not chart, or was not released in that territory.

Notes

  • A ^ Furious Angels was not released in the United States until May 2003, where it was released on the record labels Warner Bros. Records and Reprise Records.[9][10]
  • B ^ "Clubbed to Death" only charted in the UK and Ireland after being re-released in 2002.[9][11]

See also

References

  1. ↑ Will Hodgkinson (29 August 2003). "Sick of dance music". The Guardian (Guardian Media Group). Retrieved 23 February 2010.
  2. ↑ "Rob Dougan Biography".
  3. ↑ "Metacritic.com". Metacritic.com. 3 June 2003. Retrieved 2011-12-05.
  4. ↑ "Robdougan.org". Robdougan.org. 13 July 2006. Retrieved 2011-12-05.
  5. ↑ "Robdougan1.hyperboards.com". Robdougan1.hyperboards.com. Retrieved 2011-12-05.
  6. ↑ solangeazaguryp (7 December 2009). "The Letter, by Solange Azagury-Partridge". YouTube. Retrieved 2011-12-05.
  7. ↑ "Discography Rob Dougan". irish-charts.com. Hung Medien. Retrieved 25 November 2011.
  8. ↑ "Rob Dougan" (SELECT "SINGLES" TAB). The Official Charts Company. Retrieved 25 November 2011.
  9. ↑ 9.0 9.1 "Rob Dougan > Overview". Allmusic. Rovi Corporation. Retrieved 25 November 2011.
  10. ↑ Furious Angels (Liner notes). Rob Dougan. Warner Bros. Records. 2003. 196363.
  11. ↑ "Clubbed to Death". Allmusic. Rovi Corporation. Retrieved 25 November 2011.

External links