A founding member of the French alternative rock band Kat Onoma, saxophonist, guitarist and composer Philippe Poirier brought his own jazz touch, influenced by avant-garde improvisation. Born in Boulogne-sur-Mer in 1951, he met Rodolphe Burger in Strasbourg and formed the group Dernière Bande with the singer, which became Kat Onoma in 1986. The group went on to record five albums in a literary and poetic style, before splitting up in 2004. The musician, who had already penned the album Les Échardes with Yves Dormoy in 1993, then took a side road into experimentation, producing Qui Donne les Coups (1998), Qu'est-Ce Qui M'A Pris (2004) and Les Triangles Allongés (2011). He also created the Lamiral project after his nickname, and collaborated with Arnaud Rebotini on À Bords Perdus (1999) and Stefan Schneider on Automne Six (2003). In 2015, he reunited with Rodolphe Burger for new interpretations of their songs in Play Kat Onoma. Philippe Poirier died on April 28, 2025 at the age of 73.
