How Thomas Olsen Became Tommy Trash

The City of Angels – Los Angeles – is a far cry from Bundaberg in rural Queensland where Tommy Trash, or Thomas Olsen as he was known back then, was raised. Given his obvious talent for composition and layering, it comes as little surprise to learn that Olsen's initial musical introduction came in the form of a classical piano “around the age of four or five”. After school he spent time between bands and teaching piano in Brisbane and later Sydney.

“The band I was in wasn't really getting enough work so I had to go get an office job at the Bureau of Statistics – it was an interesting time,” he reminisces.

Inspired by the electro beats of dance heavy weights such as Felix da Housecat, Olsen developed a curiosity for electro-house, and flirted with amateur production himself.

“I basically got into it by just going to nightclubs, I just really wanted to be a part of it,” he reflects.

Prior to going solo, Olsen had been part of a two man trance outfit, Trashthetic, which later provided the inspiration behind the individual pseudonym.

“I started sending [my own] stuff into Ministry of Sound and they were like what's your name? And I was like, 'Oh fuck, oh okay – Tommy Trash!' It was a name made out of desperation” he explains.

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