Psy trance duo from Hamburg, Germany, Ololiuqui consisted of experienced players Volker Koenig and Oliver Elschenbrioch, who began with a diverse background in rock, reggae & blues and jumped off into electronic music experimentation. Playing keyboards in bands llike HH Style, Neuwerk, Factor and Tranceformation since 1984, they formed Ololiuqui in 1996 and immediately began recording for Hamburg's famed Goa label, Spirit Zone. They have been featured on three Spirit Zone compilations, Global Psychedelic Trance Comp. Vol. III and both volumes one and two of the Tathata compilations. Their name derives from the Mexican LSD-like drug Ololiuqui, which is derived from the seeds of a variety of morning glories, which seems appropriate, given their psychedlic style. Their first self-titled album for Spirit Zone, released in 1997, featured a fairly traditional psy trance sound but when Eschenbrioch effectively retired from the band Koenig took Ololiuqui in broader directions, producing the 1999 full-length, Valves, which, along with a solid trance core featured funk, disco and house elements and beautiful, operatic vocals. ~ Stacia Proefrock