Their real names may be Grzegorz and Wojciech, but there have been plenty of others along the way: early DJ sets as Deeop and Ketiov, champions of the underground as 3 Channels, or simply ‘Greg and Voitek’ to nearest and dearest. No doubt, you’ll know them best as CATZ ‘N DOGZ. The last few years have seen the duo’s refreshing take on dance floor music propel them into the limelight and seen them feature in Resident Advisor’s hallowed Top 100 DJ Poll. The truth is clear: Catz ‘n Dogz are well ‘n truly at the top of their game.
It all began in 2003, when best friends Greg and Voitek hosted their first club night as 3 Channels in their hometown Szczecin, Poland. From here they developed and grew organically, amassing a loyal legion of fans. They broadened their creative pursuits further with music production being their next natural outlet. Their techno-centric tracks swiftly caught the attention and featured on the rosters of some of the most respected underground dance labels in the world: Trapez, Crosstown Rebels, Pokerflat as well as the boys’ own budding imprint Channels Rec. It wasn’t long before Claude VonStroke heard 3 Channels’ red-hot club records and snapped the boys up for his dirtybird imprint where there they remixed Claude’s infamous anthem “Who’s Afraid Of Detroit?” for a highly limited (and highly sought-after) one sided vinyl release, followed by an original ep and dancefloor-destroyer Chicken Affair.
By 2008, they had completely evolved, reemerging with a looser, freewheeling house sound, a hybrid masterpiece of a debut album, Stars of Zoo, and a new name: Catz ‘n Dogz. The pair successfully integrated deep house signatures without losing sight of their techno roots, whilst exploring lush, organic soundscapes. To a rapturous response they unveiled a follow up album, Escape from Zoo, that intertwined vines of street bass, disco, R&B, deep house, hip-hop and collaborations with heavy hitters dOP, Claude VonStroke and Jazzanova’s Paul Randolph. This launched them headlong into a heavy period of touring, live shows and festivals around the globe.
The natural progression was to launch a new label. Pets Recordings kicked off the Petcast podcast series and took their label showcases on the road. Their A&R home runs, debuting Eats Everything’s smash “Entrance Song” and more recently, Rachel Row’s “Follow The Step” (KiNK and Justin Martin remixes) firmly puts Pets Recordings on the map.
Ten years on, the boys now hold residencies at Watergate Club, Berlin, dirtybird at Sankeys, Ibiza as well as hosting multiple Pets Recordings showcases across Poland and at Watergate. It goes without saying the guys are building an ever-growing portfolio of live music achievements as they continue to throw their “Pets Parties” all over the world, formerly showcasing the label’s talent in Berlin, Ibiza, Paris, Munich and London as well as at the Winter Music Conference, SONAR and BPM Festival.
The past year has seen Catz ‘n Dogz mix the legendary ‘Body Language’ compilation series, release ‘They Frontin’ featuring Monty Luke EP, which was nominated as WMC’s best deep house track of 2012 and release a second installment of their Pets Recordings compilation ‘Friends Will Carry You Home Too’. They have even managed to squeeze in a debut ‘Essential Mix’ for BBC Radio 1.
2013 has already seen a collaboration EP with KiNK on the ‘Love EP’ for dirtybird, as well as the free release of the ‘Untitled’ album under their Different Marks alias. This collaborative project with Martin Dawson was released earlier this year in memory of the UK producer and features artists such as Paul Randolph, Ben Westbeech, Cari Golden & James Yuill.
Catz ‘N Dogz are now preparing for the release of another much-anticipated collaborative project with Eats Everything as well as the launch of a new vinyl only label. Whether you’re charmed by their bass-heavy, colourful, groove-laden DJ sets, drawn in by their arresting live show, weaving your way through their illustrious output as producers, or delving into the magical tunes curated from their close network of friends, Grzegorz and Wojciech (or Greg ‘n Voitek) are simply two of the hottest house Catz (‘n Dogz) around.