Eduardo "Doddo" Andersen wants to light a spark with his music. The vocalist of the former Bergen band Unge Frustrerte Menn was tired of injustice and indifference. In March, he won the Spellemannpris for the protesting lyrics on his solo debut La oss ta en idealist.
/ 26/04/2019 / Kristian DugstadEduardo "Doddo" Andersen wants to light a spark with his music. The vocalist of the former Bergen band Unge Frustrerte Menn was tired of injustice and indifference. In March, he won he Spellemannpris for the protesting lyrics on his solo debut Let's take an idealist.
Photo above: Lars Svenkerud
Name: Eduardo Hans "Doddo" Andersen
Age: 55
Current with: "Let's take an idealist"
TONO member since: 1991
Who is Dodo?
Doddo is Eduardo Andersen, a Bergen native with a mother from Brazil and a father from Oslo. He is passionate about knowledge and culture – and passion.
Tell us about your musical background?
Punk taught me to play guitar, bossa nova set my musical heart on fire, while Bergen pop inspired me to start a band.
I come from a musical family. My father was a pianist, my mother was a singer. My oldest brother Tino Andersen is a classical guitarist, while my youngest brother, Geir Luedy, has worked with music his whole life.
You have an extensive career with the band “Unge Frustrette Menn” behind you. Who are the young men, and why are they frustrated?
De var young people, and they var frustrated. Now they are a little older and quite happy. Four out of five are still working with music.
Last year you debuted as a solo artist. How was that?
Since Unge Frustrated Men I have written books, I have played in cabarets and I have been a football blogger, but when I started making songs again I felt that this is what I was made for. It was like coming home. And it was really nice because the reception was so good.
What is the difference between Young Frustrated Doddo and Solo Doddo?
Unge Frustrerte Menn was more rock-oriented in its expression and the lyrics were about longing for great love. Solo-Doddo is politically and socially engaged, the music is simpler and more subdued, and it puts the lyrics in focus.
How does your music come about?
It arises intuitively. Very often it hides, but then suddenly it's just there. Then it's a matter of capturing it, and I do that with guitar and voice.
You recently won the Spellemann Award in the category of Lyricist of the Year. What does that mean to you?
The award strengthens my fragile self-confidence, and it inspires me to write more texts. It means a lot to receive that recognition.
Tell us about the award-winning publication "Let's Take an Idealist"?
It began in 2015 during the refugee crisis, when dark opinions both in government and among people took hold. The intolerant and inhumane made me angry and I wrote passionate posts in newspapers and social media. One day I realized that I had to channel my energy in a more constructive and creative way, and thus my commitment to singing became important. Specifically, my meeting with producer and musician Daniel Birkeland was also important. We met by chance and found the tone. Having such a good collaborator is absolutely crucial. The album would never have been possible without him.
How do you write lyrics? What inspires you?
I wait for the good idea. And when it comes, I work creatively with rhyme, direction and rhythm. What triggers me is injustice and indifference, and what inspires me are good lyricists, such as Lars Vaular, Anja Elena Viken, John Olav Nilsen, Jan Eggum, Piddi Fjeldstad, Chico Buarque and Bob Dylan.
This winter you released a new single, "Himmelen griner." Tell us about it?
I visited a friend in Australia who has dedicated his entire life to the environmental struggle. He inspired me to write the song. This is my small contribution in the fight against the climate crisis. I am surprised that more artists and cultural workers are not protesting loudly, and I am shocked that responsible politicians are trivializing the problem.
You have clear political messages. Is it correct to say that you want to call for change through your music? Is there too little of this in Norwegian music?
Yes, I want to light a spark, just like my Australian friend lit a spark in me. And yes, there are too few protest songs in both Norwegian and international music. There must be limits to how long we can sing about some feeling we carry.
What are you working on now? What does 2019 bring for you?
I'm now slowly working on a new album. It will be ready in the not too distant future, so time will tell whether it will be released in the fall of 2019 or spring of 2020.
What is your career highlight so far?
When "Jeg vil bare ha en mann" was one of the most played songs of the summer in 1997, I smiled from ear to ear, and when I received the Spellemannprisen this spring, I cried with joy. Those two events are undoubtedly two highlights. But it was also fun to play bossa nova for the king, and there was an almost electric atmosphere when I had acoustic concerts in small cafes in Bergen this fall.
What do you do when you're not making music?
When I'm not making music, I do a little work for Bergens Tidende, I work with unaccompanied minor refugees, and sometimes I'm hired as a speaker and conference host. I listen and I read. And then I spend a lot of time with the woman I love and the two children we have together.
What is your greatest musical experience, ever?
It was great to see Queen in Rio de Janeiro and Paul McCartney in Liverpool. I have also been lucky enough to have been to a concert with the bossa nova artist Joao Gilberto. But to be completely honest, it is often the small and intimate concerts that have given me the most goosebumps, like when I saw Solveig Slettahjel in a boathouse, or when I saw Aurora in a small café, or when I experienced Susanne Sundfør in a basement, or like seeing The Real Ones in a small pub, or like when I was at Heine Totland's living room and saw him and Gisle Børge Styve in free flow.
Is there anything we should have asked you about?
Do you believe in the good in people?
And what is the answer to that question?
Ja