Norwegian musician Moddi’s new album, Unsongs, is made up of renditions of songs from around the world that had been banned, censored or silenced. Unsongs includes cover versions of songs from countries including China, Russia, Mexico and Vietnam, on topics such as drugs, war and religion.
Index on Censorship caught up with Moddi on Twitter to find out more.
To kick off our Twitter Q&A with @moddimusikk: Where did the idea for your new album, Unsongs, come from? #WithTheBanned pic.twitter.com/REWUt4tvxd
— Index on Censorship (@IndexCensorship) September 29, 2016
@IndexCensorship It all began with a song about the Israeli officer Eli Geva, who refused to lead his forces into Beirut in 1982.
— Pål Moddi Knutsen (@moddimusikk) September 29, 2016
@IndexCensorship The Norwegian singer Birgitte Grimstad heard the story of the officer, and had a song written about him.
— Pål Moddi Knutsen (@moddimusikk) September 29, 2016
@IndexCensorship She didn’t perform it though – it was considered “too controversial” at the time. And so it wasn’t sung for 32 years.
— Pål Moddi Knutsen (@moddimusikk) September 29, 2016
@IndexCensorship I heard the song 32 yrs after, then the snowball started rolling. There’s so much out there never played! #WithTheBanned
— Pål Moddi Knutsen (@moddimusikk) September 29, 2016
With so many banned or censored songs to choose from, how did you narrow it down to just 12? @moddimusikk #WithTheBanned
— Index on Censorship (@IndexCensorship) September 29, 2016
@IndexCensorship First of all: 12 songs does not represent the huge amount of censored art out there. They’re just examples. #WithTheBanned
— Pål Moddi Knutsen (@moddimusikk) September 29, 2016
@IndexCensorship I wanted to choose 12 songs that represented 12 different forms of censorship. 12 different perspectives. #WithTheBanned
— Pål Moddi Knutsen (@moddimusikk) September 29, 2016
@IndexCensorship Murder, imprisonment, radio bans, social pressure, self-censorship. Different, but equally important. #WithTheBanned
— Pål Moddi Knutsen (@moddimusikk) September 29, 2016
@IndexCensorship I believe it is a great mistake to consider the brutal forms of suppression more worthy of our attention. #WithTheBanned
— Pål Moddi Knutsen (@moddimusikk) September 29, 2016
@IndexCensorship So basically, I chose 12 songs to show the diversity of the phenomenon. I could have made 12 albums though. #WithTheBanned
— Pål Moddi Knutsen (@moddimusikk) September 29, 2016
@IndexCensorship @moddimusikk It must have been hard to pick only 12 songs, what was your favourite song that didn’t make the final cut?
— Sara French (@FrenchiedMuse) September 29, 2016
@FrenchiedMuse @IndexCensorship Oh, that’s probably something Kurdish, e.g. this masterpiece: https://t.co/MELFeWcIHa. #WithTheBanned
— Pål Moddi Knutsen (@moddimusikk) September 29, 2016
@FrenchiedMuse Have no idea what the lyrics say though. It’s always a little like Christmas eve. @IndexCensorship #WithTheBanned
— Pål Moddi Knutsen (@moddimusikk) September 29, 2016
@FrenchiedMuse Another candidate is from the Iranian revolution https://t.co/WejoFpEzK8 but was too difficult to translate @IndexCensorship
— Pål Moddi Knutsen (@moddimusikk) September 29, 2016
@moddimusikk have you ever heard a song so offensive you’ve thought ‘actually yeah, ok that should definitely be banned’ #withthebanned
— James Green (@JamesGreen6) September 29, 2016
@JamesGreen6 I considered some neo-nazi music for the album, but seriously, those words hurt physically to sing. #WithTheBanned
— Pål Moddi Knutsen (@moddimusikk) September 29, 2016
@JamesGreen6 Nonetheless not sure if long prison sentences is the right response. But that of course is a long debate.
— Pål Moddi Knutsen (@moddimusikk) September 29, 2016
How did Index on Censorship magazine help you find inspiration for the album? @moddimusikk #WithTheBanned
— Index on Censorship (@IndexCensorship) September 29, 2016
@IndexCensorship Index helped me grasp the diversity of the issue. At first I only looked to Jara, Biermann…the classics. #WithTheBanned
— Pål Moddi Knutsen (@moddimusikk) September 29, 2016
@IndexCensorship Index helped me grasp the diversity of the issue. At first I only looked to Jara, Biermann…the classics. #WithTheBanned
— Pål Moddi Knutsen (@moddimusikk) September 29, 2016
@IndexCensorship Must most important: Orgs such as Index helped me understand that this is really an important topic. #WithTheBanned
— Pål Moddi Knutsen (@moddimusikk) September 29, 2016
@IndexCensorship At first it was a hobby project. In the end it felt like a small part of a big movement. That helped. #WithTheBanned
— Pål Moddi Knutsen (@moddimusikk) September 29, 2016
You tried to film the video for your version of @pussyrrriot‘s Punk Prayer in Russia but failed. What happened? @moddimusikk #WithTheBanned
— Index on Censorship (@IndexCensorship) September 29, 2016
@IndexCensorship Yes, I seriously considered going to Russia to sing in solidarity with @pussyrrriot. #WithTheBanned
— Pål Moddi Knutsen (@moddimusikk) September 29, 2016
@IndexCensorship I settled for the second best: singing it on the Russian border. There’s a beautiful old stone church there. #WithTheBanned
— Pål Moddi Knutsen (@moddimusikk) September 29, 2016
@IndexCensorship Unfortunately the parish did not approve and so the video had to be filmed on the church steps. #WithTheBanned
— Pål Moddi Knutsen (@moddimusikk) September 29, 2016
@IndexCensorship It was minus five and stormy, ubearably cold, but felt good afterwards. @pussyrrriot‘s song it a true gem! #WithTheBanned
— Pål Moddi Knutsen (@moddimusikk) September 29, 2016
@IndexCensorship Must say I’m disappointed with the Norwegian church though. I genuinely thought this song would be welcome. #WithTheBanned
— Pål Moddi Knutsen (@moddimusikk) September 29, 2016
@IndexCensorship PS: The video turned out really well. https://t.co/YRdnimuycB @pussyrrriot
— Pål Moddi Knutsen (@moddimusikk) September 29, 2016
What was the hardest journey to make when visiting one of the original songwriters? #WithTheBanned
— ΛSHΣR ΛLΣXΛNDΣR (@AsherAlexander) September 29, 2016
@AsherAlexander Vietnam. Very confusing. Officially he was allowed to have visitors but in reality we were unwelcome. #WithTheBanned
— Pål Moddi Knutsen (@moddimusikk) September 29, 2016
@AsherAlexander Also the language and culture barriers were significant. But the meeting was still incredibly inspiring. #WithTheBanned
— Pål Moddi Knutsen (@moddimusikk) September 29, 2016
@AsherAlexander And in general: For a white, Norwegian boy, meeting with the genuinely banned has really been an eye-opener. #WithTheBanned
— Pål Moddi Knutsen (@moddimusikk) September 29, 2016
#WithTheBanned Besides being a censored song, why did you choose a narcocorrido as part of the album? What caught your attention?
— Verito (@Veritokun) September 29, 2016
@Veritokun @IndexCensorship The double meaning! To me, who know that it is a narcocorrido, the underlying metaphor is obvious.#WithTheBanned
— Pål Moddi Knutsen (@moddimusikk) September 29, 2016
@Veritokun @IndexCensorship But to children and to many others, it may sound almost like a normal farm song. #WithTheBanned
— Pål Moddi Knutsen (@moddimusikk) September 29, 2016
@Veritokun @IndexCensorship The narcocororrido genre is terrible, but the way it avoided getting banned is – in this context – inspiring.
— Pål Moddi Knutsen (@moddimusikk) September 29, 2016
@moddimusikk if you had to write a protest song, like Punk Prayer, what regime would you be challenging/ trying to change #WithTheBanned
— Ethan Beer (@EthanDuffmanB) September 29, 2016
@EthanDuffmanB My own, Norway! Protest is always best from inside. #WithTheBanned @IndexCensorship
— Pål Moddi Knutsen (@moddimusikk) September 29, 2016
@EthanDuffmanB I’m not trying to change other countries, but presenting songs where others have tried. #WithTheBanned
— Pål Moddi Knutsen (@moddimusikk) September 29, 2016
@EthanDuffmanB Hopefully it can inspire other musicians across the globe to do the same. I know it has changed me, at least. #WithTheBanned
— Pål Moddi Knutsen (@moddimusikk) September 29, 2016
How did your experience cancelling a concert in Tel Aviv change your approach to music? @moddimusikk #WithTheBanned
— Index on Censorship (@IndexCensorship) September 29, 2016
@IndexCensorship It made me realise that everything – even singing a love song – is political. #WithTheBanned
— Pål Moddi Knutsen (@moddimusikk) September 29, 2016
@IndexCensorship In a conflict, remaining silent gives strength to the dominant side. #WithTheBanned
— Pål Moddi Knutsen (@moddimusikk) September 29, 2016
@IndexCensorship And in this context, singing love songs and songs about the sea was equal to remaining silent. #WithTheBanned
— Pål Moddi Knutsen (@moddimusikk) September 29, 2016
@IndexCensorship When I discovered “Eli Geva”, I felt that finally there was a song – a message – which was stronger than its own context.
— Pål Moddi Knutsen (@moddimusikk) September 29, 2016
@IndexCensorship When I write my own songs in the future, that will always be something I’ll aspire towards. #WithTheBanned
— Pål Moddi Knutsen (@moddimusikk) September 29, 2016
@IndexCensorship Like the songwriter Richard Burgess said “I could have written a song that she would have been allowed to perform…
— Pål Moddi Knutsen (@moddimusikk) September 29, 2016
@IndexCensorship …but I don’t think it would have been as good a song.” #WithTheBanned
— Pål Moddi Knutsen (@moddimusikk) September 29, 2016
What were the main things you learned about censorship when making Unsongs? @moddimusikk #WithTheBanned
— Index on Censorship (@IndexCensorship) September 29, 2016
@IndexCensorship Censorship, in one form or anohter, is everywhere, all times, and it comes in different shapes. #WithTheBanned
— Pål Moddi Knutsen (@moddimusikk) September 29, 2016
@IndexCensorship And it isn’t only states and religious authorities that are behind it. #WithTheBanned
— Pål Moddi Knutsen (@moddimusikk) September 29, 2016
@IndexCensorship Basically, whereever there is power, there is also censorship. Those two seem to be mutually constituitive. #WithTheBanned
— Pål Moddi Knutsen (@moddimusikk) September 29, 2016
@IndexCensorship So in a way, this project of interpreting banned songs is a case study of challenging power through music. #WithTheBanned
— Pål Moddi Knutsen (@moddimusikk) September 29, 2016
@IndexCensorship As a young musician, that has probably been the most important lesson: That music CAN still be powerful. #WithTheBanned
— Pål Moddi Knutsen (@moddimusikk) September 29, 2016
To mark the release of Unsongs, Index on Censorship is proud to announce a special series of appearances by currently banned voices from around the world.
Moddi will hand over the stage at three of the biggest gigs on his current European tour to unleash the power of free expression, replacing the support band with the genuinely banned.
In Amsterdam on 1 October, Maryam Al-Khawaja will share her and her family’s story of imprisonment and exile in the struggle for democracy in Bahrain. In London on 3 October, Vanessa Berhe will speak about life in the prison state of Eritrea and her campaign One Day Seyoum fighting to free her journalist uncle Seyoum Tsehaye who has been in jail for 15 years. In Berlin on 6 October, Raqqa Is Being Slaughtered Silently will tell how the Syrian civil war has destroyed the free expression of a generation. Co-founder Abdalaziz Alhamza will share the story of how and why he co-founded it inside IS-controlled territory.
