Pål Moddi Knutsen (born 18 February 1987 in
Senja
or is an island in Troms og Finnmark county, Norway, Europe. With an area of , it is the second largest island in Norway (outside of the Svalbard archipelago). It has a wild, mountainous outer (western) side facing the Atlantic, and a mild ...
), known by the artist name Moddi, is a
Norwegian
Norwegian, Norwayan, or Norsk may refer to:
*Something of, from, or related to Norway, a country in northwestern Europe
*Norwegians, both a nation and an ethnic group native to Norway
*Demographics of Norway
*The Norwegian language, including the ...
musician, author and activist, whose contemporary folk music often includes songs of protest or
social justice
Social justice is justice in terms of the distribution of wealth, opportunities, and privileges within a society. In Western and Asian cultures, the concept of social justice has often referred to the process of ensuring that individuals fu ...
.
Background
Pål Knutsen grew up on the
island of Senja in Northern Norway. As a child, he showed a particular concern for the environment, an interest which would come to shape his musical direction in the years to come. During high school, Knutsen was leading the local chapter of the environmentalist group
Nature and Youth
Natur og Ungdom (NU) which translates Nature and Youth, also known in English as Young Friends of the Earth Norway, is a Norwegian youth environment protecting organisation. It is the only environmentalist youth organisation in Norway. 7,000 memb ...
. "My first songs were an attempt to give a voice to the voiceless nature", he later explained about his motivation to create music.
Musical career
The first release under the name of Moddi was recorded in 2007 and distributed in 20 home-made copies. Later followed the debut album ''
Floriography
Floriography (language of flowers) is a means of cryptological communication through the use or arrangement of flowers. Meaning has been attributed to flowers for thousands of years, and some form of floriography has been practiced in tradition ...
,'' recorded with producer
Valgeir Sigurðsson
Valgeir Sigurðsson (born 18 June 1971) is an Icelandic record producer, mixer, composer, audio engineer and musician.
Biography
Coming from a musical background, Valgeir's fascination with recording technology led to a job in a small recor ...
in Iceland and containing songs from Knutsen's period in
Nature and Youth
Natur og Ungdom (NU) which translates Nature and Youth, also known in English as Young Friends of the Earth Norway, is a Norwegian youth environment protecting organisation. It is the only environmentalist youth organisation in Norway. 7,000 memb ...
.
Q magazine
''Q'' was a popular music magazine published monthly in the United Kingdom. It was founded in 1986 by broadcast journalists Mark Ellen and David Hepworth, who were presenters of the BBC television music series ''The Old Grey Whistle Test''. '' ...
described the album as "irrevocably heart-warming and beautifully constructed piece of melancholic folk-pop". On his second album, Moddi presented the single
House By The Sea, his best known composition to date.
The same year saw the release of
Kæm va du? ("Who were you?"), with lyrics borrowed from the Northern Norwegian poets such as
Arvid Hanssen
Arvid Hanssen (28 July 1932 – 31 July 1998) was a Norwegian journalist, newspaper editor, poet, novelist and children's writer. Biography
Hanssen was born in Vika at Indre Senja in Troms. He completed Finnsnes High School in 1948. He grad ...
, Helge Stangnes and Ola Bremnes. The album also included the single "Togsang", a reinterpretation of
Vashti Bunyan
Vashti Bunyan (born Jennifer Vashti Bunyan, 1945) is an English singer-songwriter. Beginning her career in the mid-1960s, she released her debut album, ''Just Another Diamond Day'', in 1970. The album sold very few copies and Bunyan, discourage ...
s 60s cult hit "
Train Song". Bunyan later commented that Moddi's was her favourite cover version of any of her songs.
Kæm va du? won the
Spellemannprisen
Spellemannprisen, often referred to as the Norwegian Grammy Awards in English, is a Norwegian music award presented to Norwegian musicians. The award was established by the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPI), an organizati ...
award for "Folk Album of the Year".
In 2016, Moddi released his fourth studio album, "
Unsongs", consisting of Moddi's reinterpretations and translations of banned and censored songs from 12 different countries. Among the artists included on the album were
Pussy Riot
Pussy Riot is a Russian feminist protest and performance art group based in Moscow that became popular for its provocative punk rock music which later turned into a more accessible style. Founded in August 2011, it has had a membership of appr ...
(Russia),
Izhar Ashdot
Izhar Ashdot ( he, יזהר אשדות; born 23 November 1958) is an Israeli singer-songwriter, guitarist, and record producer. He is a co-founding member of the Israeli rock band T-Slam.
Early life
When he was eleven, Ashdot started to play th ...
(Israel),
Mari Boine
Mari Boine (born Mari Brit Randi Boine, 8 November 1956) is a Norwegian Sámi singer. She combined traditional Sámi joik singing with rock. In 2008, she became a professor of musicology at Nesna University College.
Biography
Mari Boine was ...
(Norway/
Sápmi
(, smj, Sábme / Sámeednam, sma, Saepmie, sju, Sábmie, , , sjd, Са̄мь е̄ммьне, Saam' jiemm'n'e) is the cultural region traditionally inhabited by the Sámi people. Sápmi is in Northern and Eastern Europe and includes the ...
),
Liu Xiaobo
Liu Xiaobo (; 28 December 1955 – 13 July 2017) was a Chinese writer, literary critic, human rights activist, philosopher and Nobel Peace Prize laureate who called for political reforms and was involved in campaigns to end communist one-par ...
(China) and
Kate Bush
Catherine Bush (born 30 July 1958) is an English singer, songwriter, record producer and dancer. In 1978, at the age of 19, she topped the UK Singles Chart for four weeks with her debut single "Wuthering Heights (song), Wuthering Heights", ...
(UK). Following the release, Moddi published the book "Forbudte sanger" (Forbidden songs) where he described a number of attempts to hold back the songs on the album, among others by Russian and Lebanese authorities, and by the British public broadcaster BBC.
In 2019, Moddi released his fifth studio album "Like in 1968", inspired by the events that occurred in 1968.
Activism
Moddi is known for bringing his strong political commitment into his music. In January 2010 Moddi refused nomination for the €100 000
Statoil
Equinor ASA (formerly Statoil and StatoilHydro) is a Norwegian state owned enterprise, state-owned multinational energy company headquartered in Stavanger. It is primarily a petroleum company, petroleum company, operating in 36 countries with ad ...
grant on environmental grounds, commenting that a nomination would not be compatible with his environmental engagement. In 2014 Moddi announced that he would be cancelling his scheduled concert in Tel Aviv, Israel, on the grounds that he would not be taken to support the Israeli expansion of settlements in the West Bank. He did not officially endorse any organised appeal, stating that "the debate is already way too black and white".
When Moddi released his version of the
Pussy Riot
Pussy Riot is a Russian feminist protest and performance art group based in Moscow that became popular for its provocative punk rock music which later turned into a more accessible style. Founded in August 2011, it has had a membership of appr ...
song
Punk Prayer in 2016, he did so by recording a music video on the doorstep of the
King Oscar II Chapel
King Oscar II Chapel ( no, Kong Oscar IIs kapell) is a parish church of the Church of Norway in Sør-Varanger Municipality in Troms og Finnmark county, Norway. It is located near the village of Grense Jakobselv, about from the border with Russia ...
, marking the Northern border between Norway and Russia. On his concert in
Kirkenes
Kirkenes (; ; Skolt Sami: ''Ǩeârkknjargg;'' fi, Kirkkoniemi; ; russian: Киркенес) is a List of towns and cities in Norway, town in Sør-Varanger Municipality in Troms og Finnmark county, in the far northeastern part of Norway. The town ...
the same year, Moddi was pressured into dropping the same song after indirect pressure from Russian diplomats.
Education
Pål Moddi Knutsen has a master's degree from the
Centre for Development and the Environment
The Centre for Development and the Environment ( no, Senter for utvikling og miljø, SUM) is a research institute which is part of the University of Oslo. Its focus areas are international development and environmental studies.
History
The Centre ...
(SUM) at the
University of Oslo
The University of Oslo ( no, Universitetet i Oslo; la, Universitas Osloensis) is a public research university located in Oslo, Norway. It is the highest ranked and oldest university in Norway. It is consistently ranked among the top universit ...
. In his master thesis "Visions through the smelting furnace", he studied the Norwegian smelting plant Finnfjord in their course towards a carbon-neutral ferrosilicon production process.
Discography
Studio albums
Extended plays
Live albums
Singles
Other appearances
Other releases
* 2010 – ''Hjertestups'' with''Togsang'' (Tyrili)
* 2010 – ''Samleplate for oljefritt Lofoten, Vesterålen og Senja'' with the song ''Krokstav-emne''
* 2011 – ''Vi tenner våre lykter'' with the song ''Nordnorsk julesalme''
* 2012 – ''Norge, mitt Norge..?'' with the songs ''Det stig av hav eit oljeland'' and ''Deilig er Norden''
* 2015 – ''Fabler om en åpen folkekirke'' with the song Vær hilset, fru Bjerkås!
References
External links
*
{{Authority control
1987 births
Living people
Musicians from Senja
Norwegian folk musicians
Norwegian-language singers
Propeller Recordings artists