Brazilian living in Finland prepares album
Brazilian singer, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist based in Finland, Pedro Bergamo unites his passion for 1970s MPB with Nordic progressive rock on a psychedelic and solar journey in the single “Escute o som que vem daqui”. The track, which suggests the beginning of cycles and rebirths, shows the beginning of an artistic work for Bergamo while it can dialogue with the listener who seeks a blank page in the new year.
Born into a family of musicians, Pedro seeks from an early age to unite his eclectic musical influences of flamenco, folk, forró and rock with his interest in mystical, historical and philosophical subjects. Influenced by his grandfather, who was a healer, tarologist and storyteller, the artist began his discography with the single “Lago Brasil” in 2019, telling a tragic indigenous-Brazilian story, bridging “caipira” dialect of troubadours from São Paulo such as Tião Carreiro and Pardinho, and the rural folk of the 1970s northeast of Zé Ramalho, his greatest idol. A year later, in the midst of a strong personal loss and inspired by the work of Ariano Suassuna, Pedro produces “Abrahadabra!”.
Working on his debut album, he gives his first sample of sound with “Escute o som que vem daqui”. Produced by guitarist Lauri Loikkanen of the Finnish band The Halophones and mastered by Jaakko Virtalähde (Death Hawks, Mikko Joensuu), the track arrives with a music video directed by Finnish-Swedish director Anders Ragnar. The track is available on all digital music platforms and the clip is available on the artist’s YouTube channel. Check out the interview!
Among the many features that were pulled your new single “Escute o som que vem aqui”, the 70’s MPB and Nordic progressive rock, bring the psychedelic air of the music. How did the combination of these two distinct rhythms end up resulting in your new project?
It was kind of by accident. Lauri has a psychedelic rock band here in Helsinki and he used the bassist and drummer on this track. It wasn’t the initial plan but this classic rock sound resonated with me a lot and ended up marrying with the song perfectly. Something contemplative, imperfect, smooth. And I never actively tried to produce something similar to 70’s MPB, but every time someone comes up saying “Man, your sound is very Tropicalia. It sounds like “Secos e Molhados”. The reason is that this is the kind of sound I like. Raul Seixas and Pink Floyd are my biggest influences.
Launched as an inspiration for listeners looking for new plans for the new year, the track also features a fresh start of his artistic work. What has been the meaning of this release at the current moment in your life?
I think it’s cool when people make this connection: new year, new music, a new beginning, but I myself don’t see much of a new beginning in my career, because it seems that I’m leaving behind the sounds that I produced before. For me “Listen to the sound that comes from here” is an experiment. Something I’ve never done before and I’m really happy that people have found comfort in it. But nothing prevents me from going back to making a 100% acoustic sound like in “Abrahadabra!”. I’m still the same Pedro.
In addition to you, we saw in your biography that art is present among several members of your family. In that case, how were your first contacts with the universe of music?
Well, my father, uncles, grandfather, all are guitar players and many are composers. My cousin taught me my first chords and my father had an interesting artistic career with the country duo “Canário e Passarinho”. I even wrote a book about him that’s coming out this year. As a child I would wake up at 4 am to go on his radio program and listen to these 1940s viola modas, which would talk about everything you can imagine: nature, God, the Devil, death, love, nostalgia. I think very few people know how rich caipira (Brazillian contry). We have a spectacular and endless literature. But it exists in the form of music, in the same way that Kalevala (the book that started Finland as a people) is actually a compendium of songs that a writer in the 19th century created a narrative around. Probably this access to the occult aspect of caipira music is the greatest legacy I received from my father and my ancestors.
Regarding your musical style, you tend to mix a lot of references, whether flamenco, folk, forró or even rock. What is the process like to manage to mix these different styles and how does your composition process work? Is music born with a style or does it happen in the process?
This is the million dollar question. Where does the inspiration come from? Am I the one who writes the music or is the music manifesting itself? I tend to think that music (or any work of art) already exists in another universe and an artist is nothing more than a postman. Thinking like this, music already exists with its characteristics (lyrics, rhythm, duration) and all I have to do is discover it instead of creating it. It’s like thinking that Newton discovered gravity and didn’t invent it. It already existed, all Newton had to do is observe and write about it. And my predilection for blues, forró, flamenco, old sertanejo derives from the fact that they are rhythms considered “music of the poor”. It is a sound of suffering minorities, whether from gypsies in Spain, blacks in the south of the United States or northeasterns in São Paulo.
In your songs, the lyrics usually have a lot of mystical, historical and philosophical subjects. How did you become interested in approaching these themes?
As a teenager I was very Christian and even studied to become a priest. I had a math teacher that every Sunday I would go to his house to study the bible and play chess. He was a fantastic guy, him and his wife. they taught me a lot. But I remember that at a certain point I was intrigued that people interpreted the bible literally and not as a mystical book, of a secret nature, full of metaphors and concepts that are super difficult to translate, let alone understand. At that time, a friend introduced me to the bibliography of Marcelo Mota and Aleister Crowley and from then on I spent several years studying gematria, occultism and astrology. However, when I was 23 years old, I found a book in the library of the university where I studied chemistry, called “Dragons of Eden” by Carl Sagan. Rather than being a book about occult matters, as I had hoped, it was a book about skepticism. Carl Sagan’s work impacted my life so much that from then on I completely closed myself to mysticism or religion to dedicate myself 100% to the study of science and technology. I did my master’s and doctorate here in Europe and for about 7 years I tried to sort of hide this “Young Mystic” side of me. But in 2020, an event shook my life in such a way that I reopened the door and let in God, the angels and all those who live in the depths that we have never heard of. Since then I’ve been learning to live with the Christian Pedro, the mystical Pedro and the atheist Pedro.
Back in 2019, you approached an important theme for the history of Brazil, wich relates to the indigenous perople. That was “Lago Brasil”, which is a point between the caipira dialect of troubadours from São Paulo and the rural folk of the seventies northeast. When composing a song like this, is prior research necessary to better approach the topics of the theme?
I think the same question can be asked about any music considered ‘regional’. For example take “Ferreirinha”, a “viola moda composed by Adauto Ezequiel (Carreirinho). It’s a super rich song, made by a violeiro (Brazilian guitar player) without much instuction. Carreirinho was a genius, but not an intellectual. When he moved to São Paulo he was working as a bricklayer, as well as Cartola, one of the greatest composers who ever lived, in my opinion. How much prior research did Cartola do to compose “O mundo é um moinho?” Zero. To compose something of this level you have to love, suffer, starve, cry, laugh. You have to live! I would even say that if you try to give birth to something like that using your intellect, nothing comes out. That’s why I feel very sad about the way many teachers teach music or literature. They want to give you a formula, but there is no formula. But going back to your question, I was able to write “Lago Brasil” because I lived through it. I had the privilege of having an indigenous grandfather who told me these fanciful stories like the “Mãe d’água” as if they were true histories. This is recorded in the soul or subconscious and ends up manifesting itself in the form of music.
As early as 2020, you were even inspired by a work by Ariano Suassuna to arrive at “Abrahadabra!” which came precisely after a strong personal loss. Could you tell us a little more about the history of this song?
Of course, Luca. The year 2020 was a very dark year and few people know about it. I didn’t have the strength to do anything. Nothing made sense. That’s when I traveled to Brazil and stayed for a while at the house of a childhood friend who happened to have a studio. At that time, I found the book “O romance da Pedra do Reino” by Suassuna in a bookstore. I had never read anything by him but my mother, who is an avid reader, always recommended it to me. I remembered the trailer I saw for the Globo TV series, where a character, also called Pedro, believed he was the rightful king of Brazil. I bought the book and to this day I don’t know if I found the book or if the book found me. Suassuna was the first person who managed to make me feel proud of being Brazilian. For the first time I was able to find where I fit in the world. The door to God and the occult has opened again, after many years. It was like finding an oasis in the desert. From then on, taking advantage of the fact that I was at my friend’s studio, we recorded “Abrahadabra!” only with Brazilian instruments. The song talks about Christ as an illusionist. Someone who can do tricks like walking on water, turning water into wine. But he uses these illusions to deliver a message. Most people focus on the magic tricks rather than the message. It was my way of finding order in the midst of that chaos. Then we made a music video and this single has been the one that has had the most repercussions for the time being. In every gig, the crowd cheers a lot to this tune.
“Escute o som que vem daqui” is the first release that will make up your debut album. How are your expectations for this release and what can the public expect when listening to your new single?
The public can expect comfort, peace, relief. Things you expect to find in a spiritual retreat. I believe that art serves to create an environment or a universe where the listener rises and leaves behind, at least for a few minutes, the craziness of the world. For example, two days after my release, a bunch of barbarians attempted to assassinate Brazilian democracy, something that must have made Suassuna roll over his grave. This kind of thing, a bunch of people who are shitting for Brazil (literally), makes me think “Why make art here in my room, when the outside world is on fire?”. But then I think that in the same way that Suassuna’s art was exactly what I needed in 2020, maybe my art is what another Brazilian like me needs at that moment. The feeling of someone taking your hand and saying “Relax, this will all pass. Meanwhile, pick up the guitar and sing a song with me. Maybe that way, time passes faster.”
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