Thomas Dybdahl releases Teenage Astronauts
On Thomas Dybdahl's new album "Teenage Astronauts," sorrow and a spirit of exploration are accompanied by a full orchestra. Heartbreak has been a recurring theme in Thomas Dybdahl's music, but on the album "Teenage Astronauts," set to be released on March 15th, it's the sorrow over lost friendships and the desire for exploration that greets us.
"Friendship means so much when you're young. It's so intense and all consuming. Together with our friends we explore the world, challenge authorities, and push boundaries. When my best friend got a girlfriend, it felt like a betrayal and was my first experience of heart ache," says Dybdahl when talking about the inspiration behind the album.
On the single "Graffiti Boy," which was released on February 9th, listeners get their first taste of the intensity of youth. With acoustic guitar and delicate yet eager strings from the Stavanger Symphony Orchestra, Dybdahl tells the story of a young friendship with its own rules. "As a young person, you feel immortal, like anything is possible. That's why I wanted to include a large string orchestra this time, to capture that feeling and to send us into space." We can also hear it in the title track - how the strings seem to ascend and expand, like an astronaut in space or a young person with their whole life ahead of them.
Dybdahl isn't just revisiting his youth when creating his tenth solo album. He has also rekindled his collaboration with lyricist Edie Kuhnle Ottestad, with whom he wrote some of his most well known songs with for the first three albums. "When we met again now, it had been almost 20 years since the last time. We are different people, but we still think alike. She still finds it easiest to write, and I still find it easiest to make music."
To arrange the strings, Dybdahl has enlisted the American composer Vince Mendoza. Mendoza has worked with artists such as Joni Mitchell, Björk, and the massive Dutch jazz orchestra, The Metropole Orkest. "He's absolutely incredible; I haven't met anyone who writes for strings like he does! He knows how they behave, what sounds beautiful, and what becomes excessive," says Dybdahl.
"Teenage Astronauts" was produced in the small desert town of Pioneertown, California, originally built as a backdrop for Western films in the 1940s. "It becomes more intense to produce music far from home. Neither Larry nor I could just drop by to pick something up. We created a 'studio confinement' for ourselves and worked intensely." Larry is the producer Larry Klein, who has won several Grammy awards for his production work, including his work on some of Joni Mitchell's albums. "By working with such talented people, I push myself further. I wouldn't present anything that I don't believe is the best I've ever created," Dybdahl explains.
"Teenage Astronauts" will be released on March 15th.
