Dead Combo

Dead Combo was a Portuguese band whose main musical influences were Fado, Rock, Western soundtracks, as well as music from South America and Africa.

The band consisted of just two members: Tó Trips (guitars) and Pedro V. Gonçalves (double bass, kazoo, melodica and guitars).

The members met in 2001, when at the end of a concert, Tó asked Pedro for a ride without knowing that he didn’t have a car. They then both walked to Bairro Alto and, in the middle of the conversation, the idea of recording an album in tribute to the Portuguese guitar genius, Carlos Paredes, came up.

Little by little, Dead Combo emerged, with 2003 referred to by the band as the definitive year of their formation. In 2004 they released their debut album, Vol.1, whose innovative sound was received with enthusiasm by Portuguese critics.

In 2005, BBC radio broadcaster and musicologist Charlie Gillet made a selection of the “Best of 2005”, including Dead Combo with their debut album Vol.1.

Dead Combo composed the original soundtrack for Daniel Blaufuks’ film Slightly Smaller Than Indiana.

With Lusitânia Playboys, in 2008 they definitively gained public recognition. In 2011, Lisboa Mulata marks a new approach to Dead Combo, as it is a much more eclectic album, appealing to the rhythm and influences of Africa. In 2014, the themes Lisboa Mulata and Rumbero were chosen for the soundtrack of the film Focus, starring Will Smith and Margot Robbie.

In 2012, new doors opened for Dead Combo. They give a big concert at the Aula Magna in Lisbon and appear on Anthony Bourdain’s culinary program about Lisbon and, consequently, enter the top 10 on American iTunes.

In the same year, they were invited to perform at the Cannes Film Festival premiere of the film Cosmopolis, directed by David Cronenberg and produced by Paulo Branco.

They returned to the albums in March 2014 with “A Bunch of Meninos”. In 2019 they announced the end of the band in 2020.

Towards the end of the band, they promised a farewell tour in the following months. However, the farewell tour was not completed in full due to the Covid-19 pandemic and Pedro Gonçalves’ health problems.

Pedro Gonçalves died on December 4, 2021, in Lisbon, aged 51.