Reviewer's Randoms

Faux-documentary takes you underground

2009-12-25T09:40:00.002-08:00

Unlike what its title might have you believing this is not the title of Black Cats’ new album!lol “Kasi Az Gorbehaaye Irani Khabar Nadaarad” is a dramatized (faux-) documentary about the politics and dynamics of the domestic underground scene. Ahmad Ghobadi’s appreciated independent initiative gives you an insight to a world that is growing bigger and bigger every day and has already taken over the control of the Iranian music scene! The legal/LA industries are only formal institutions while the supreme reign is in the hands of the undergrounders. Once imitators they are now trend-setters! Watch the entire film on youtube:

Note: thanks to Siamak

Alikhani: Abdollahi was murdered!

2009-12-25T09:40:00.001-08:00

Nasser Abdollahi passed away four years ago and this week a memorial was held in the Milad Tower’s auditorium. According to MEHR Ehsan Alikhani who co-hosted the event made the rumors that had been around since day one official, Abdollahi was in fact murdered and had not died of a liver failure as the early reports suggested! He said that it was about time that the fans were informed about the crime that led to the tragedy. The revelation was then followed up by performances by Hami, Reza Sadeghi and Mohsen Yeganeh.

Farzin flippin’!

2009-12-25T09:39:00.002-08:00

Farzad Farzin has released a teaser for his upcoming album “Shaans”. I only hope that the Jackson opening is meant as some kind of loose homage reference … or something not-so-serious! Gotta say that the teaser just like the song medley promises a lot of style and less substance!

Note: thanks to Richard.

Rajabpour: Benyamin’s “88″ failed!

2009-12-25T09:39:00.001-08:00

Mohsen Rajabpour, the owner of Taraneye Sharghi label and the manager of Arian and Benyamin has in an interview with Etemaad announced a new ROCK band in the making. This band will be delivering a fusion of Iranian musicality and Western instrumentation, a fusion Rajabpour himself believes in. He also asserts that today a soundtrack is the hottest thing an artist can do. Right now people love theme songs, television is a popular base. I have in my 10 years in this profession developed a sense for people’s preference, Rajabpour claims. However the business is bad and while I was able to bounce back a few years ago from a sudden concert cancellation, today a 200 million Toman loss will bury me for good! This is a risky business and I am in it only because I love the industry and my paramount purpose is to improve it professionally, he explains. I never take on finished artists and try to manage them, it never works, instead I search for talents to develop and turn into stars. That’s why I never consider other managers as rivals. Right now I am determined to get Benyamin’s concert permit issued for the end of the Iranian year, Rajabpour says, he is a musical phenomenon even though his second album was a commercial failure and did not sell even remotely close to the debut’s one million copies!

Fereydoun: I don’t sing upbeat songs!

2009-12-25T09:38:00.000-08:00

Fereydoun recently returned to Iran and performed his first concert on the Milad tower’s stage. According to ILNA, once on stage he has said that performing for his countrymen in Tehran is one of his lifetime dreams coming true and many singers overseas (LA) would love to be there instead of him! After having performed one ballad after the other people requested to hear some upbeat songs and Fereydoun replied that if they had heard his albums then they would have known that he only sings mellow love songs (I personally would call “Bia Berim” an upbeat love song, but what do I know!). When asking for an encore of “Gole Hayaahoo” Fereydoun said that it’s up to Behrouz Saffarian, however at the end of the concert he did deliver it as an encore after all.

New Release: Reza Sadeghi - “Yeki Bood, Yeki Nabood”

2009-12-25T09:37:00.000-08:00

And finally, right after the release of his biographic documentary Reza Sadeghi’s ill-fated album is released! After being reportedly leaked, stolen, postponed, remade, renamed and then postponed again! I think that’s about it, in retrospect “Cheghadr Sakhte” would have made a more suitable title!lol “Yeki Bood, Yeki Nabood” was supposed to feature 16 tracks to compensate for the leakage, but apparently Sadeghi removed the three new tracks in last minutes!? Which makes us wonder whether there were any new tracks to begin with (I smell publicity stunt)! Anyways the album features work by the man in black himself, along with Ashakan Rahimi, Hooman Alborz, Marjan Zanganeh, M. Reza Cheraghalai, Mehran Khalesi, Ali Sabet and Iman Hojjat. This is Sadeghi’s third legal album on the market, released on (Sirvan’s hate object # 1!) IranGaam. I must say that unlike the music of the album I really like the cover concept, clever psychological portrait!

Note: thanks to Ahmad

Hey stupid! It’s Agida!

2009-12-25T09:36:00.000-08:00

It’s been a while since I wrote about lovely Argavan, so due for an update. The girl has been busy preparing for both Western and Iranian markets. While she is recording her Persian material, a song written by Saeed Shayesteh, her English debut is ready and called “Hey Stupid”.

Argavan is going by a simplified stage-name for her Western career, namely “Agida”! Check out the video:

Farzin confirms “Shaans”

2009-12-04T01:41:00.001-08:00

The demo medley of an alleged upcoming Farzad Farzin album surfaced weeks ago, such thing had happened in the past with leaked songs that never saw the light of day. However Farzin has now confirmed the rumors as news and says that the 10-track album will be mainly consisted of love songs but also feature a couple of social and mystical pieces. The album will be released right after Moharram.

New Release: Ali Lohrasebi - “14″

2009-12-04T01:40:00.001-08:00

Ali Lohrasebi’s “14″ was finally released last week. But even though the album’s track list has 14 tracks listed, as promised, there are only 13 songs on the album! The title-less track 13 is apparently absent in reality, my guess is that it is in accordance with the superstitious tradition of not writing the actual number 13 on hotel-rooms but rather 12+1, or not having a 13th floor at all but directly skipping to the 14th floor! In a way trying to skip bad luck in an illogical and mathematically impossible way! Anyways, the album is produced by Behrouz Saffarian with whom Ali recently reconciled. Beside compositions and arrangements by Saffarian the album features work by the Ghannadi brothers (7th Music Band, by the way I just noticed that they had also created for Farzad Farzin’s “Shock”), Reza Sadeghi, Mohsen Yeganeh, Shahab Akbari, Rouzbeh Bemani, Abdoljabbar (on a funny side-note talk about jaw-filling name! Had it been the middle-ages this name alone would have sent shivers down anyone’s spine!lol) Kakayi, Mona Borzouyi, Mehdi Yarahi and Parnian. “14″ features the HIT theme-song from the popular TV-series “Delnavazan” and a duet with Saffarian, it also comes in two types of packaging.

Sadeghi goes straight to VCD!

2009-12-04T01:39:00.002-08:00

The film based on Reza Sadeghi’s life and career so far has been released, already! Entitled “Raaze Shab”. Neither the title nor the creator matches the ones announced while in production! And it looks like being a straight to VCD feature which unlike the hype is just a normal documentary and not a biopic. Here is the first 10 minutes of the film, the whole thing is put up on youtube in parts. Watch this clip, 4 minutes into it close your eyes and it sounds as if you are in a mosque listening to a preacher while the crowd cries to his lamenting! This is a rather interesting phenomenon, something which I’ve discussed many times before.

Review on the fabulous baker boys

2009-12-04T01:39:00.001-08:00

Not sure if you still remember but I also happen to write reviews!lol Well, I don’t blame you if you’ve forgot. Its been a while since the last one due to my other commitments in life and the fact that our industry went silent in early summer and has stayed in hiatus ever since! Perhaps the longest in the past decade, especially the LA branch. Anyway, just wanted to let you know that my review on the fabulous baker boys’ album is up! You know, Ghannadi brothers, …”bakers”, … the movie about the musician brothers Baker boys … eh, never mind!lol

More Sir-whine with an Arian!

2009-12-04T01:38:00.001-08:00

It feels like lately every second post is about Sirvan and I for one hate it because I know that its exactly what the guy wants to achieve through his systematic publicity stunts and announcements! If there is one thing I hate is tabloid journalism and right now I feel that thanks to him and Benyamin my blog is turning to a tabloid, even though its only the official news I try to reflect. But just to follow up the whole concert cancellation charade for those who care to follow it I thought informing that Sirvan has in a recent interview with Nassim magazine and in a dialog-driven interview with Ali Pahlevan and his brother Xaniar for Mooisghe Maa said that he blames the permit-seeking failure on the “Mafia of music”! Referring to his record company and the fact that “corrupt and incompetent” men own the rights to his concerts. Apparently the record company IranGaam which has got many of today’s artists on its roster and in particular its director/manager Hosseinkhani has said that he refuses to arrange any concerts for Sirvan, neither will he allow him to arrange own concerts or let anyone else do it for him! Sirvan concludes the reason for this destructive attitude as common in the industry. Regarding Benyamin’s recent attacks Sirvan says that he doesn’t know what generated that sudden hostility and that Benyamin only ruined his own image by trash-talking him like that. He is a supposed superstar who hasn’t yet manged to receive a concert permit, Sirvan says, while ridiculing Benyamin’s lyrics together with his brother Xaniar who continues ridiculing other artists’ banal lyrics (unlike his own?). Our albums received permission almost simultaneously and although Benyamin’s manager Rajabpour has from a year before that made clear that he didn’t wish for our albums to collide I personally wanted that to happen, Sirvan says. To measure the strengths and even though Benyamin’s album has sold more than mine, not that much to brag about, its solely because of the fact that my manager worked against me by not promoting my album. He wanted to ruin Rajabpour by releasing it at the same time but also ruin me by not promoting it, I myself had to put up all the promo-posters at nights. I should have put up the songs for download on my website instead, Sirvan says, that way at least i would have been free to preform for whoever I wanted. Sirvan and his brother also complain that they have to spend so much time and money on an album while the undergrounders like Mehdi Assadi whom they arrange for make ten times the profit of such album in a single party performance. Sirvan also complains about weaker singers receiving the support of the state media and foundations while he who is “one of the bests” of the industry doesn’t!

The interview is long and the three artists do bring up many issues that are in fact valid, especially about the politics of the industry and the ministry, however with each point made sadly invalidating it directly through contradictions and self-proclamations! Its basically pot calling the kettle black. I am just sorry to see Ali Pahlevan whom I always admired for his positive and down-to-earth nature on a corner of all this mess! Whining about the fact that they are so many in the band who have to share the little profits, that he makes that kind of money in two months as an engineer, that his fellow lead does furniture ads, that he is too old to preform for teenagers, that critics say that his lyrics have improved and the fact that normal people sit on the front row of their concerts and not super-stars and VIPs who arrive in limos!!!

I mean …. WHAT!!?!!!!!!!!!!!!

When someone like Ali Pahlevan turns to this kind of charades of snobbery and adopts the recent tradition of publicity stunts then all I can say is: May God have mercy on us all!!

Note: thanks to Richard

Askari: I chose not to retaliate!

2009-12-04T01:37:00.002-08:00

In an interview with Moosighie Maa Hamid Askari says that he doesnt expect the same success that he once had with “Coma 1″ to happen even for the newly released follow up “Coma 2″. Such unexpected success happens only with a debut and it depended 100% on its arrangements, he explains. But I’m sure even this one will succeed in its own way since I have tried to deliver the same formula, though more current and up-to-date, Askari adds. It should be mentioned that I always redress all my songs in last minute, so was the case even with this album’s songs. They all sound different to the demos people might have heard. Regarding his collaboration with Nima Varasteh as the sole arranger of the album Askari explains that things are now back to normal with Milad Torabi (after a disagreement with the arranger of his debut). Much of “Coma 1″ was recorded in Nima’s studio, Askari points out, however in this album it has been more official. Even though I trust Nima’s decisions I must say that my own influence is also tangible in the outcome. On the critique on his technically suffering lyrics he says that he is not a poet but only writes from his heart. Askari comments the fact that he has signed one of the biggest deals in the showbusiness industry with the Hedayat Film company as something that wasn’t supposed to be public knowledge. The company now owns all rights to his music and concerts and there has been talks about Askari acting in movies, an ambition Askari himself sees as a mere hobby. “We are all actors, one way or another” argues the young artist. Since I do not intend to go processional its a fun risk I am willing to take. Askari further explains that even though fame has brought him material comfort, since “Coma 1″ was the best-selling album of that year and led to him breaking concert records it has also meant mental discomfort for him. Every day I get slandered by the press and backstabbed by so called colleagues, he complains. Regarding Benyamin’s accusations Askari says that he didn’t respond because he wanted to let the readers judge independently. I am myself a fan of Benyamin and even enjoy his latest album despite many underrating it, however I choose not to get involved in this kind of approach in the media, even though it highly affected me! Mohsen Yeganeh chose to retaliate with words on my behalf, I know Mohsen personally unlike Benyamin and it might be why he reacted so strongly despite such gentle character, Askari explains. I respect both of these gentlemen and ultimately believe that if each one of us spends the time that is wasted on attacks and counter-attacks on our own work and music instead, we could all benefit from the progress!

Richard did take Sirvan to Holland!

2009-12-04T01:37:00.001-08:00

And Finally Richard’s tremendous efforts paid off! A radio in Holland made Sirvan’s “Saate 9″ song the song-of-the-week and has given it high-rotation. They are also interested to get in touch with the artist and will most likely feature other songs of his in future. Having been following the process via Richard’s updates I must say that the most difficult task Richard had to face wasn’t really to convince the radio to play the guy’s song but rather to get any response from the guy himself who seemed to show no interest whatsoever that his song is being played on a European radio station!! Despite me translating the message of the radio it took a while before he finally responded and thanked Rickard for his efforts. Again, thank you Richard for your interest and efforts to promote the Iranian music! Something we Iranians aren’t that good at ourselves!

IRIB sanctions artists

2009-12-04T01:36:00.002-08:00

In recent week IRIB released a list of artists whose work have either completely or partly, definitely or indefinitely been banned from the state media. Foremost the state radio! This is a long list of all sorts of artists, dead and alive, young and old, modern and religious! Artists such as AliReza Eftekhari, Mohammad Esfehani, Fereydoun, Ali Lohrasebi, Ehsan Khajehamiri, Kouros Sarhangzadeh, Hossein Zaman, AliReza Assar, Mohammad Nouri, FathAli Oveisi and Nasser Abdollahi. IRIB’s director of public relations Kioumars Tahmasebi has not really given any reason for the sudden sanctioning, however unofficial sources claim that these are all artists who have one way or another been in dispute with the state media for unauthorized broadcasting of their material! It should be mentioned that there was a recent legal showdown between IRIB and Homayoun Shajarian regarding the issue, which might have triggered the action taken.

More talented Iranians

2009-12-04T01:36:00.001-08:00

Each year we see more and more talented Iranians making it to the different talent-search shows on televisions around the globe. While UK witnessed Behrouz Ghaemi on its X Factor this year, Swedish Idol featured Eddie Razaz on its roster! Sadly just like Sepideh last year, Eddie didn’t make it all the way but while on the show he managed to build a solid fan-base!

the audition:

one of the performances:

The museum of music opens to public

2009-12-04T01:35:00.002-08:00

The national museum of music opened gates to public last week, after seven years of planning and preparation. The museum is 3000 square-meters large and built in three levels. Displaying everything from historic documents to state of the art technology!

State radio to review underground music

2009-12-04T01:35:00.001-08:00

The state radio intends to debate the underground music in the “Shabestane” program. This will be a critical review and a comparative study of the legal and illegal productions, the producer Ali Aminipour says.

State radio to review underground music

2009-11-18T11:51:00.001-08:00

Stars to praise Imam Reza

2009-11-18T11:50:00.002-08:00

To celebrate the birthday of Imam Reza a brand new compilation is released. This various artist compilation is the first of its kind since its popularity peak during the rebirth of POP music back in 1997. Entitled “Hasht (8)” it features eight artists who each preform their homages to the eight Imam of the Shiites. Hami, Mohsen Chavoshi, Reza Sadeghi, Reza Yazadani and Ali Ashabi are the more famous stars in the line up. I have previously approached the religious POP phenomenon in the blog and the tributes to this particular holy icon in several LA-artists’ album reviews.

At the same time Benyamin Bahadori’s manger Rajabpour announced that he will be releasing a two-track single with both songs praising the eight Imam. There have been rumors about Benyamin creating an entire collection for holy icons, which is boosted by this recent announcement. This is not the first time Benyamin and his lyricist Farid Ahmadi have been creating religious POP hymns!

The concert that never was … to be?

2009-11-18T11:50:00.001-08:00

In recent week we have been informed about Sirvan’s debut concert and also its sudden cancellation. I must say that once I saw that promo poster without time and place popping up, I just knew this was going to be announced canceled pretty soon! It was to me a potential publicity stunt, considering Sirvan’s recent moves to exposure! Sirvan along with Benyamin top the line of stars who have just discovered that the use of the media for publicity purposes is much more likley in the domestic context, if it gets to be about controversies rather than conventional promotion. At first rumor had that Ershaad had suddenly canceled the whole event, then (before it got out of hand?) Sirvan announced the place of this supposed event and praised the ministry for all its POP-friendly efforts and support in recent year, instead accusing the “organizer” for not having submitted a request for the permit, despite four months of preparation and practice for him and his band. Now the questions is, would someone like Sirvan remain silent about a debut concert which was supposedly planned and practiced with a big band four months in advance, ’til just a while before the concert?! No promotion?! And if there was so many months of planning and preparation then why was the time and location left out?! It all just doesn’t add up to anything but a publicity stunt! Then again, its the domestic industry so you never know!

Note: thanks to Richard and Ahmad

Sizzling Sepideh!

2009-11-18T11:49:00.002-08:00

I’m loving this HOT photo set of Sepideh, shot by Siros Kerdouni. Like I’ve said before Sepideh is a beautiful, talented and sexy woman who is not afraid of showcasing what she has got! Unlike many who decide to do the same, but instead with what they DO NOT got! This kind of confidence is a quality I have always applauded and supported in all artists, both female and male. Even non-artists for that matter! For the entire set and more please visit Sepideh’s myspace.

Bia2 BlackBerry App

2009-11-18T11:49:00.001-08:00

You better buckle up! Because we’re about to go full throttle!! After having delivered the Bia2 iPhone Apps and the Bia2 Android App we are eager to serve all of you BlackBerry owners out there! This will be a treat for either model of the four BlackBerry devices, namely BlackBerry Bold, BlackBerry Curve, BlackBerry Tour and last but not least the fresh new BlackBerry Storm with its touchscreen! Welcome ya’ll to the family! Do we even need to mention that this is the FIRST and ONLY Iranian BlackBerry App on the market?! Didn’t think so! Enjoy!

Hamid Askari - “Coma 2″

2009-11-18T11:48:00.001-08:00

Hamid Askari’s follow up to the successful debut “Coma” is finally out after months of postponing. The album shares the same arranger as Benyamin’s “85″ and that is to be noticed in many songs’ resemblance and elements’ recycling! It’s not unusual with such kind of sequels in Western world of music in order to mark a return to a certain theme and style, however not as a direct follow up to a debut! “Coma 2″ even shares the cover design of its first part.

A Million Shadows

2009-11-18T11:47:00.000-08:00

The debuting Germany-based rapper P.CANTELL is currently working on his album “P.CANTELL - A Journey To Iran” for a release in the German market. Of which “A Million Shadows” featuring Ian Hooper is the first released track, something he likes to call a soundtrack to the revolution. The album is more like an auditive movie where the listener is taken on a journey through Iran, thats why the songs have location names in brackets, cause every song takes place at a certain location. Find out more on pcantell.de. By the way, I noticed that he also does some blogging! Well done!