Badieh – Badieh

This is quite a pairing.  Badieh consist of Spaniard Michel Gasco, who plays oud and rebab, pairs with Iranian musician Mohammed Miragharzadeh on tar and setar. From Badieh’s Bandcamp site: “Worlds Within Worlds is proud to announce the release of Badieh’s self-titled debut album – a collection of mystifying folk Continue Reading

Various Artists – Ten Songs from Houshang Ebtehaj

Iranian poet and balladeer Hushang Ebtehaj passed away on August 10, 2022, but left an incredibly rich body of work.  This compilation, released by Tehran-based record label Khosousi, brings together Ebtehaj’s best interpreters, such as Mohammad Reza Sharjarian and his son Homayoun,as well as Alireza Eftekhari, Hossein Ghavami, Mohammad Motamedi Continue Reading

Siavash Amini & Eugene Thacker – Songs for Sad Poets

Siavash Amini, an Iranian sound artist and composer, collaborates on this album with author and poet Eugene Thacker on Songs for Sad Poets, though I hear no vocals on this disc.  What is on offer, however, are incredibly bleak soundscapes that range from engaging dark ambient music which settles well Continue Reading

Various Artists – Shaytoon Records: Sounds from the Iranian Ultraverse

Shaytoon Records has released a compilation introducing some of the finest minimal techno coming out of Iran these days.  The label is based in New York, but the bands come, more or less, from the motherland, though America’s Persian diaspora is well-represented. The beats are rather icy and cold, reminding Continue Reading

Mohammad Mostafa Heydarian – Songs of Horaman

Mohammad Mostafa Heydarian is a Kurdish tanburist who hails from Kermanshah, in the Iranian region of Horaman.  His playing reminds me of a lot of the instrumental music coming out of the Sahel, blended, naturally, with Kurdish rhythms and adding a psychedelic haze to the music. Though I’m not keen Continue Reading

Maryam Sirvan – Feast On My Body

We have to wait eight more days to hear the complete work, but given the two tracks Maryam Sirvan has made available, this will be worth the wait.  There were two artists which came to mind while listening to the tracks over and over – Tim Buckley at his most Continue Reading