Tag: rock band from iran

Saman Barzegar Interview, guitar player from Varte

Saman Barzegar Interview

Saman Barzegar is the guitar player from Varte. Varte started out their career in 1393 as a progressive band, consisting  of Reza Marzban, Aidin Pooladvand and Saman Barzegar.
Their debut album The inscribed tale was released last September which is now available everywhere.

1-Tell me about yourself and how did you make the band?

My name is Saman Barzegar, I started playing classic guitar in 1385 and after 3 or 4 years started playing electric guitar professionally. It was late 1393 that we started our band, “Varte” with my friend Reza Marzban. It’s been 3 years we’re working professionally .

2- How did you choose the name Varte for your band?

We had lots of names in mind. But didn’t agreed on any.One of the guys came up with Varte, we thought for a few days and thought it’s a good one. Since our genre is progressive and we all liked it.

3- What’s your genre? 

Our genre is based on Progressive and alternative themes. But most of our earliest single tracks are more alternative. But I could name “Antalcidas”? which is progressive. But on the whole we’re so open about genre.

4- Tell us about “ Inscribed tale” album?

It has 10 tracks which 4 of them are instrumental and the other 6 have Persian vocals. Our album’s main theme is historical.like each song is based on one specific period of Persian history.

5- What is your favorite track from the album?

Such a hard question! We’ve been working on our album for a year day and night. Might be a bit cliché, but our songs are really like our children!

-if it’s that hard you can choose 2 favorite 

_Yes I can pick 2, our 8th and the second track.The second one is the most significant song in our album.

6- which musicians inspire you?

There are lots of them. I can say what I mostly listen to. I like jazz a lot. Late 60’s and early 70’s progressive rock bands like King Crimson and Pink Floyd are my favorite. From 90’s bands, I like Opeth, Meshuggah and Tool.

7- what would you do if you weren’t a musician? 

If I wasn’t a musician… I can’t answer that! I wouldn’t do anything I guess! Because music is my life an everything.I also spend most of my free times doing music.

8-Do you think Farsi sounds OK on rock music ?

It is I guess, there are lots of great bands who do rock music in their own languages.
Take Rammstein as example, they’ve done great job writing German songs and as for us it’d be so weird to write songs about ancient Iran in English !

9-What’s your plan for the future?

Our album will be out in like two or three months, then we might do concerts in Kerman and Tehran.

Piclavier Interview

Piclavier is a Teharan based band. They officially started their career in 1393, the lyrics to their songs are English and French and they’re gonna release their first album soon.

1-How did you guys met and how did you form the band?

Mostafa: Shayan, Mehran and I have been friends since high school and we got lots of memories that one of them ended up in Piclavier. Meeting Mehran had a real fun story… so we were 4 friends. Farhad was our bass player but sadly he left the band but he was a founding member and one of our best friends. We did music and enjoyed it a lot and then decided to form a band and play rock music.

 

 

2-Who came up with “Piclavier” as the band name?

Mostafa: we were trying to come up with some title for the group during one of our jammings, and after lots of thinking and checking,all of us agreed on Piclavier as the band title.

 

3-Where do you get your ideas for composing?

Mostafa: usually, Mehran comes up with the ideas and the rest of us work on it and he’s also the lyricist of most of our songs. But recently Mahyar has written some real good material which we all dig and hope to write much better stuff together. also, not to be forgotten that Shayan usually takes care of all arrangings and stuff……

 

 

4-What was the best show you ever played?

Shayan: I think it’s different for each of us… for me, 2 of them were my favorite. Our first performance which was an underground show ( though we had the certificate for it) and people liked our show a lot that made us continue with the band more seriously and go for bigger shows,also the show at Azadi back in Ordibehesht of 1395 was hell of a fun.

Mahyar Salehi Nia: yeah, Azadi was my favorite one too.

Mostafa: We’ve never had a bad show, have we ? I liked them all!

 

4-Have you ever been in a real fight with the band?

Mostafa: How can you not ? but we always manage it somehow.

Mahyar : We are four guys with lots of ideas and different perspectives,but at the end of the day, one thing that keeps us all together is the fact that we are intimate friends

Shayan : Of course the are differences,and arguments at points but as Mostafa said we always somehow manage to get over them and keep our friendship.

 

5-Who do you think was the first rock musician in Iran ?

Shyan: As far as  I know,Kourosh Yaghmayi was so big back in those days,there were also bands who would do English songs.

 

7-Do you think technology is helping music or helping destroying it ?

Shayan : There’s no stopping it,is there ? I think it’s contributing.

 

 

 

8- can you tell us about your album? How long you’ve been working on it ? when is it coming out?

Mostafa: We’ve been focusing and working on our album since last 2 or 3 years and been trying to do our best.

Mahyar: We’re gonna release our album in summer,the thing is this is officially the first English/French album to be released in Iran which is very exciting and we’re really positive that it’d do great.

9-What is next for you once the album is out?

Mostafa : We’re planning to do shows,we’re actually talking about in now,trying to set the right times and places.

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interview: Aida Zarifian

 

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