Sexy, sexy Iran
This edition of the Friday Ripple returns to the sexiest country in the Middle East, for a collection of fresh new underground releases.
The government of the Islamic Republic of Iran has announced new censorship laws banning, amongst other things, the use of love poetry in lyrics (including classical Persian love poetry). The Friday Ripple asks the important question: will this make Iran less sexy?
Probably not. Although 25Band (above) are recording from exile in Dubai, which allows them to be particularly provocative in video form, they're indicative of a wider trend in Persian electro over the past decade: it's become a rather hedonistic scene, often apparently operating on the principle of “Well, if they're going to ban it anyway...”
If they're going to ban it anyway, why not bring back female vocalists, illegal since 1979?
If they're going to say it's unacceptable anyway, why not have raunchy male-female duets?
If they're going to call it pornographic anyway - hell, why not do something actually pornographic?
The long-banned Daraje S3x (above, circa 2003) takes the principle to the extreme, packing the track with heavy breathing and simulated orgasms by both vocalists. It was a huge underground hit which has spawned a string of imitators, and has brought the orgasmic gasp back into popular music. By now, Iran's electronic music scene is notable for its strong female presence and its frequent open eroticism.
Iran, it should be noted, has always been sexy. Persian culture has been producing hot 'n' heavy romances for at least one thousand years, and 30 years of puritanical dictatorship is clearly not making much of an impact on the tradition. Before the 1979 revolution, Iranian popular culture was a hotbed of sexed-up funk and soul – in fact, you can find many of the highlights of this era, including Googoosh's legendary cover of Aretha Franklin's Respect, on the recently-released compilation album Persian Funk.
The Iranian government is encountering the same problem that other governments have experienced in the Middle East of late: wherever there is widespread internet access, attempts at censorship are largely futile. Iran has an estimated 10 million regular internet users. The level of government panic may be measured by recent threats to shut down the entire Iranian internet. There are serious doubts about whether this could realistically be done: the Iranian economy is as internet-dependent as that of any other oil-trading nation.
Slightly more practical is the part of the new law which bans all artists from playing more than one concert in a single day: this, at least, can be interpreted as a sensible recognition that digital censorship is futile, and that government control of art in the modern world is primarily about control of public spaces.
We actually invited the Iranian Embassy in Prague to come on Radio Wave and tell us a little more about the new censorship laws, but for some reason they’re ignoring us. So, we have to speculate. What happens next in Iran? Is this the end of Persian sexiness? Probably not. Back in 1970s Czechoslovakia, one Ivan “Magor” Jirous had some interesting theories about what happens next:
“The establishment has no power to prevent playing those who reject all the advantages that flow from being professional musicians. The establishment can only put pressure on those who what to be better off than the rest. For those who want to lead a better life – not in terms of material security, but in the sense of following the truth – the long arm of the establishment is too short... The aim of the underground here in Bohemia is the creation of a second culture, one that will not be dependent on the official channels of communication, social recognition, and the hierarchy of values laid down by the establishment.”
I. M. Jirous, “Report on the Third Czech Musical Revival” (1975) [click here for excerpt in English]
The Friday Ripple says: think “Iran”, think “SEXY!” Also, check out the 2-hour set of Iran’s hottest new underground tunes, which accompanies this article. You can stream it from the Radio Wave Jukebox audio archive. To listen, select Friday Ripple from the top menu, and click the show titled 09.09.2011. The full playlist looks like this:
25 Band - Puerto Rico(e)
B3hrad BK, Hamid & Sahra - Darajeye S3x
DJ Detective ft Hamed - Dokhte Ahvaz
Hirsa - Begoo Chi Mikhay
Mansour - Bari Bakh
Boom Box - Biya Baghalam
BoomBox - Aroosi
Barobax feat. Gamno - Oon Manam
Armin 2AFM - Khosh Be Halet
Reza Sadeghi - Saret Salamat
XaniaR - Oon
Gandom - To Injaee
Babak Jahanbakhsh - Bavar Kon
Googoosh - Respect (re-release 2011 – Secret Stash Records)
Googoosh - Song For Googoosh (re-release 2011 – Secret Stash Records)
Sina Hejazi - Good Night
Afshin - Doost Dokhtaram
Hamid Pouyan - Kashki Mano Yadet Biad
Amir Farjam - Leyli
TM Bax - Khoshkele Tehroon
Sharom - Gandab
Felex feat. Asal & Mahsa - Range Tan
Sahra feat. Hesam War - Daraje Sex 3
T1 - Boom Boom
Mohammad Esfahani - Bi Vajeh
Felex Ft Asal & Mahsa - Range Tan
25 Band - Bia Bia
Hossein Tohi - Mano in , Ino Man
Mehrpouy - Ghabileye Leyli
Shohreh - Cheshm Be Rah [Persian funk]
Mohsen Yeganeh - Yalan
Mohammad Rafigh - Be Hamin Sadegi (NVD Remix)
Peyman Amin & Amin Rostami - Joz Eshghe To
All songs are self-released except where otherwise noted.
If you enjoyed this music, why not go further back in the Friday Ripple archive for even more sexy, sexy Persian music?
