TOURAJ - ME WITHOUT YOU, THE SPRING WITHOUT YOU VINYL (2LP GATEFOLD)

2LP VINYL GATEFOLD

Release Date: 29th April 2022

"Iran. A space of projections, of dreams and of fears. On TV, we see pictures of women wearing hijabs and turban wearing men. “Axis of Evil”, nuclear threat, we have all heard the buzz words. But those who look further, quickly encounter a fetishized idea of Iran. East-western divan, Hafiz, Avicenna. Mosques in bright turquoise, culturally interested travellers. A bit better, but a projection still, two-dimensional at best. But Iran is also a country filled with a rich history of pop culture: especially the years before 1979 are knows as the “golden years” of Iranian pop that developed out of influences from European and USAmerican art in the 1960s. Western pop compositions collided with traditional Iranian song writing, Persian lyricism with harmonies inspired by Western genres such as classical music or even psychdelica. Artists like Viguen, Googoosh, or Fereydoun Farrokhzad established pop music in Iran Understanding the extent and reasons for the influence of Western symbols of pop art in Iranian culture, given the political, cultural and social conditions of Iran requires careful research. As some studies in the field of pop music in Iran show, this issue has been more dependent on the political, social and political developments in Iran than on the well-known pop stars, until the revolution of 1979 put an end to this culture – to this day, women’s singing is banned and heavily regulated."