Jazzeast

When one thinks of Iranian music, rock, rap and reggae would surely take a back seat. However, in Tehran Avenue Music Open organised by Tehran-based website tehranavenue.com, these kinds of music will be played by the participating bands who aim to be Iran’s new talents.

Soheyl Shahsavari, an organiser, said that the responses from aspiring bands have been massive; but they decided to accept only 42 entries.

Although most participants come from Iran, some are from Sweden, France and Canada. The organisers allowed this as long as the bands have an Iranian connection.

One of the website’s key personalities, Shadi Vatanprast, said some of the participants already sound professional; while others need a lot of improvement.

“An interesting point about this year's participants is that there are all kinds of genres”, he said.

He added, “Last year it was only rock but now we have alternative rock, progressive rock, pop rock. This variety makes the competition more attractive".

One good thing is that reformist President Mohammad Khatami, who came to power in 1997, lifted some restrictions on live performances. Iran being an Islamic nation, there are still restrictions; but some have been eased.

Other than the restrictions, rock musicians in the country are hurdled because their audience is not familiar with new genres. Most of the live music played still feature classical Iranian music. Due to this, producers are reluctant to support other less-developed genres like rock and rap.

However, with Tehran Avenue Music Open, maybe this will soon change.