Gachpaj

NA - Songlines Magazine

My last post was on photography. I got carried away though...and talked about everything, as if that never happens! Let me touch on music a bit...

I want to focus on a new band from Sharif University in Tehran. They only have a few track at this point. Let me warn you if you don't like Jazz, or Jazz fusions, you may not enjoy them. They are called G.CH.P.J (gachpaj) and they are neither professional, nor famous. There is one song though...Funeral...that just (Here's the link to download the music from their page.)

It's quite interesting the first couple of times that you listen to it...the lyrics seem satiric with a skeptical attitude towards life...the lead vocalist shouts: "Che Fayede, che fayede" which I guess best translates to: "Alas, alas, it's no use anymore. It's gone."

There is strong dry humor present seemingly from the cries, shouts and moans. It's in a recording room, but it's obviously a practice session. Still all that even makes it more real, more honest, and more into your face...It seems a lot like something that Namjoo would do (I got more on why Namjoo would probably never again do something as good, but that for later.) The tunes are catchy, and they get into your head...and in the few seconds after the last note is played the bunch shout and laugh loudly. There are countless elements of genuine feelings and impressions that you can get from this piece. It makes sort of connect easier with the artists's mood through their artwork.

There is another version of the same song, Live outdoor performance somewhere on University campus. This time, in the end of this version the lead vocalist says: "[we] dedicate [this song] to Amir, who is no longer among us."

Suddenly things 'make sense'...Notice the phrase I used here spontaneously...and quite carelessly. Things have started to fall into a logical framework when we found out that...all that general mood of frustration towards something that could not be changed that the track transfered the first time is indeed because the artists are frustrated at something that they can't change back. This is what I meant before when I said: "whether an art-form is about something or not, its artistic nature is not tied in what the art-form is actually about."In the case of former track, the emotions are strong enough, though the music composition is certainly not the best, that combined with the general mood of artists, and laughters after the practice, the piece conveys a feeling to you, it shows off, moving you slightly at least.

The song did make sense from the beginning, it's just that for a piece of art or music to make sense it doesn't have to be logical. It is just supposed to transfer its mood to you. It just has to show off to you its 'being' an art-form either with the mood of the original artist, or in the mood that your context of facing the art-form creates for it (Rap music track chiz is an example of this latter case, considering that it was made before the elections in Iran, but rose to prominence after when people started joking for Mousavi's lack of fluency due to his overuse of the half-word 'chiz.') - Siavash J

-Radio Program - Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty

-Video Interview

http://www.manoto1.com/Videos/sakkou7
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-bdAJDhfveo
- Manoto1 TV - Sakkou Program

-Audio Interview - Raha Faridi - BBC Persian Radio

Recently founded band, GachPaj (Persian: ?? ??) is a new one in its style through other rock musician bands in Iran. Rooted in Progressive Rock and the Punk Rock, the band showed a high talent for being a globally famous with sufficient audiences worldwide. Arash Fattahi as the band’s supervisor and as the one who kept the Gachpaj at its serious way to success, done well with the band while performed a solid/harmonize bass guitar to maintain admirable pieces and tracks. His efforts are highly appreciated because of all the complications he had to overcome. Using of two saxophones (Tenor and Alto) together instead of electric guitars, rendered an idealistic style in sub Punk/Rock root, which once venerated by the great musicians like John Zorn. Acoustic guitar performed by Sohrab is smoothing the ambience and provides a melodic companion with the rest of the band, like inspiring heavens his guitar sounds when he takes the lead of the band and beginning to resonating the strings… awesome On the drums, Pedram the young brought the essence of pure’70s rock music, powerful and with enough precision to pave the themes and to inject energy and groove into Gachpaj’s music. It is rare for one to become tired of his drums. He always knew what to do with his instrument and for a young man raised in Iran, this is incredible. And Finally about Hooman Hamedani I just have to say that he is totally unique in his style in Iran. While the task of tailoring Persian language for new styles of music became a barrier against the young musicians, Hooman proved that understanding of music\’s spirit is something different than the language problems so he used his voice as an instrument assisting the performance of the music. Gachpaj is one of the few bands in the country who deserves to be known in the world scale if the source of creativity still supplies them with such astonishing materials for releasing a complete album with decent record quality.

by Vahid Safavi - Bar-Ax