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Bit of a strange one this as it’s billed as the original soundtrack to the film set in Tehran’s underground rock scene. Tehran’s rock scene? Regular listeners to the World Service will know there’s more to the Iranian music scene than Dr. Jahanshah Broumand (O.K. he’s not rock but he apparently he’s popular in the classical sense).

So the CD is dominated by five tracks by the less than promisingly named band, Take It Easy Hospital (perhaps it’s lost in translation?) featuring the vocals of Ashkan Koosha (short for Kooshanejad); this follows the plot of the film. “Recently released from prison, two young musicians - a man and a woman - decide to form a band” so they seek like minds in the Terhan underworld and of you go.

Well the underground proves to be quite safe (musically) judging by this. ‘Human Jungle’ is like Hot Chip in 80s nu-wave mode and ‘Chasing The Sun’ (male vocal) and ‘My Sleepy Fall’ (female vocal) are closer to Radio 2 pop ballad. These songs are sung in English but they then save the album when they don’t sing in English with ‘Me And You’ (Me Va To) with a soft-Doors/Stranglers organ and the acoustic gloom instrumental ‘They Sing’ that’s got a touch of The Chieftains about it with the penny whistle.

Outside of this, there’s the gentle chill of ‘Emshab’ with the very husky vocal of Mirza (probably influenced by Chris Rea) but even such benign (to UK audiences) influences isn’t condoned by the Iranian authorities; this is rebel music; and like Rai or Ethio-jazz, it’s the added local flavours added to the mix that make this album work. Dar Kub’s ‘DK’ is like an Iran-blues and the opening title music is more what you’d imagine is traditional musical fare as are the last two tracks; ‘Fekr’ with the guitar riff that’s as rockin’ as we get and ‘Gereftari’, featuring Bahman Ghobadi himself (and if that’s him singing, I’m even more impressed). And if this is ‘bad’, how brave is the rap of the opener?

The film is a bit of Ken Loach as it’s based on real events and the lives of young musicians in Tehran. Nobody in their right mind (so we’re lead to believe) is up for criticizing the Iranian government through film, music or any other medium so even if this isn’t exactly Jubilee, Bahman Ghobadi is to be applauded. If this is what it’s like in ‘modern’ Iran, what must it have like under the Taliban when they were in charge down the road?

The film is released on Thursday (26th March) and it sounds like it’s more entertaining than the last ‘international’ film I went to (see links below).

If Iran had made the World Cup, Gilles Peterson’s Soundclash Special the other week could have chosen quite a few of these tracks as representative and luckily, if you want more, this months’ Songlines has a 14 track Iranian Underground bonus cover disc (featuring a very different version of ‘Me & You’ by Pouya Mahmoodi)

The stars of the film, Negar Shaghaghi and Ashkan are now based in London so expect to hear and see more of Take It Easy Hospital; better call the paramedics?

Reviewed: V/A - Les Chats Persans (Original Soundtrack) (Warner) Release date: 22nd March 2010
1. Hichkas - Ekhtelaf (3:44)
2. Take It Easy Hospital feat. Ashkan Koosha - Human Jungle (3:42)
3. Take It Easy Hospital feat. Ashkan Koosha - They Sing (3:28)
4. Take It Easy Hospital feat. Ashkan Koosha - Chasing The Sun (2:43)
5. Take It Easy Hospital feat. Ashkan Koosha - Me And You (3:14)
6. Take It Easy Hospital feat. Ashkan Koosha - My Sleepy Fall (2:43)
7. Mirza - Emshab (6:06)
8. Dar Kub - DK (7:00)
9. Shervin Najafian - Opening Title (3:50)
10. Hamed Seyed Javadi - Fekr (8:49)
11. Maddyar Aqhajani feat. Bahman Ghobadi - Gereftari (2:17)

Links:
“We can expect No One Knows About Persian Cats to do for Iranian music waht Buena Vista Social Club did for Cuban music” nespresso.com
www.songlines.co.uk April/May 2010 Iranian Underground
www.bar-ax.com
Gilles Peterson :: 3rd March 2000 :: Brownswood Basement World Cup Special
The Headless Woman Review. Movie Reviews - Film - Time Out - “! had to look up the film length on my blackberry halfway through” www.timeout.com/film/reviews/85794/the-headless-woman.html