Ali Azimi; Of His ‘Love And Other Demons’

On the modest stage of Central Stage Theater, Berkeley, California, chants a coy savvy musician who developed a heady reputation with his hit song ‘Prelude’ (Pishdarāmad), back in 2014. Ali Azimi -musician, guitarist, singer and songwriter- once again steps into the limelight by showcasing his upcoming album ‘Of Love and Other Demons’ in a private crowd funding tour in America. His latest album recounts a character-driven, love-hate relationship story based on the artist’s real-life experiences from the very first track to the last.

“I’ve tried to capture certain feelings imperative of a love story – from falling in love and downright dedication, to heartfelt quarrels and separation. There’s an emphasis on sense and sensibility along with an effort to evade form, rhythm, melody and technique,” says Azimi over the phone down in L.A., where he visited after his finale.

Known for his oft-cited idiosyncratic Rock style, the new album sees him put his uncanny talents as a songwriter and lyricist to use in writing Persian Rock fusion, and more often than not, love songs. The album borrows its title from Gabriel Garcia Marquez’s renowned book (with discrepancy in ideology), which the artist has an affinity with since adolescence. “I was always infatuated with this book, and Marquez was -and still is- my idol,” he adds.

Azimi grew up in a musical environment where his grandfather, brother and cousins played musical instruments. He inherited a musical preference from his older brother who introduced him to bands and musicians far beyond his years such as Pink Floyd and Leonard Cohen. “I can still remember the first time I listened to Leonard Cohen’s ‘Bird on a Wire’ at the age of 11; it took me above the clouds and beyond,” he reminisces joyfully.

His first-hand acquaintance with guitar was at the age of 16 where he was trained as a classical instrumentalist under the tutelage of Kazem Moalem for a year, and later on continued practicing on his own. He began covering songs from well-known Iranian artists such as Faramarz Aslani, Farhad and Fereidoon Foroughi while writing poems and composing his own songs in early 21st century Iran where music was an underworld privilege.

Photo Courtesy of Bardia Sheibani

“I loved music for music’s sake. It got me through tough times and helped me tolerate society’s pain and pressure. Through music I could build this new untarnished world-a dreamlike world more beautiful than the reality I lived in; my own personal territory where I could freely express my emotional dilemmas and sorrows,” Azimi says.

His musical adventures took a serious turn for the better when he passed Tehran University’s entrance exam with flying colors in electrical engineering and formed a band with his fellow musician friends which took Iran’s musical scene by storm, winning first place in Tehran’s unprecedented Rock Music Festival and coining the term ‘underground music’ for the first time. Shortly after graduation, he left to London to pursue his Master’s degree.

“Suddenly my quotidian life in Tehran felt too suffocating and trivial. I’d always wanted to explore the world, so I set off to London, got my Mater’s, found a 9 to 5 job in an engineering firm and settled down; yet after a while, this new life also proved empty and dull,” he states.

Music beckoned once again; he paid a short visit home and ‘Radio Tehran’ music band flourished out of the collaboration of Azimi and his old jamming peers. The newly founded band hit a huge success and their first (and last) album ‘88’ cracked the billboards in 2009, marking a milestone in Iran’s rock music history. However, due to Azimi’s residency in England, the band had to take a break, hoping for an upcoming reunion in the future. Later on upon return, Azimi focused on his own solo project ‘Ali Azimi’ in England with a couple of experienced British musicians who took an immediate liking to his style.

Photo Courtesy of Danish Saroee

“I opened the door of collaboration in a bigger scale and targeted a wider audience; my English musicians with their Western musical mentality have contributed to my goal of coining a global Farsi Rock, while making my music sound Iranian through western musical instruments,” he explains, “there are lots of similar modulations in Eastern and Western music like Isfahan [Persian modal system] and Blues and with a formidable fusion, a broader spectrum can resonate to.”

His lyrics are immensely influenced by contemporary poets such as Shamloo and Taha Mohammad Ali (Palestinian poet) as he doesn’t actually relate to classical Persian poetry, finding them much exaggerated in the manner of expression and lacking honesty.

Azimi has composed his recent pieces in a way that ‘sound more Iranian’ due to his experiences combined with the contributions of the featured musicians, ‘resulting in an innovation in its kind’. Moreover, the new album (which will debut over the span of two years) has paved the way for a collaboration between British and Iranian musicians both inside and outside the country; an aspiring project whose fate predominantly depends on crowd funding and support for its survival.

The band will tour across Europe and America in 2019 to promote the album, embarking on an enthralling journey where roads never end for wandering vagabonds. “I don’t know what I’ll do in the long run. Improving the message delivered through my music and its quality, would be the definition of success in my life,” Azimi adds, “I want to tell my story through music: story of an immigrant; story of an outsider producing music for an audience reluctant to embrace its foreign tunes; story of a culture in crisis. This is the challenge I’m ready to take up until my last breath.”

Photo Courtesy of Danish Saroee
Photo Courtesy of Amin Khelghat
Cover photo courtesy of Amin Khelghat

Cover photo courtesy of Saman Shariati

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