SIAVASH

When Siavash Shams introduced himself to the public with his first album, Hamsayeh Haa (Neighbors) in 1985, many believed that a new wave of Iranian popular music had been born. His first public appearance was recorded by members of the Iranian community in the U.S. who had fled their homeland after the Islamic Revolution. On a video program made for Iranian New Year celebrations, the young singer dressed completely in Western style, sang trance- and club-style music, and danced with a group in a decidedly Western way; such a display had never been seen before in Iranian music...