Outing Iran: Kiosk

A reader writes:

Hey, thanks for posting so many great Iranian songs!  The band Kiosk has made a lot of nice pop records in recent years. I think they produced a lot of them in Iran, but they've since move to the West. Some of their lyrics are political, but there are others that simply poetic tunes about love and life.

From Wikipedia:

Kiosk was founded in a basement in Tehran [in 1990]. Like many other bands in Iran, they had to set up their studios literally in the underground basements of friends and families, fearing of the Islamic regime’s constant surveillance.

The name of the band comes from the original formation of the group when its members were gathering together in any possible place to play their music with the fear of getting arrested by the Islamic regime in Iran. Any little part of Tehran could be their Kiosk to get together, to separate from their surrounding environment and to share the ecstatic pleasure of playing together.

Kiosk has never been limited by music style or location. They continue to evolve and experiment by using music and lyrics to express itself and to connect to its worldwide audience. Kiosk’s distinct characteristic is their unique and innovative way of expressing cultural and social problems in a blend of blues, country and Persian music, a combination which creates something original and outstanding. Kiosk has released three albums, all of which are illegal in Iran.

Kiosk has been based in the US since 2006, with some of its members living in San Francisco and Seattle, where their studio is way on the ground. Their immigration to the US didn’t stop them from talking about the political and cultural problems in Iran.

More music videos here, here, and here.