Discover the Underground Sounds of Iran Through Beshknow Radio

Building a bridge between east and west, independent online radio station Beshknow champions Iran’s underground music scene to the world. Based in Tehran, the station’s collective of likeminded DJs, producers and musicians is determined to expand listeners’ taste in music.

The Beshknow team is currently working on a special project – Ars Electronica Garden Tehran. This “online sonic garden” curated by Beshknow Radio showcases Iranian artists from all around the world over five days. Running from Wednesday 8 September to Sunday 12 September, it’s part of Ars Electronica festival out of Austria, which showcases talent from more than 80 other locations around the globe.

Ars Electronica Garden Tehran is touted as an opportunity to “lay down on a Persian rug and fly over the country of Iran, listening 24/7 to the real sound of the city accompanied by hours of field recordings, as well as a big bite of electronic music from an abstract point of view”.

Sounds inviting. So tune into the sounds of Beshknow right here as we ask co-founder Farzan Badie for more info…

What inspired you to co-found Beshknow and what’s the station’s music policy?

Ever since I was a young boy, having a radio station was my dream. In Iran we had electronic music platforms and Iranian pop music radio stations, but no 24/7 live stream radio station to cover a wide range of musical styles.

Seizing this opportunity, my old friend Dariush Sardari and I decided to start a radio station which plays tunes every day suitable to the time of the day – like morning, sunset or midnight. We show off different styles of music from reggae to world music in the morning, jazzy sounds at sunset, more chill, downtempo and ambient sounds during the night and add dance music for the weekends.

Since launching Beshknow in 2016, what are the biggest challenges you’ve had to overcome at the station?

Owning a radio station and working with music in Iran is an everyday challenge because of all the censorship and rules we have to obey. But this made us work even harder with our team mates to make different shows that get around governmental regulations. This helped us gain more experience in the industry.

What Beshknow developments are you most proud of?

By collaborating with some of the top platforms in the industry, we’ve made international appearances every year since 2018. Attending CTM Festival in Berlin, in 2018, is one of the highlights. It was so joyful to introduce Beshknow to the world while making so many good friends.

How does Beshknow support Iranian musicians and artists?

Through our collaborations, we have listeners from all over the world. By selecting and airing the best Iranian artists and sounds on Beshknow we are giving them an opportunity to be heard worldwide.

What’s surprising about the music scene in Tehran?

The electronic music scene is growing so fast in Tehran nowadays that every day we see new platforms working, different projects and styles starting up. Because of this, we are witnessing so many cool things happening in the city, as well as some real underground events that you won’t even see in Berlin.

Which three Iranian artists should we have on our radar?

Siamak Amidi and Salar Ansari have done great over the last few years both in the studio and on stage. Known for his unique drums and acid sounds, Siamak controls the crowd for long periods of time when he’s DJing.

Salar has great taste in music, incredible knowledge and engineering skills. He can turn his hand to a wide range of sounds, from jazzy to ambient and techno. Salar had a big win at this year’s Detroit Music Awards

The third artist is Keyvan Moosavi. He has created some really good deep and techy sounds over the past three years.

Tell us more about Ars Electronica Garden Tehran

Ars Electronica Garden Tehran is about the sound of Tehran in both realistic and abstract ways. The atmosphere of Tehran is in some ways incomparable with its past. One of the key features of Tehran is its diverse cultural, economic and architectural urban textures. There’s real variety in artistic and cultural events in today’s Tehran. This can be heard in its soundscapes.

Ars Electronica sits somewhere between art, culture, music, science and life – it is beyond a singular discipline. We believe that being surrounded by different cultures, sights and disciplines makes us grow.

Why is it important for you personally to champion Iranian artists?

Considering Iran’s situation during recent years with all the sanctions, the troubled economy and rising prices on a daily basis, life for artists is becoming more and more difficult. With black market high rates for necessary work tools and expensive work space rent, many artists are forced to live a hard life. However, we still see talented artists with minimum facilities producing top-class music without having the chance to perform publicly. They are currently active only in the underground. I have utmost respect for these artists and they deserve to be heard worldwide.

As a DJ and producer, what do you have in the pipeline?

In September I will play a two-hour DJ set for Ars Electronica festival, which will air online on their website. In October I will play a show on London’s Soho Radio. I’m working on some tracks that will hopefully be finished by the end of the year. And, Covid permitting, I’m hoping to DJ at some events in Europe over the winter.

What does the future hold for Beshknow?

We’re working on a Beshknow mobile app, which is a huge challenge for us due to all the US sanctions and difficulties we are facing with the App Store. If Coronavirus allows us, we will attend CTM Festival in Berlin next year. And we will continue making good friends in this amazing industry all around the world.

Also read: Former Dubai Resident Salar Ansari Scoops Detroit Music Award