There is no success like failure
And failure is no success at all. – Bob Dylan*

Let’s think about the situation of independent music in Iran. TehranAvenue has never claimed that it is the Mecca for such music. TehranAvenue is an on-line magazine that sets up a festival almost every year at its own expense.

Perhaps I should offer my view of independent music in Iran, even though we have all formed our own, to make things clear. Besides musicians and their audience, Rock music needs three other parameters to succeed and what, in countries where the government doesn’t attempt to offer “guidance” to the public, constitutes the music industry: 1/ music clubs or venues where such music is performed; 2/ radio and television; 3/ recording and distribution companies. We can safely say that the first two parameters are nonexistent in Iran, and the third is almost nonexistent – of course in the musical domain intended here.

Another issue is the state of Iranian bands. It is enough to look at the members of some of the best known (outside pop music) bands and we will find out that most bands don’t have permanent or regular musicians. In truth, several musicians make the rounds in these bands and only the lead singer is fixed. Imagine if {Jimmy Hendrix}, just because he was a good guitar player, had played with some or most of the rock bands of his time.

Of course we shouldn’t forget that the three parameters mentioned above directly affect the financial situation of the bands and as such they lead to the creation, or lack thereof, of more bands. But there is no doubt that rock music needs “bands” as we have come to know them.

Now, given the state of independent music, we have an on-line festival every year, but, interestingly, as soon as this festival goes live, those who are active in this domain start to criticize the process. When people enter a contest of this sort they must accept its preconditions in full or they must see more benefits to them than they see harm. In the Call for the Submission of Works, the organizers of TAMF had laid out its general policies (that a selection process would be in order and that the organizers were free to choose works slated for the competition section). Moreover, the condition of internet lines in Iran makes it very difficult for most to download even one track, let alone 86. Not many are willing to listen to this many tracks and then choose among them. Also, what festival does anyone know where all the participants can have a chance to make their work public. TehranAvenue has given independent bands a space to offer the fruit of their works, even if they are left outside the competition.

A criticism that many of us (including the writer) has leveled on TAMF is that the Selection Committee may not have been the best qualified to judge what should enter the competition or not, that their selection was colored by their prejudices. But here too, we can argue that there are not many qualified musicians to make this selection in the first place and that, again, when we enter a competition we are accepting the policies set out by the organizers. Besides, the internet is not the exclusive domain of TehranAvenue. Others also have the freedom to set up their own contests.  

Perhaps it is best to remind ourselves of the situation of music in Iran and hope that TehranAvenue would go ahead with its competition next year. We can also hope that those interested would enter the fray and arrange their own festivals, so that countless other bands could find an outlet. We can also wishfully hope for the music situation in Iran to improve so that the interaction of bands and their audience can increase, for bands to be able to have an income, and for the quality of such music in Iran to improve.