Now-Again Records

Video: Kourosh “Niyayesh” (1977)

With the exception of those that we shot for Brazilian superstar Seu Jorge and those that our Swiss friend Dimlite occasionally assembles, we infrequently present videos here at Now-Again. And, with the exception of the True Soul Revue TV Pilot from 1973, which provided the fodder for our True Soul bonus DVDs, we almost never have footage from our reissue projects.

Which makes this 1977 video for Kourosh’s “Niyayesh” – uncovered and restored by our friend Dario Margeli at irannostalgia.com – that much more amazing. Yes, it’s a simple video: Kourosh, on a Tehran sound stage, lip synching the words to a song about one man’s amazement of life’s wonders and what will happen to him after his passing. But “Niyayesh” was one of the last videos Kourosh filmed before the Islamic Revolution occurred. Thus, its a wonder that this footage survived at all – and we’re left with a fleeting image of the artist in his prime.

Kourosh’s “Back From The Brink: Pre-Revolution Psychedelic Rock From Iran 1973-1979”

Earlier this year, we announced that we’d be releasing our anthology of Iranian rock godfather Kourosh Yaghmaei’s Pre-Revolution recordings in three formats… and we promised details in “a few weeks.” Well, it’s been a few months – sorry! – but we’re finally ready: Kourosh Yaghmaei – Back From The Brink is now available as a hardbound 2CD/book, a 6panel/3LP (with book) and 4×7″ box set (again, with book).

The details are:

Buy 2/CD: 2 discs in a hardbound 52-page book full of liner notes, full annotation, rare photos and ephemera. Note: CD version contains songs not available on vinyl; text is in English only.
Buy 3/LP: 3 records housed in a 2-panel jacket and comes with a download card for all audio and also a 28-page book full of liner notes, full annotation, rare photos and ephemera. Note: CD version contains some songs not available on vinyl; text is in English only.
Buy 4×7” Box Set: Exact reproductions of the 4 picture-sleeve 7” singles Kourosh released before the Revolution, housed in a magnet-clasped box and comes with a 44-page book full of liner notes, full annotation, rare photos and ephemera. Note: text is in English only.

So – if you’re at all interested in psychedelic rock recorded on the fringe, dropped at the brink of the abyss, and brought back in its stereophonic glory, click above and buy. You’re supporting the only officially licensed compilation of Yaghmaei’s work on the market. But, if you need more reasons, check out some photos of the various packages below. And download a sample track – “Hajme Khali” – which first appeared on our Forge Your Own Chains anthology.

Download: Kourosh Yaghmaei “Hajme Khali.”

Kourosh – Back From The Brink: Pre-Revolution Psychedelic Rock From Iran

Buy it here

CD Tracklist:

Disc One:
1. Gole Yakh (Winter Sweet)
2. Dar Enteha (At The End)
3. Hajme Khali (Empty Bulk)
4. Paiz (Autumn)
5. Leila (Same)
6. Del Dareh Pir Misheh (My Heart is Getting Old )
7. Akhm Nakon (Don’t Frown)
8. Shirin Joon (Dear Shirin)
9. Ghazal (Gazelle)
10. Tavalode Yek Seda (Birth Of A Sound)
11. Saghe (Stalk)
12. Entezar (Waiting)
13. Niyayesh (Praise)
14. Saraabe Toe (Your Mirage)
15. Reyhan (Same)
16. Baroona (Rains)
Disc Two:
17. Mosafere Shahre Baran (The Traveler Of Rain-Town)
18. Khaar (Thistle)
19. Havar Havar (Shout Shout) Tak Derakht (Single Tree)
20. Ashiooneh (Nest)
21. Bachehaye Khoobe Koocheh (The Good Children of the Street)
22. Akhtare Asemanha ( The Star of the Sky )
23. Kei Toe Miayee (When Will You Come)
24. Share Cheshmat (The City of Your Eyes)
25. Dokhtare Delkhasteye Shahr (The Heartbroken Town Girl)
26. Daas (Scythe)
27. Ghahr (Sulk)
28. Aabere Shab (Night Passenger)
29. Ghad Boland (Tall)
30. Kei Toe Miayee (When Will You Come)

LP Tracklist:

As above, excerpting these songs: Mosafere Shahre Baran, Akhtare Asemanha, Share Cheshmat, Dokhtare Delkhasteye Shahr, Daas, Ghahr, Aabere Shab, Ghad Boland, Kei Toe Miayee

7″ Box Set:

Contains faithful reproductions of Kourosh’s 4 7″ singles: “Gole Yakh/Del Dareh Pir Misheh,” “Leila/Paiz,” “Hajme Khali/Akhm Nakon,” “Saraabe Toe/Dar Enteha”

Original sessions produced by Kourosh Yaghmaei.
This anthology produced by Egon.
Art direction by Errol Richardson.
Restoration and remastering by Sean C. and Dave Cooley.

NA 5066 (CD), NA 5079 (LP), NA 5082 (7″ Box Set)

Download high res cover art here.

Sneak Peak – Our Anthology of Kourosh Yaghmaei’s Pre-Revolution Iran Psych Coming Soon!

We’re pleased to announce that we’ve approved the samples of hardbound, full color book – and, of course, 2 CD set – of the complete Pre-Revolution recordings of Iranian psych-rock godfather Kourosh Yaghmaei. We’ll be posting more information about this anthology – and the two vinyl formats in which we will present Kourosh’s music – in the coming weeks. In the meantime, read more at the links below and, if you haven’t already purchased our Forge Your Own Chains anthology of global psychedelia, download Kourosh’s entry on that album – the masterful “Hajme Khali” – below.

More: Kourosh Yaghmaei on Now-Again.
Download: Kourosh Yaghmaei “Hajme Khali.”

New York Daily News Investigates Psych Funk: “….Now-Again Travels The Globe To Capture Far-Flung Psychedelia.”

We’re pleased to announce that the New York Daily News was so impressed by our investigations into global psychedelic funk music that they dedicated an article to it. Alongside discussions about our forthcoming Indonesian psych-funk compendium Those Shocking Shaking Days, writer Jim Farber had this to say:

“As it turns out, psychedelia’s glow didn’t only affect musicians in its clichéd epicenters but in places as far off as Ghana, Tehran and Manila all through the ’70s.

Only lately, though, has the full scope of these sounds come to light, many through the efforts of a company called Now-Again Records. Indian-American owner Eothen Alapatt began putting out collections of this swirling music in 2009 with “Forge Your Own Chains: Heavy Psychedelic Ballads and Dirges 1968 to 1974.” It featured mind-bending cuts by period acts born in Colombia, Sweden, South Korea and elsewhere. From there, the company started traipsing the world, territory by territory, to issue in the last year alone collections by psych bands centered in India, Zambia and Indonesia…

…f ew have exceeded Now-Again’s eagerness and breadth, not to mention their sumptuous packaging and obsessively detailed liner notes.”