Kuadrumana against restrictions

BRUTALISM is supporting metal without borders. So when Hamedfetusgrinder (myspace.com/hamedfetusgrinder) of PSDM/IRDM (myspace.com/psdmirdmofficial) asked me to interview the Iranian band Kuadrumana, I said yes. I only heard two songs of the band and visited their Myspace page before I got these questions. Please read and support the band.

Please give us a short introduction of yourself?
Hi, my name is Hossein Yekband and I'm the lead guitarist of KUADRUMANA.

But you are a 5 piece so please introduce the other 4?
Ok, Ahmad Motamed is the front man, on the guitars we have Ardavan Nikaeen, Mohammad Rahimi is the bass player, and we have Reza Jan Bozorgi on drums.

Kuadrumana is a word I never heard of so please explain what it is or what it means?
The word kuadrumana actually get from "Quadrumana" in Latin meaning "the four-handed ones". In simple it's a term used for apes since they do not have feet attached to their legs as humans do. Naturalists have placed man in the same order with the Quadrumana, under the title of the Primates.

Visiting your page I see you are from Iran. How is the metal scene in Iran? Can you be metal in public or underground?
Professional metal scene in Iran is really young and got a history of less than a decade. Unfortunately it's so much hopeless but full of great potentials. There are many many active bands who seeks the fantasy of rock n' roll without having sufficient and professional equipment, without any good connections and places to represent their stuff, so there's no chance of even being heard.
Iranians people is not that open to everything specially after the Islamic revolution, and metal is one of those things that entered and became as a bad cultural western symbols or to put it better even like a taboo in some points.
Ofcourse you can not be metal in public, or else you will hurt!!! You'll get labeled as satanist, blood-minded and funny stuff like that!
There are hundreds of metal heads all over the country working underground. They have to live like some deportees! and finally playing couple of hours of metal songs with freedom...

Iran is not know for freedom in all kind of things according us foreigners. How do you look against this? Do you accept the restrictions made by the government?
Indeed. In many points of view the goverment has no restrictions, but when you start to work you reallize that there's more than restrictions behind the whole subject. Specially in the subject of unmoral music (the term that usually use by goverment for metal music). Iranian musicians have had a little bit of freedom back to around 2001.. I remember that time there was couple of controlled concerts in some big cities and capital, but the artist should pass through hundreds of paper works and accept some stupid conditions! like NO VOCALS! NO HEAD BANGING! NO SIGNS OR SYMBOLS(devil's horn)! NO VIOLENT and many more...
Situation even got worst for the metal and rock musicians, right now you can not do any legal thing as a metal band. No album release, no live concerts... nothing.



How do you obtain metal music? The post is openend and checked so is there another way to get CDs or Tshirts?
Basically there's always some music lovers who brought CDs, T-shirts, DVDs n' stuff.. We have tons of metal music archives and video clips over here! so there's no limit in it!!! BUT you can not find a Metallica album in a music store in Iran! There's always other ways to find CDs, like downloading 'em from the internet!

And how is the internet spread in Iran? Do you have free access to all sites or restricted like in China?
It's been more than a decade that iranians are using it. Internet speed is really slow and cheap here... but we dont have access to all of the sites! Trust me it's worst than China, now we dont have many Persian rock and metal forums, blogs.. and Myspace, Facebook, Twitter.

So if you have an internet connection you can meet new bands and people. Do you seek for their help on your band?
Of course I do! But with the problems that I told you before its kinda exhausting. Promoting the band with presenting our songs and meet new fans.

One of the main goals for a band is to play live. How does this concerns Kuadrumana? In what kind of places do you play? Are those gigs controlled?
If you can get a permit to play a live concert it would be a controlled concert. Actually we have had a plan to perform live in a music institue hall! Got 80% of our tickets sold! And 2 days before the show the goverment cancelled it. Anywhere would be great. We fuckin' love the stage!

And what about the possibilities to play in a foreign country? Do you get a visum to travel to other countries?
Yes, We have been invited twice to SXSW music festival in Austin TX! Instead of all the problems its really hard for a band from Iran which is an axis of evil country to get a visa.

Do tell something about your music? How is it written? How does what and what are the topics you sing about?
I can't describe it in words! If I could I would wrote a book! In sum for our first album I can say it protests the limits in progress and prohibition in Iran and the glaucoma of the people's thoughts.

If I was a deaf person how would you describe your songs?
Never thought about it! In general music is beautiful, Specially when it talks about the pain n' agonies that we used to bear em every single second, Talking about execrations is a beautiful gruesome thing by itself!

Which bands are the main influences? Do you learn from them how to make your own songs?
Pantera, Machine Head, Sepultura, Metallica, Carcass & Death...
Yes, I guess humans are always about to learn. Every music gives you a new idea that could be an original start.

What do you do to improve yourself as a musician/songwriter?
Working on my flaws is the best solution for me. Hours of playing guitar and listening to music for imporving myself. A good musician is the one who is a good listener.

What are the goals for the future?
Finding a record label and having our debut album released. Getting gigs and exposing the band. Promoting Kuadrumana as the Future of an Iranian Metal band.

Last rites?
We would like to share our music with all of the metal heads all over the planet.
Thank you very much.
Stay true.