Ariya

Ariya formed in Tehran in 1987 with Alireza Eftekhari on vocals, Mehdi Rajaian on guitar, Alireza Shahidipour on bass, and Pejvak Jamshidi on drums. They played heavy metal at a time when the Iranian government considered the genre un-Islamic, which meant dealing with bans and having instruments confiscated.

Their 1997 album 'Antikhrist' became a flashpoint. The title track was heard as a critique of religious extremism, and conservative religious leaders denounced it as blasphemous.

They managed to build a reputation that eventually reached outside Iran, playing at some international festivals. Their sound mixed heavy metal with Persian melodic touches, heard on tracks like 'Angel'skaia pyl'' and 'Ballada o drevnerusskom voine'.