Aiken Promotions present ROSTAM – Midnight Show

ROSTAM

THE WORKMAN’S CLUB

SATURDAY, 16TH JUNE

MID-NIGHT SHOW

Rostam​ ​known​ ​for​ ​his​ ​work​ ​in​ ​Vampire​ ​Weekend​ ​and​ ​produced​ ​each​ ​of​ ​their​ ​three albums has release his debut album Half-Light last year. He will play a midnight show at The Workman’s Club, Saturday 16th June.  Tickets €16.50 includes booking fee available from Ticketmaster.ie and outlets Nationwide.

“It​ ​wasn’t​ ​until​ ​I​ ​had​ ​almost​ ​finished​ ​this​ ​album​ ​and​ ​I​ ​was​ ​trying​ ​to​ ​decide​ ​what​ ​I​ ​should​ ​call​ ​it that​ ​I​ ​took​ ​the​ ​time​ ​to​ ​look​ ​up​ ​the​ ​word​ ​’half-light,'”​ ​Rostam​ ​says​ ​of​ ​the​ ​album’s​ ​title.​ ​”That lyric,​ ​and​ ​a​ ​large​ ​part​ ​of​ ​that​ ​song,​ ​had​ ​come​ ​to​ ​me​ ​in​ ​a​ ​stream​ ​of​ ​consciousness​ ​sitting​ ​in​ ​front of​ ​a​ ​piano​ ​years​ ​ago,​ ​captured​ ​in​ ​a​ ​voice​ ​memo​ ​on​ ​my​ ​phone.​ ​I​ ​had​ ​never​ ​stopped​ ​to​ ​figure​ ​out what​ ​that​ ​word​ ​meant​ ​exactly.​ ​But​ ​when​ ​I​ ​read​ ​its​ ​definition,​ ​and​ ​found​ ​that​ ​it​ ​had​ ​a​ ​double meaning—that​ ​it​ ​referred​ ​to​ ​both​ ​dawn​ ​and​ ​dusk—I​ ​started​ ​to​ ​think​ ​of​ ​how​ ​those​ ​times​ ​of​ ​day are​ ​part​ ​of​ ​so​ ​many​ ​lyrics​ ​on​ ​this​ ​album.

“I​ ​was​ ​also​ ​struck​ ​by​ ​the​ ​fact​ ​that​ ​it​ ​was​ ​a​ ​word​ ​with​ ​a​ ​double​ ​meaning.​ ​That​ ​felt​ ​important​ ​to this​ ​record.​ ​It​ ​made​ ​me​ ​think​ ​back​ ​to​ ​a​ ​friend​ ​in​ ​Japan​ ​who​ ​told​ ​me​ ​that​ ​the​ ​word​ ​’double’​ ​was becoming​ ​more​ ​and​ ​more​ ​popular​ ​than​ ​’half’​ ​for​ ​people​ ​to​ ​describe​ ​their​ ​split​ ​ethnicities.​ ​Any person​ ​growing​ ​up​ ​in​ ​America​ ​with​ ​immigrant​ ​parents​ ​experiences​ ​this​ ​dichotomy,​ ​of​ ​feeling both​ ​double​ ​and​ ​half.​ ​It’s​ ​something​ ​a​ ​lot​ ​of​ ​us​ ​who​ ​identify​ ​as​ ​queer​ ​experienced​ ​growing​ ​up as​ ​well,​ ​slipping​ ​between​ ​straight​ ​and​ ​gay​ ​worlds,​ ​code-switching.​ ​I​ ​say​ ​experienced​ ​in​ ​the​ ​past tense​ ​because​ ​I​ ​don’t​ ​know​ ​that​ ​that’s​ ​the​ ​experience​ ​today’s​ ​kids​ ​will​ ​have.​ ​Things​ ​are changing,”​ ​he​ ​continues.

“I​ ​think​ ​what​ ​draws​ ​me​ ​to​ ​dawn​ ​and​ ​dusk​ ​as​ ​a​ ​songwriter​ ​is​ ​that​ ​those​ ​are​ ​the​ ​moments​ ​where we​ ​feel​ ​change​ ​deepest​ ​in​ ​a​ ​day.​ ​Those​ ​are​ ​the​ ​moments​ ​where​ ​I​ ​seem​ ​to​ ​experience​ ​the​ ​onset​ ​of a​ ​realization​ ​and​ ​the​ ​strongest​ ​feelings​ ​of​ ​optimism​ ​about​ ​the​ ​future.​ ​With​ ​this​ ​record,​ ​I’m trying​ ​to​ ​share​ ​some​ ​of​ ​those​ ​realizations​ ​and​ ​some​ ​of​ ​that​ ​optimism.”

Editors notes: Grammy​ ​Award–winning​ ​songwriter​ ​and​ ​producer​ ​Rostam​ ​Batmanglij​ ​was​ ​born​ ​to​ ​Iranian refugee​ ​parents​ ​in​ ​Washington,​ ​DC,​ ​in​ ​1983.​ ​He​ ​attended​ ​Columbia​ ​University,​ ​where​ ​he studied​ ​classical​ ​music​ ​and​ ​simultaneously​ ​focused​ ​on​ ​songwriting,​ ​recording,​ ​and​ ​production in​ ​his​ ​own​ ​time.​ ​In​ ​his​ ​last​ ​year​ ​at​ ​Columbia,​ ​he​ ​began​ ​producing​ ​the​ ​first​ ​full-length​ ​album​ ​of his​ ​career,​ ​Vampire​ ​Weekend’s​ ​self-titled​ ​debut.​ ​That​ ​album​ ​would​ ​be​ ​the​ ​first​ ​of​ ​the​ ​band’s three​ ​gold​ ​records​ ​with​ ​Rostam​ ​as​ ​producer.  

Rostam​ ​announced​ ​his​ ​departure​ ​from​ ​Vampire​ ​Weekend​ ​in​ ​the​ ​beginning​ ​of​ ​2016.​ ​By​ ​the​ ​end of​ ​that​ ​year​ ​he​ ​had​ ​contributed​ ​songwriting​ ​and​ ​production​ ​to​ ​several​ ​of​ ​the​ ​most​ ​important albums​ ​of​ ​the​ ​year—including​ ​Frank​ ​Ocean’s​ ​​Blonde​,​ ​Solange’s​ ​​A​ ​Seat​ ​at​ ​the​ ​Table​,​ ​and​ ​a collaborative​ ​full​ ​length​ ​with​ ​The​ ​Walkmen’s​ ​Hamilton​ ​Leithauser;​ ​a​ ​playlist​ ​of​ ​his​ ​entire production​ ​discography​ ​is​ ​available​ ​on​ ​​Spotify​ ​​and​ ​​Apple​ ​Music​.

Rostam will play a midnight show in The Workman’s Club on Saturday, 16th June (+18s)

Tickets available now from Ticketmaster.ie and outlets Nationwide