Two countries at war. Rostam’s 'American Stories' belongs to both.

About this episode

Rostam discusses his album 'American Stories' and its reflection of his dual cultural identity amidst current events.

The pedal steel and the saz both live in the spaces between equal-tempered notes, and that gap is where Rostam built American Stories . Rostam joined Vampire Weekend at Columbia in 2006, produced the band's first three albums, and after leaving in 2016 made records with Clairo and Haim you can identify as his within a few bars. His solo album, American Stories , reflects his experience as an American whose family is from Iran. He came into the studio this past March, just after the United States launched military operations there. It's a record that asks us to listen between two cultures. SONGS DISCUSSED Rostam "Like a Spark" Wilco "What Light" HAIM "Summer Girl" Rostam "Back of a Truck" Bob Dylan "Like a Rolling Stone" Bob Dylan "Don't Think Twice, It's All Right" The Supremes "You Keep Me Hangin' On" Lou Reed "Perfect Day" Rostam "Forgive Is to Know" Rostam "Hardy" (ft. Clairo) Clairo “Sophia” Hamilton Leithauser + Rostam “A 1000 Times” David Bowie "I Can't Give Everything Away" Rostam "The Road to Death" Rostam "Come Apart" Rostam "Campus (Original Version)" Rostam "The Weight" Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

People in this episode

Host: Switched on Pop

Guest: Rostam

Topics covered

• music
• cultural identity
• Iran
• American stories
• Rostam
• Vampire Weekend

Keywords

• Rostam
• American Stories
• Vampire Weekend
• music
• cultural identity
• Iran
• interview

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Vampire Weekend

Books & works: American Stories, Like a Spark, What Light, Summer Girl, Back of a Truck, Like a Rolling Stone, Don't Think Twice, It's All Right, You Keep Me Hangin' On, Perfect Day, Forgive Is to Know

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