Rostam recruits Clairo for new album American Stories, shares lead single "Like A Spark"

It's the first time on a record, Batmanglij has looked to fully explore his Iranian roots, incorporating microtonal melodies and instrumentation from the region into a framework of Western guitar chords and song structures. “Pushing the most Iranian elements right up against the most American ones brought me a certain kind of joy,” Batmanglij says. “The first time I put microtonal saz melodies over Western guitar chords, I was thrown off by the way the two rubbed together. But the more I listened the more I became drawn to that rub. I became addicted to it.”

The album sees Batmanglij playing acoustic guitar, piano, drums and percussion, with his vocals accompanied by a cast of contributors including Iranian-American musician Amir Yaghmai (The Voidz) on saz, violin and guitar, and Clairo on the track “Hardy”.

The album’s artwork features an image of the American flag presented upside down, a symbol Batmanglij notes has been used by groups across the political spectrum. “It’s a symbology that’s shared by all these groups and yet could mean different things to each of us,” he said. “I’m interested in that conversation; that conversation is fundamentally American.”

Alongside the record, Batmanglij has also premiered a video for new single “Like a Spark” taken from forthcoming concert film due this Spring. Shot at Sound City Studio A in Los Angeles – a space synonymous with sessions for Nirvana, Fleetwood Mac and Tom Petty – the film sees him perform with a six-piece band, live without click tracks or playback.

Batmanglij will tour North America from late May before bringing the band to the UK and Europe in September; a London date at Village Underground is scheduled for 8 September.

American Stories artwork

American Stories tracklist

“Like a Spark”
“Back of a Truck”
“Different Light”
“Hardy”
“Forgive Is To Know”
“To Feel No Way”
“The Road to Death”
“Come Apart”
“The Weight”