“What’s funny is after the show is how the manager of the Highline ballroom was going at me and telling me my time here in NYC is finished and that he’s going to see to it that no one ever play me ever again. The irony is I’ve received more press and bookings as a consequence of standing on my ground.”
Of course things are never quite that simple for this underground rocker. According to Iranian press where Zand originally hails from, the Iranian ministry of culture has issued a statement banning him from ever returning to Iran and labeling him as Western and Satanic. Nice work if you can get it we guess…
Catching up with Kayvon Zand by phone recently he had this to offer:
“What’s frustrating is NYC was once the place where all the artistic greats came out of and now it’s all been so corporatized. The fact that the Highline ballroom tried to sequester my work to their tastes was an affront to the integrity of my own work and is emblemic of the prevailing trend of pushing the arts into a homogeneous box. Which raises the question- why create, why perform in the first place if as artists we have to placate institutions first. Oblige their morality, their point of view?
It used to be you criticized the institutions not did everything they told you. Is it any wonder the energy in the scene is where it is at?”
Asked where from here Mr Zand once again paused and replied- “I’m sticking to my guns. Ultimately I’m a performer, what you see on stage is what you get off stage, I’m very accessible and I make no bones about anything. I just think if you’re going to host a performer- be aware there’s a reason why you’re hiring that performer- it comes down to our own spunk and performance.”
Even if one assumes you end up getting banned from the NYC scene by offended sensibilities, never mind the offended sensibilities of the Iranian Cultural Ministry...
Kayvon Zand- Marilyn Manson’s and Elvis Presley’s Love Child.
I have seen the fire people Kayvon works with live and on their own at WebsterHall in NYC.for Halloween during the Virgin Sacrifice ,Yo that show is off the hook,good going Kayvon great choice of performers .
I also came across a youtube site for the fire performers during a google search dealing with Kayvon Zand and them .
ya’ll rock
http://www.youtube.com/skysex
Oh my,I saw The New York Post Article and I have to agree my favorite part of the show was during the last song finale if you will called kill the priest !,
I love the girl that stands on her head and goes into the lotus position while her partner dressed as a priest in makeup goes down on her during the show .,my fav of all times that couple is seriously hot.
oh damn
he is on to something. I call it now, future star.