Formed in 2018 by guitarist Salar Alizadeh, Sargas began as an instrumental death/groove metal project before evolving into a blackened/death metal band. Despite facing significant challenges in their homeland of Iran, the band carved out a unique melancholic and doomy atmosphere, blending Eastern melodies with dark, atmospheric metal. Their debut album Historia is a profound exploration of life, death, and the harsh realities faced by women in the Third World, inspired by both Western and Persian literature. Sargas stands as a pioneer of post-black metal in Iran, delivering raw emotion and poignant storytelling through their powerful compositions.
Serial Metalbums: To begin, can you introduce Sargas to those who may not yet be familiar with your music? Tell us about the origins of the band, the story behind its formation, and how you all came together in Iran's underground metal scene.
Pouya: Sargas formed in 2018 as an instrumental death/groove metal based on modern compositions by Salar Alizadeh. After so many line-up changes, the idea of Sargas was extended. we decided to change the main genre. It wasn’t easy at all, but our situation in our country makes it possible for us to produce some melancholic atmosphere with combination of blackend/death metal.
The current line up are:
Salar Alizadeh as rhythm guitar, founder of Sargas
Saleh Rezaei As vocal and lyrics
Arsalan Soltani as lead guitar
Pooya Shitrah as drums and band manager
By joining of Saleh the concept of the lyrics has completed and meaningful between the communication of band and listeners. With joining of Arsalan, the melodies changes and become more atmospheric and finally by joining of Pooya the vibration of the rhythm becomes more blasting
Our audience categorized us as a first post-black metal of Iran, which is somehow true. Sargas is for fans of bands like Hath,Der weg einer fraihait, Swallow the Sun, Exgenesis…
Serial Metalbums: Blackened Death Metal is a genre that carries a lot of intensity and raw emotion. How would you describe the essence of Sargas's music? What elements do you aim to bring to the forefront when composing your tracks?
Pouya: That's true. And as you mentioned, we put all emotions, such as loss, agony, anger, and sadness, to bring a human-form music which is lost these days in this industry. It's like you're taking a piece of your soul to give life to your music. So Historia (as the name says) came that way and feels like you experience all tensions through dynamics and composition in it.
Serial Metalbums: Iran is not often associated with extreme metal, yet your band emerged with a powerful debut. What challenges and unique experiences have you faced as a metal band in Iran? How has the local scene influenced your musical journey?
Pouya: That was hard, and it is! We mean it! From lack of equipment and economic situations to the prohibition of metal music in our country… The Middle East has a lot of potential, but it takes time to introduce yourself to the local scene when they have no idea what metal is.
You had to have a minimum quality of metal in the world, meanwhile keeping yourself in the shadows to hide from the government. The progression in suffocation needs to be slow and steady, but there's no time to give up. After all, this suffocation turns into screams and makes music.
Serial Metalbums: Who are the main influences that helped shape Sargas's sound? Are there specific bands, both local and international, that inspired your musical direction?
Pouya: Sargas is for Blackend/Death Metal fans that likes melancholic and doomy atmospheres. Every one of us has a different taste of music and that's why Sargas include many tastes in core. Those bands we mentioned before influenced a lot in creation of our music.
Serial Metalbums: Your debut EP, Historia, is a striking introduction to your music. Can you take us through the concept and creative process behind it? What themes and stories did you want to explore with this first release? And how did the recording process unfold for you?
Pouya: We developed the concept of women’s who leaves in Third World by categorizing in three stages: Birth, Life, and Death. It starts in such a grim, hopeless way, and before you know it, you’re staring straight into death and hell, with all its torments, actually starts to seem like an escape from this dull, exhausting life. It’s a story a lot of us can relate to, especially women in the Third World who rarely get to taste real happiness.
To build the world of Historia, we drew inspiration from powerful works in both English and Persian literature, names like Edgar Allan Poe, Dante, Abbas Maroufi, and more. While we were recording the album, Saleh and Salar both were mourning the death of a family member. So Historia isn’t just a fictional concept it’s deeply rooted in real, personal experiences we’ve been through as a band.
Serial Metalbums: Being a band from Iran, how does the cultural backdrop influence your lyrics, your sound, and your perspective on the music you create? Are there elements of Iranian culture or history that bleed into your work?
Pouya: Absolutely. Even though Sargas is considered a modern band, we still incorporate traditional Eastern melodies into our music, scales that in Iran are sometimes even called “devil intervals,” though they’ve got nothing to do with the devil! And when it comes to the concept and the lyrics, we tried to reflect the suffocating atmosphere of the Middle East our own surroundings so the listener can really feel what we’re feeling.
Serial Metalbums: Looking at the global Blackened Death Metal scene, where do you see Sargas positioning itself? Are there specific goals you hope to achieve with your music in the coming years?
Pouya: This genre has so much variety, and that gives Sargas a lot of possible paths to explore. That said, we’re not tying ourselves down to just one style. We’re totally open to evolving and stepping into new territories in the future. What matters most to us is that we keep our musical fingerprint intact, that unique signature you can hear in how we write, arrange, play, and design our sound. Our music isn’t commercial, so we know it’ll take time for people to connect with it and we’re totally okay with that.
Serial Metalbums: What are the next steps for Sargas? Are there plans for live performances, a full-length album, or collaborations that fans can look forward to?
Pouya: We’ve got a lot planned for the next year. Some big surprises coming up. All we can say is, we’re not about to leave our listeners with an empty playlist anytime soon! Right now, we’re preparing for a live show in Iran. Our first in years, and trust us, it won’t be the last.
