MENA New Wave Sounds - The After Party

MENA’s second after party features headliner Kimia Koochakzadeh-Yazdi, who will be presenting original music curated for the occasion of the last day of the 2025 MENA Film Festival.

Join us in welcoming Kimia and our other New Wave Sounds for a showcase of boundary-pushing, experimental, alternative and gender-fusing musical expressions from the MENA/SWANA region.

As part of the MENA Film Festival's mission, we aim to continue cultivating and intervening in the urban fabric of so-called “Vancouver”. Our city has historically been disconnected from the vibrant cultural practices of its diasporic MENA/SWANA communities, and we are committed to creating spaces of social refuge where these voices and expressions can thrive.

This event is not just a celebration of art—it’s a celebration of YOU, our community. You are equally cultural producers, and by supporting, participating, and engaging in this event, you are contributing to a cultural renaissance that celebrates the richness and diversity of our creative landscape.

Let’s come together to celebrate, support, and honor the cultural contributions of our MENA/SWANA communities!

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• 19:30 — Doors
• 20:00 - 20:30 — Hatim Hanafi
• 20:45 - 21:05 — Almaaz
• 21:20 - 21:50 — Aram Bajakian + Feven Kidane
  In this new group, trumpeter/bassist Feven Kidane and guitarist/oudist Aram Bajakian present a new Ethiopian/Armenian music collaboration here in Vancouver. Taking their cue from the documentary film Tezeta, which will be screened at the MENA film festival, the group will explore music from the heyday of Ethiopian jazz and Armenian Kef bands while also presenting new sounds inspired by both cultures’ shared and rich histories.
  Presented with the support of Kevin McNeilly and the UBC branch of .
• 22:00 - 22:45 — Kimia Koochakzadeh + Saaghi (Live Visuals)
  Belonging, yet displaced; this performance embraces and explores fragility alongside resilience. As the piece unfolds, I wish for it to exist and evolve through and between the thresholds of comfort and discomfort, calm and rage, determination and defeat, hope and despair.‍
• 23:00 – late — ArtSaves

Kimia Koochakzadeh-Yazdi is an Iranian composer and performer. She writes for hybrid instrumental/electronic ensembles, creates electroacoustic works, builds instruments, and performs electronic music. She explores the unfamiliar familiar while being motivated by musical extremes; finding ways to play with various musical thresholds is something that she is currently attracted to.

Incorporating her Iranian background and merging contrasting aesthetics is present in her creative work. Being a cross-disciplinary artist, she has actively collaborated on projects evolving around dance, film, and theater. She is the co-founder and producer of Fashion x Electronics, a collective focused on creating interdisciplinary works based on fashion and electronic music.

Kimia’s work has been showcased by organizations across the globe and her work has been performed internationally. She holds a BFA in Music Composition from Simon Fraser University’s Interdisciplinary School for the Contemporary Arts. She is currently a doctoral candidate in Music Composition at Stanford University.

The music of guitarist and composer Aram Bajakian music has been called “a masterpiece” (fRoots, July 2017), “shape-shifting” (FreeJazzCollective, January 2017), and “sometimes delicate, sometimes punishing” (Chicago Reader, January 2018). As a guitarist, “the virtuosic jack of all trades” (Village Voice, May 2015) has toured extensively with Lou Reed, Diana Krall, Madeleine Peyroux, and John Zorn, in performing at many of the world’s greatest venues, including Carnegie Hall, Royal Albert Hall, the Acropolis, L’Olympia, as well as the Montreaux, Newport, Monterey and Antibes jazz festivals, among others. From 2018-2021 Bajakian served as the New Music Curator at Western Front in Vancouver, one of Canada’s leading artist-run centers for contemporary art and new music. Bajakian is currently a PhD candidate in the Department of Ethnomusicology at UBC where his research focuses on the role of music in contemporary and historic Armenian communities.

Feven Kidane is an Ethiopian-Eritrean trumpeter and bassist born and raised in the Greater Vancouver region. With an eager spirit and knack for writing music for celebration, contemplation, and sharing, Feven is passionate in her creativity and a skilled executor of musical vision as a bandleader, collaborator, and sideman. She has performed in jazz, spoken word, hip-hop, and free improvisation, taking deep intrigue and interest in learning the traditional musics of her ancestors. Off the bandstand, Feven takes an interest in aromatherapy and Carribbean cooking.

Almaaz is an Experimental Egyptian-Canadian singer, dancer, performer and songwriter based in Vancouver. With a voice that effortlessly traverses between hauntingly ethereal and powerfully resonant, her unique style is the result of her explorations in dance, contemporary club music and Arabic pop music. Almaazz’s debut EP Sot wa Sada, was released on London/Berlin label Precious Metals and was featured on Resident Advisor, BBC Radio One Extra, and Bandcamp’s Album of the day. The EP combines Egyptian Arabic songwriting with experimental club music by producer x/o. Almaazz is currently working on new music with artists HMX Don, x/o and Sami Baha.

Hatim is a Sudanese-Canadian singer and songwriter based in BC, Canada. With a background that takes him across continents, his sound is rooted in R&B with explorations into Funk, Neo-Soul, Pop and the music of his East African & Middle Eastern roots. Most recently, he released his 7 song EP “Playing Hearts” which chronicles the ups and downs of the search for love over a musical landscape that incorporates elements of R&B, Pop, Neo-Soul, Hip-Hop, Dance and East African rhythms.

Saghi Ehteshamzadeh (b. 1995, Tehran) is a queer interdisciplinary Vancouver-based artist/curator whose practice encompasses video art, live visual performances, new media, and art installations.

Holding a Bachelor of Cinema Studies from the Art University of Tehran and graduating from Capitano University's Arts and Entertainment Management Program in North Vancouver, Saghi's diverse artistic background informs their creative endeavours.

Saghis art practice draws inspiration from their personal experiences navigating sabilities and advocating for social justice, particularly within Iran and the ongoing struggle for wxmen's equality. Their video practice is characterized by a unique blend of compressed, low-resolution imagery and pixel manipulation, and their live visuals feature a fusion of exotic retro videos alongside digital scans of nature and urban environments.

ArtSaves is recognized for his obscure, experimental soundscapes that blend elements of ambient, noise, and dance music. His career began in his hometown Tehran in 2012, where he performed at underground gatherings due to the city's strict ban on nightclubs. ArtSaves' work is inspired by his Iranian heritage and explores themes of identity, authenticity, and belonging, moving fluidly from somber, delicate rhythms to intense beats that keep the dance floor pulsating. Residing between Montreal and Tehran, he remains indefinable yet grounded in a distinct sound that resonates deeply with listeners. Through his label, Kopi, ArtSaves is dedicated to amplifying the voices of Iran's underrepresented music scene and its diaspora, while also collaborating with artists and local communities worldwide to foster connections and inspire creative exchanges.

Host or Publisher MENA Film Festival Vancouver