SyStEm Of A DowN BiOgRaPhY
"Our heritage, our politics are really important, but our musical vibe
together is the thing. Our live performances speak for themselves." --
System Of A Down
The Agenda
System Of A Down formed organically, the members' shared diverse musical
and personal experiences created an explosive musical mine field of such
volatile, incendiary ferocity that Rick Rubin elected to sign and
produce the group as the first new act on American Recordings under a
recent pact with Columbia Records. The intensity of metal, the social
commentary of rap and a plethora of influences -- ranging from the
band's Armenian heritage to jazz to Middle Eastern melodies to the
nightly news -- has made System Of A Down a top draw in their home burg
of Los Angeles. The band's agenda has always been clear and uncontrived:
"Our goal has been to stay open to whatever currents guide us through
our lives -- musically, thematically, in every way, to be ourselves,"
explains SOAD's soft-spoken, but big-voiced, singer Serj Tankian. " Our
songs and themes range from political to social to daily angst to love
to hate to dope." However, the band emphasizes, "we do music because we
love it, and our agenda is not just political. We'd like to touch every
sense of our audience: visual, auditory, taste, touch...." "We don't
just concentrate on an aggressive emotion, though we have that. Anger
becomes more angry when you're quiet at first. That's key to our
dynamics," Serj explains. "We have the openness to go anywhere. It goes
without saying we're a heavy band, but we can also do a love song." In
other words, in the musical milieu of System Of A Down, all are welcome.
"If you're into surprises, being taken for a ride, I think you'll like
the music, no matter what type of music you're used to listening to,"
Serj believes. "We have a lot of people who like our sound who have
never been into heavy music. We have cross-genre types of music lovers."
Critical Mass
Even before System Of A Down were signed to American Recordings, local,
national and international press got in on the ground floor, hearing a
new musical revolution in the air.
"This debut will be one of, if not THE most important heavy rock records
of the year." Hits
"The band's songs are fueled with rebellion and protest. And its diverse
music which blends metal, rap, hardcore, jazz and Middle-Eastern
melodies expresses the need to stir up the great American melting pot
and unite against prejudice and injustice." Tower Pulse
"Their leonine muscularity and machine-like tightness rocks way hard."
Bam
"A must-see act.... His singing was intense, roaring with raw guttural
tones one minute and pulsing into cross-fire rap the next." Music
Connection
"Making a big splash in local clubs...." Los Angeles Times
"THE next big agit-politicos." Kerrang! (England)
Goin' American
"We had a show at the Viper Room [in Hollywood] and Guy Oseary [from
Maverick Records] brought his friend, [producer/American Recordings
head] Rick Rubin. "I saw him from the stage," says Shavo, "and he seemed
pretty much into it. Later, he told us he was blown away, which blew US
away, being '80s kids who loved all the rap stuff he came out with. My
'License To Ill' record from the Beastie Boys....I wore it out... and
Public Enemy... everything Rick's done is really incredible." System Of
A Down signed to American Recordings in September 1997. Their first two
major tours are also coups: SOAD hits the road with labelmates Slayer
before embarking on the Ozzfest tour in the summer of '98.
On The Record
A lucky 13 songs populate System Of A Down's self-titled debut, produced
by Rick Rubin, engineered by Sylvia Massey (Tool) and mixed by
Barkmarket vocalist/mixer Dave Sardi. Befitting the band's singularity,
the recording process was as experimental and varied as the group's
music. Tracking at the famous Sound City studios in late 1997, Serj then
did his vocals at Rubin's home. "We set up a tent in the middle of his
recording room, with nice antique stuff lying around. Sylvia Massey was
a big part of the vibe, she brought in colored oil lamps, crazy stuff.
It was an adventure." While Rubin was a hands-on producer, the songs
remained as the band wrote them, with some minor arrangement changes:
"Rubin likes us for who we are, and that's why we work well together."
While the System sound is often complex and multi-textured, it's
completely reproducible live. On System Of A Down, Rubin personally
played a bit of piano and added a few samples and to the mix. "But," the
band members explain, "we didn't want to burden the album. We wanted it
to be live-sounding, but with touches to make it full and
complete-sounding." The bottom line? "Although we worked with a great
number of upper-echelon people, we had the once-in-a-lifetime chance for
a heavy band to do exactly what the fuck we wanted to on our own album.
We're very happy and proud of that."
The Players
Serj is both a college graduate running his own successful business and
a muckraking, politically aware musician/visual artist, whose on-stage
rants and manic energy captivate crowds. Shavo, an endearing yet
aggressive KISS fanatic, did wire transfers at a bank to earn his keep,
while Daron, who possesses a quirky, otherworldly stage presence and a
fierce playing style, "used to be a brain surgeon," cracks Shavo.
Pre-System, John, whose powerful drumming keeps heads banging, once sold
comics and Japanese animation. "Not just between us, but within each of
us, we listen to varying genres of music," says Serj by way of
explaining the musical contributions of each of the group's members. In
the System Of A Down mix, the aggro-metal side comes from the influence
of Daron and Shavo, but walk into any System show or listen to any track
on System Of A Down and you'll find that Middle Eastern, rap, goth,
jazz, and Armenian music are visible and viable musical influences. With
the raw rock authority of early Van Halen and the on-the-edge punk power
and political and social acumen of the Dead Kennedys, System Of A Down
have quickly carved out a niche of their own.
The Name Game
The most-asked question. "It came from a poem our guitarist, Daron, had
written, called 'Victims of a Down,'" explains Serj. "He brought it to
us, and 'System' was chosen as a better, stronger word, and it makes it
into a 'whole,' instead of the people in particular, it's the society."
Ultimately, Serj advises people to "Take your own meaning out of our
name. It means different things to different people. That's the beauty
of it. It's like putting art up on a wall, and going, 'what do you think
of it?' It's many different things, on a personal, a political level. We
leave it open to interpretation."
Of Historical Significance
In the Los Angeles musical netherworld of 1993, two bands found
themselves rehearsing at the same studio. Daron played in one, Serj in
the other. Soon, the kindred musical spirits joined forces in a musical
entity called Soil. Their then-bass player knew Shavo, who'd been
playing both guitar and bass. "I'd had been in bands," recalls Shavo,
"but I really liked their band, so I'd hang out with them, and got to
know each member pretty well. I knew of Serj and Daron because I went to
a private Armenian school in Hollywood where you at least 'know of'
everyone in the school." Eight or nine songs later, Soil got a gig....
and they asked Shavo to manage the band. "I was amped to do it 'cause I
liked them so much, and them inside, as people, too," he recalls. Soon,
though, member shifts resulted in Shavo joining on bass. By 1995, it was
a new beginning: System Of A Down was born, with new songs, a hardcore
work ethic that matched their hard 'n' heavy sound, and finally, a new
permanent drummer in John Dolmayan.
What Are Words For
Much attention is paid to System Of A Down's provocative, insightful
lyrics. "P.L.U.C.K.," for instance, stands for "Politically Lying,
Unholy, Cowardly Killers." "It's a revolutionary song having to do with
the Armenian genocide, the injustice," explains Serj, the main lyricist.
"Generally, I write words by themselves, and sometimes I'll cut and
paste them into a song we're working on." "Soil" is a particularly
poignant cut about a friend who committed suicide, while "Darts" allows
Serj to espouse some of his rather untraditional beliefs. "To be able to
understand our world and our life as it is, you have to have your eyes
open to more than one type of philosophy that's being fed to you," he
offers. On another tip, "D-Devil" is a mesmerizing merging of four of
Serj's poems, dealing with issues as diverse as "cloning and plagiarism
and as beautiful as a little bunny rabbit." The raging aggro "War" is
another fan favorite, while "Cuebert" is about "clich�d people...people
who don't care to take an extra step in their lives. It's partially a
condemnation and partially a dare to them."
Politics, Heritage And Much Ado About Something
"Politically, there's a lot of things I talk about at our shows....
about mind control, or non-lethal weapons being used by the CIA and the
intelligence community in the West," begins Serj. "We're ready to speak
about things openly." And yes, many of those "things" revolve around the
American-born band members Armenian heritage. Cher may be the most
famous vocalist of Armenian descent thus far, but System note that their
heritage is simply one part of the band's entire makeup. "It's as much
of an influence as anything else is as far as what we listen to.
Sometimes less, depending," Serj says, while Shavo clarifies: "We're
using a basic four-piece structure, no authentic Armenian instruments.
There are vibes we enter within a song....we don't always know when we
're doing it, but it might be very Middle Eastern or Mediterranean." The
bottom line? "We play heavy music, and Armenian music generally isn't
heavy music. It's dramatic, like our music. The Armenian people had a
genocide, just like the Jewish people had the Holocaust. Those who look
the other way, such as Turkey, who committed it, that injustice itself
has been a driving point of my life," admits Serj. "Because of that,
I've been able to look at other injustices in the world. I know that
injustice exists and it's always hidden, so it opens your eyes. It's
been a motivation factor. Since we do something different musically,
people need to name it something. Some say it's Armenian rock. But
that's unfair to us. It's a part of who we are, but it's not what we do.
If we're playing in another country, I don't think we'd be called
'Armenian rock.'"
Live
The lights are lowered, and as one, the crowd surges forward, pressed
against the front of the stage. As Shavo and John lock into heavy,
primal sync, Serj, eyes closed and face turned heavenward, sways to the
beat as Daron's guitar roars into life. The audience is not still for a
moment as System Of A Down pummel them aurally and emotionally, the
shifting dynamics of "Suitepee" wringing the cares of the day from their
souls. As Serj spews the words to "Sugar" -- "I play Russian
roulette...a man's sport, day after day, with a bullet called life" --
the audience roars along. The slow, spooky invocation that is "Spiders"
lulls the room into a musical swoon, which is quickly dissipated as Serj
dives into a manic jig, ranting like a wild man on the barely-controlled
chaos that is "D-Devil." Growling the promise of "we will fight the
heathens" in perennial crowd favorite "War?" the steamy room turns into
a frenzy of the moshing faithful, once again, irresistibly held in
thrall under the inescapable spell cast by System Of A Down.
ToKEn FrOm WWW.SystemOfADown.com I GiVe FuLL CrEdIt To ThE WeBmAstEr Of ThAT PaGe, ThAnKs MaN. I?ll LaTeR PoSt My OwN BuT FoR NoW I?ll KeeP ThEsE PoStEd.
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