"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 and 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 "clichéd
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.
