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Rock star Serj Tankian talks music, politics |
Posted by ZAk on Saturday, June 07, 2008 - 09:48 AM
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 As
an Armenian-American who was born in Beirut, Serj Tankian never seems to
run out of things to sing and write about. Tankian, the lead singer of the
multi-platinum American rock band System of a Down, is currently touring
as a solo artist in support of his album "Elect the Dead," which peaked at #4 on
the Billboard music charts in November 2007.
Tankian is also a co-founder of the Axis of Justice organization, whose purpose
is to bring together musicians, fans of music and grassroots political
organizations to fight for social justice together.
System of a Down and Tankian are known for their aggressive and
heavy-yet-melodic rock sound, anti-war stances, and lyrics that range from
socially conscious and poetic to dark and bizarre.
Tankian recently sat down for an e-mail interview with The Arab American News:
Q: How long did you live in Lebanon and have you visited since you moved away?
A: I was seven years old when we moved to the U.S. at the beginning of the civil
war in Lebanon. I have vivid memories of Beirut and the beauty and
multi-cultural diversity it represented. I have not been back. I had tickets for
my parents to go back in 2006 and had to cancel them due to the Israeli bombing
and invasion.
Q: Do you see many Arabic fans of your music or do you know how the music has
been received by the Arab community?
A: Yes. I've had nice long chats with lots of Arab fans from our shows. I'm not
sure how we've been received by the Arab community. Well, I think. It's hard for
anyone to speak for or of a community, you know.
Q: You play a lot of concerts overseas, have you played in any Middle Eastern
countries or do you have plans to?
A: I would love to play Beirut and the Middle East in general, yes. We're trying
to set up our first concert in Armenia right now and it's a lot of work
logistically, because it's not set up for the type of concerts that we are
accustomed to putting on.
Q: Have you and System of a Down always made political music or did you start
out as more of just a regular rock band?
A: We've always made music that speaks honesty from our hearts. Some of that
music is political, some humorous, some romantic, some art for the sake of art,
etc.
Q: You said your next solo album is going to rely less on guitar, but you still
want it to convey the same emotion. How do you plan to undertake this challenge
and what instruments do you plan to use most?
A: A full 67-person orchestra and a jazz quintet. It will sound and feel more
powerful than any rock band anywhere.
Q: You're known for having one or more so-called "crazy" or "off-the-wall" songs
or song titles on each of your albums. Do you think that the rest of your more
serious or socially conscious songs are underrated by critics because of these
songs? If so does that bother you at all?
A: Not at all. In fact, people take my music and myself way too seriously to be
honest. Sometimes I sit down with journalists and they're nervous in
interviewing me, and I laugh because I go out of my way to make people
comfortable.
Q: Will System of a Down get back together after your solo projects have run
their course?
A: I don't blame you for asking and I'm honored for the interest but the story
has not changed: it's an indefinite hiatus. If we decide to do something, the
world will know, believe me.
Q: What advice do you have for the Arab world as they continue to struggle with
the issues of our time and a possible war with Iran?
A: Well, I have lots of advice politically. The thing is there is no such thing
as the Arab world first and foremost. Arabs are united in the U.S. and Europe,
but the goals and geo-politics of Arab nations in the Middle East are anything
but united or on the same plane. This is why other powers take advantage of that
rift and are able to keep the rift going. The West has created and helped keep
Arab kingdoms (post-WWI) in place for its own geo-political interests.
Together those kingdoms and the West have helped put down Arab secular
nationalist movements from the 50s on. This has created the need for the
populace to search elsewhere for democracy and equality (Islam) in setting up an
egalitarian society. The aggression against Iran by the U.S. should not be
encouraged by Saudi Arabia and other Arab nations. The real war in this world is
not political or religious. It's a globalist-based class war integrating
nations, cultures and religions. This is not to say there are not other reasons
that people fight, of course.
Q: Do you feel that the world is on a one-way track to destruction with all the
issues facing it like war, global warming, etc.?
A: It depends on what you mean by the world. Civilization is currently
scientifically unsustainable based on the accelerated rate of destruction of
natural resources coupled with the accelerated rate of population rise. We need
to search for a new "life."
Q: If you had to pick one song of yours that you were most proud of as far as
the impact of the lyrics, what would it be and why?
A: I don't pick favorites. I don't have a favorite ice cream or color either.
By Nick Meyer -
The Arab American News
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Comments
Aciid_drop
07.06.08, 12:02
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Nice interview, its really awesome hes thinkin of coming to the middle east,that wud be great.
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youssef
07.06.08, 12:04
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nice one ! i hope serj will tour in beirut come on serj plz do it!
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cozmachina
07.06.08, 14:05
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?
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SolidKennedy
07.06.08, 14:31
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not bad, but some questions were already asked so often.
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Bounce!
07.06.08, 15:52
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INDEFINITE?!!! Well now it's fucking official. I might just go cry in a corner.
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Bounce!
07.06.08, 15:55
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Whoops. Confused indefinite with incessant. So there's still hope that Serj won't play a tuba and instead get back with System...
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DarkStar78
07.06.08, 17:57
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Haha.. see.. he says we take him too serious.. ;) thats interesting to know... and I know some Armenian people who will go crazy if they read this :D
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hackthesystem2
07.06.08, 20:20
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Q: Will System of a Down get back together after your solo projects have run their course? A: I don't blame you for asking and I'm honored for the interest but the story has not changed: it's an indefinite hiatus. If we decide to do something, the world will know, believe me LAWLS
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ZAk
08.06.08, 08:15
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" Civilization is currently scientifically unsustainable based on the accelerated rate of destruction of natural resources coupled with the accelerated rate of population rise" What the hell he was talking about?
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spidermode
08.06.08, 08:20
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he's awesome. but i'm tired of hearing him use the word 'civilization'. :P
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Roulette101
09.06.08, 08:56
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Q: If you had to pick one song of yours that you were most proud of as far as the impact of the lyrics, what would it be and why? A: I don't pick favorites. I don't have a favorite ice cream or color either. ....rofl. God, I love Serj.
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loly
09.06.08, 17:11
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I LOVE SERJ!!!
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tiffanyevett
09.06.08, 20:10
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me to aswell that was a good interview, lol
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Systemfreak1732
10.06.08, 16:50
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" Civilization is currently scientifically unsustainable based on the accelerated rate of destruction of natural resources coupled with the accelerated rate of population rise" he's saying civilization is unsustainable because people keep destroying the earth added along with a lot of people having more kids. pretty soon the worlds gonna be unihabitable, and all civilized living will die out. oh, and great interview. systemfreak out.
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Dr.Clock
11.06.08, 17:00
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I swear if he comes to Beirut , I must go , even if my mom comes with me
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Danie
11.06.08, 20:24
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"So there's still hope that Serj won't play a tuba and instead get back with System..." Lol, that's a great way of putting it. Great interview! And yeah, it's time people aren't so serious about everything around System/Serj. Let's hope for the best and be happy with what they made so far.
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raffish
26.06.08, 22:23
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Superficial interview. Questions were mediocre, nothing interesting.
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