Topic: Interviews

Friday May 27, 2005
The Guardian

Since when did nu-metal groups talk about 'infinite harmonies', 'imperialist realpolitik' and 'corporate enslavement'? Adam Sweeting meets System of a Down - the band big o­n brains as well as album sales

'The fact that we're all Armenian and in the same band is completely a coincidence' ... System of a Down

With his benign smile, tumbling ringlets and air of spiritual calm, Serj Tankian could pass for a New Age healer. His bandmate Daron Malakian is no less relaxed, content simply to light up another bong full of aromatic weed and shoot the breeze. You'd never guess the pair were frontmen for the Armenian-American heavy metal group System of a Down, with a repertoire of cranium-smashing tracks called things like BYOB (Bring Your Own Bomb)

<SPAN class=pn-normal>In the United States System of a Down is known as not political. But the band members themselves are.  A personal question involves with their Armenian ancestors.

Serj Tankian is sitting there o­n a comfortable sofa in his hotel room in Amsterdam.
He has flown over there for the music press to answer all their questions about their new album called “Mezmerize” that will be the first part of a dual album project.
The second album is called “Hypnotize” and will come out somewhere around November.
After the album “Toxicity” which made System of a Down break through the world of Metal in 2001.
Mezmerize is the third actual album of the band from Los Angeles ( Steal this album ) was just an extra version of Toxicity that was brought out in 2002.
It seems that these promotional visits that Serj made to Holland most of the times were all just the same.
But this visit was different from others noticed the music press while Serj was talking.
Since some recent ( 2004 ) Holland gave recognition to the Armenian genocide that occur 90 years ago in 1915.
And for Serj and System of a Down this was a big step forward in their quest for recognition.
All four band members are Armenian, and are well aware about the Armenian Genocide>
The band from Los Angeles made this their mission in life.
”This is an important moment” says Tankian about the Dutch government.
With his black pointy beard and his wild looking curly hair, the frontman and philosopher of System of a Down looks like a kind of magical figure from a fairytale.
He manifests himself as a political activist that gives people some information about what is happening in our world today.
The CIA keeps him under surveillance since September 13th 2001 because he wrote an article about “Understanding Oil” thought that America had all this already coming towards them from the beginning and created its own devastation from the start.
When you talk to him, you would never think that this soft compassionate person is “a danger to society” at all.
And neither the less think that he is a frontman and vocalist of a fierce metal band.
”For us there is no political question” but a personal o­ne, our ancestors died because of the Armenian Genocide.
And we grew up there when we were young and now we live here in California.
Our time of recognition and battle against the aftermath of the Armenian Genocide and the fight for recognition by other countries continues through our minds and music.
And it does not come forward as nationalism, no the Turkish denial from the Genocide is a symbol of denial, that is our point and statement.
The crusade of System of a Down is noticeable in their music and lyrics of the band.
However the band is experimenting with new rhythms and more complex than other bands like Korn.
They seem to have their own kind of music which is different from the rest of all the known nu-Metal bands in the world today.
In the United States SOAD attracts the most young group of “rockers” then other populair bands.
However the public and fans mostly don’t even know where Armenia is “Serj laughts”
And then he became serious and that he thinks that most people underestimate the fans of their true knowledge what this band is truly trying to say.
Each year o­n April 24th ( The official remembrance day of the Armenian Genocide ) System of a Down organizes a special benefit concert under the name of “Souls”.
The money that is being brought up from the tickets and sponsorship will be send to organizations around the world that teach and give people information about Genocide all over the world.
Armenia, Cambodia and Rwanda Tankian says.
It starts with people getting aware of their situation in a couple of speeches.
Are you guys a rock band with a mission, yes Tankian replies, but a political band?
No says Tankian clearly through the room and he explains that he doesnt see System of a Down as a political understatement.
”We just give a humanitarian, personal message to the world”.
Tankian knows the press and public well that they mostly ask these kind of questions, but understands the essence of it.
The first single of Mezmerize is called: B.Y.O.B ( Bring Your Own Bombs ) with the furious lines “Why do they always send the poor!?”.
When he is asked to give his comment o­n that, Serj points at the humor and balance of the band.
And yes indeed o­n Mezmerize we can find some great songs like a kind of reggea-ish “Radio/Video”.
And finally we asked if Mezmerize would be like Toxicity with its hard rollercoaster riffs and sickening sounds.
”That is how we want it, and that is how it should be” Serj replies, we dont want to push it all into your mouth at the same time that is why we bring this dual album out in two sections.
When you listen to System of a Down you hear four amazing people have so much fun with making their music.
If you cannot laugh about your own opinions then i don’t understand what this life is all about.


<SPAN class=pn-normal>Source: People Newspaper

Serj Tankian arrives late at the appointment, o­n board of a Mercedes black Benz, each hair of its peculiar beard in its place.
He lives in Hollywood and is assures that that is not incompatible with its deep social commitment, still in the city that many (until they themselves in o­ne of its new songs) consider of "plastic". "it is not impossible here to be activist, o­nly who is o­ne more a solitary activity", ironiza the leader of whom is indicated like the more important heavy band in which it goes of the millenium. Or, at least, the o­ne that more weight.
A pair of years back, agreeing with the beginning of the war, released the opportune video of Boom, filmed during the world-wide marches by La Paz of February of the 2003. And at the same time, Serj said to him to Yes! that "the world fears more to him to Bush than to Saddam".
 In the subject an enumeration to numbers related to the war was listened to in addition, from the value of Iraqian petroleum to the number of American congressmen with mobilized children: 1. For them, the war is something personal: the guitarist Daron Malakian has resident family in Iraq. And for the System of to Down, four descending North American citizens of those Armenians who survived the Turkish genocide of 1915, George W. Bush is another genocida.

- It seems that those that think as vos are a minority in your country, since they could not change the presidency...
- I do not believe that we are a minority. I think that this society very is polarized.

- In song "B.Y.O.B", which they include in "Mezmerize", they are asked "why always they send to the poor men why the president does not go to the war". They are speaking of Bush and Iraq?
- That song we did not do it necessarily thinking about Iraq, but it can been have inspired by that war. If mirás for back in history, in the old days the kings who fought the wars led their armies and loaded with them against the enemy. Now the leaders make the decisions in Internet. Bush never experienced really the war with Iraq, does not have the smaller idea of which it means to go to the front.

- and to vos you can be considered a pacifist?
- You could say that. I believe in that we must lean an a the others to be able to live in this planet. If querés to call pacifism, OK.

- Why then to title another o­ne of the songs "Attack"? It does not seem a very pacifist term that we say...
- the line of the choir says "Attack", is why we called it thus. We tried to maintain titles simple to decide them, we did not think to us how they are going away to perceive. Although thinking it now, that many attack something does not mean necessarily that takes control of violence, also means to be conscious that something is unjust and to try to change it.

- and why they finished being two discs instead of o­ne?
- We made 35 songs, we ended up recording 28 and we are going to leave some in the way. It was not the primary intention to unfold it, single we wanted to reflect what we felt. But o­nce I seated with Rick Rubin (producing) to listen to 30 songs of a serve and was exhausted. He is hard to digest it everything of blow.
Let us put it thus: for us it is a single disc who we sent in two quotas so that people can digest it easier. System of to Down has thought to pass by Buenos Aires in order year (primicia! hopefully you would not be estresen like Metallica) and what it happened in Cromañón it is going to make them take greater safety measures.

The singer says to have read in the news something of the accident but she requests more specifications. At the end of racconto it is shockeado by several things. First, to Serj Tankian it costs to him to think that flares in a closed place have been thrown. Seconds later it puts face of horror when finding out that the exits of emergency were closed with padlock and finishes being astonished when listening that the pyrotechnics did not belong to the band but to the public "Auch", it exclaims. "From already I feel very badly by all the families who underwent this terrible tragedy", the singer supports. In the case of them, he says, are customary to that the places in which they touch provide the security with the case. But also he comments that often they have had to take part when seeing that they passed things in his concerts. "Memory o­nce we had to stop a show in Australia because we saw people who made signs desperate. It was that there was somebody very serious between the 50 thousand assistants and we waited for the doctors. The important thing is to enjoy and to feel safe because if no, you are not going to live to enjoy again ".