SOUND BITES: Audio reviews
The Associated Press
Updated: 5:21 p.m. ET May 16, 2005

“Mezmerize,” System of a Down

One sign that you’ve got your hands a great album is the fact that
you’ve listened to it three times on the first day and it’s not even
noon yet. I’m guilty of such activity and it’s all System of a Down’s
fault. The Southern California band’s latest album, “Mezmerize,”
is simply that good.

This is the first of a two-disc “set” (the second disc “Hypnotize”
is due to be released in the fall). It covers love, politics and mass
media implosion set to the hardest brand of rock you could imagine.

And it is, at times, a stunning work.

You can feel lead singer Serj Tankian’s brain spinning in irony
on the war-questioning track “B.Y.O.B.” as he sings “Everybody’s
going to the party have a good time/ Dancing in the desert blowing
up the sunshine.” This song confronts turmoil in the Middle East,
calls leaders to task for sending the poor into battle, and does it
all at a breakneck speed that the band is known for.

System of a Down packs a wallop on each track, but stops just short
of pointing an accusatory finger in any one particular direction. To
do so would pigeonhole them artistically and politically. Rather,
they correctly chosen to lay bare a series of emotional vignettes
and let listens draw the conclusions.

“Lost in Hollywood” is another great song, an odd homage to Tinseltown
and its curious allure that can prove fleeting to failures. “Look
at all of them beg to stay/ Phony people come to pray,” Tankian
sings. His vocals are stellar as usual, only at times giving way to
a shrill whine that’s a little too close to Les Claypool for comfort.

Guitarist Daron Malakian continues to amaze. One moment he’s delivering
a scorching lead, and the next he’s providing a staccato crunch of
guitar so raw that Suicidal Tendencies fans would be proud. How fast
can he play? Use your imagination — then double it.

But here’s where the group excels best. It’s one thing for an artist to
nudge listeners into a certain direction of thought, as Green Day did
with the election-timed release “American Idiot.” It was a listenable
but ham-fisted call to defeat Bush. It’s another matter altogether
to offer true artistic depiction of the world’s political landscape,
and not just the landscape you’d like to see flourish.

System of a Down takes the more honest approach, and music fans should
thank them.

— Ron Harris