From: “Katia M. Peltekian” <kpeltekian@yahoo.com>
Subject: Political ideas aside, System aims for mesmerizing music

Newsday, NY
Aug 23 2005

Political ideas aside, System aims for mesmerizing music

BY RAFER GUZMÁN
STAFF WRITER

August 23, 2005

If you’ve heard System of a Down’s latest singles, you probably have
some ideas of what the songs are about. But singer-songwriter Serj
Tankian says your guess is as good as his.

“I’ve had people come up to me with the strangest interpretations of
what lyrics might mean, and I’m like, ‘You go! I never thought of
that, but that works,'” Tankian says, speaking by phone from a hotel
in Dallas. “I think true art is a universal reflection, and true
artists are just messengers of that reflection – or, at best, skilled
presenters.”

It’s that kind of articulate philosophy – not to mention some of
the most brain-punishing metal-rock in existence – that makes System
of a Down such an unlikely success story. Their previous studio
album, 2001’s “Toxicity,” has sold about 3.6 million copies,
according to Nielsen SoundScan, and the new “Mezmerize,” released in
May, debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard charts. It’s already racked up
sales of 1.3 million. All this, despite the band’s decidedly bizarre
mix of hardcore, heavy metal, opera and Middle Eastern music. (All
four of the band’s members are of Armenian descent.)

“Mezmerize” is only the first disc System of a Down plans to deliver
this year. The follow-up, “Hypnotize,” is scheduled for release in
November. In a change of pace, Tankian takes a backseat to guitarist
Daron Malakian, who wrote most of the lyrics and music on “Mezmerize”
(perhaps he’s responsible for the misspelled title). Shavo Odadjian,
System’s bassist and unofficial art director, helped create the
band’s light show and mirrored stage set.

Odadjian got the idea for the stage design from his favorite
neighborhood bar in Los Angeles. “It’s really small, but one wall is
all mirrors, so you think, ‘This bar is huge,'” he explains over the
phone from a West Palm Beach, Fla., hotel. “And then I thought, ‘No
one’s ever done that onstage before, made the stage look twice as big
with a huge mirror.'”

Odadjian and Tankian both downplay their band’s political zeal –
“We’d really rather concentrate on the music,” Tankian says – but the
lyrics on “Mesmerize” are difficult to ignore. “Violent Pornography”
is a scathing critique of mainstream television. “Cigaro” seems like
a crude sexual joke – but a closer listen reveals themes of Western
arrogance. And the first single, “B.Y.O.B.,” features the
lung-busting refrain, “Why don’t presidents fight the war/Why do they
always send the poor?”

Tankian says he keeps up with current affairs while on tour by
reading newspapers and surfing the Internet. “Nations are like
people,” he says. “Once you understand the interactions between
nations, it’s easy to understand why things are done, in terms of
foreign policy, in a certain way. But nations are not like people in
the sense that we are cumulatively represented by others – and their
interpretations of what our interests are may not be the same as what
they really are. And that’s what’s dangerous, even in a democracy.”

Are System of a Down’s stage-diving, mosh-happy fans as politically
engaged as Tankian? “I don’t find most people to be as politically
engaged as I am,” Tankian says with a laugh. “I do find people that
appreciate eye-opening events and words, and who want to learn more
about what’s going on. I do find people with a lot of opinions. And I
get a lot of people who come up to me and give us props for what we
do.”

WHEN&WHERE System of a Down plays with The Mars Volta and Bad Acid
Trip at 7 tonight at Continental Airlines Arena, East Rutherford,
N.J. Tickets are $32.50-$45. Call 631-888-9000 or go to