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System of a Down is an alternative metal band from Glendale, California, USA consisting of Serj Tankian (vocals, keyboards), John Dolmayan (drums), Daron Malakian (guitar, vocals) and Shavo Odadjian (bass), and known for their distinctive dress styles and goatees. All four members are of Armenian ancestry, and many of their songs are about Armenian political and social issues (such as the Armenian Genocide). A common dispute amongst fans is their genre.

History, style and influences

System of a Down uses a wide range of instruments, including baritone electric guitars, electric mandolins, sitars, 12-string classical guitars and many other East Asian instruments. Their main influences are noticeably the veteran heavy metal bands Black Sabbath and Slayer, but they also draw on punk rock, jazz, fusion, Armenian folk music, classic rock, blues, and industrial metal.

The band enjoyed moderate success with their first singles, "Sugar", "Suite-Pee" and "Spiders", from their debut album System of a Down. However, their big break came from their critically acclaimed second album, Toxicity , which debuted at #1 on the American and Canadian charts, eventually going multi-platinum. The album was #1 in America on the week of the September 11, 2001 attacks. Their first big hit was the controversial "Chop Suey!", released in the late summer of 2001. System of a Down received constant airplay in the United States throughout late 2001 and 2002 with their hits, "Chop Suey!", "Toxicity", "Aerials", off their second album, Toxicity , and "Innervision" off their third album, Steal This Album!.

Their third album, containing songs from the Toxicity recording sessions that didn't feel right for Toxicity were released as Steal This Album!. Early recordings of most of the songs had leaked out onto the internet and were well received by the fans resulting in the subsequent release. There are five different designs of the album available. One version of the CD resembles a CD Recordable that was labeled with a felt-tip marker, and the other four featured designs by individual band members: Serj, Shavo, Daron and John.

In 2004, the band recorded two brand new albums for release in 2005 that are being released approximately 4 to 6 months apart from each other. They are Mezmerize and Hypnotize. Mezmerize was released in the United States and Europe on May 17 2005, and was released in Australia on May 22 2005, while Hypnotize will be released approximately four to six months after. In early January, 2005, a new track called "Cigaro" was purposely leaked onto the internet to be praised from fans, followed by the release of the single "BYOB"(Bring Your Own Bombs), which is working its way up the North American singles charts. The band has also announced that song 8, 'Question' will be the second single from the album, with bassist Shavo Odadjian directing the video. Mezmerize immediately shot up to the top of the US charts, making it the group's second consecutive number-one debut. First week sales rocketed to over 800,000 copies worldwide, with the album debuting at #1 in over a dozen other countries, including Canada, Japan, Australia, Germany, and France. Initial critic reviews have been overwhelmingly favorable.

Members

• Serj Tankian - Vocalist & Keyboardist
• Daron Malakian - Guitar & Vocals
• Shavo Odadjian - Bass
• John Dolmayan - Drums

Previous members

• Andy Khachaturian - Drums

Discography

Albums

1. System of a Down (30 June 1998) #124 US
2. Toxicity (4 September 2001) #1 US, #13 UK
3. Toxicity II (2002)
4. Steal This Album! (26 November 2002) #15 US, #56 UK
5. Mezmerize (17 May, 2005) #1 US, #2 UK
6. Hypnotize (27 September, 2005)

Singles

• "Sugar" from System of a Down (1998)
• "Spiders" from System of a Down (1999)
• "War?" from System of a Down (2000)
• "Chop Suey!" from Toxicity (2001) #76 US, #17 UK
• "Toxicity" from Toxicity (2002) #70 US, #25 UK
• "Aerials" from Toxicity (2002) #55 US, #34 UK
• "Boom!" from Steal This Album! (2003)
• "B.Y.O.B." from Mezmerize (2005) #27 US
• "Question!" from Mezmerize (2005)

Music videos

• "Sugar" from System of a Down (1998)
• "Spiders" from System of a Down (1999)
• "War?" from System of a Down (2000)
• "Metro" from "Dracula 2000 Soundtrack" (circa 2000)
• "Chop Suey!" from Toxicity (2001)
• "Aerials" from Toxicity (2002)
• "Toxicity" from Toxicity (2002)
• "Boom!" from Steal This Album! (2003)
• "B.Y.O.B." from Mezmerize (2005)
• "Question!" from Mezmerize (2005)

External links

• Official Website
• System of a Down Lyrics
• System of a down at DMOZ
• Fan Website
• SOADFans - Large Community Fan Website
• System of a Down Lyrics Collection
• Official Forums
• Soad-Life.de German Fanpage
• Toxic Ice unofficial System of a Down related forum
• "Yahoo! Music" System of a Down's Artist of the Month Page
• 'www.toxicity.com.br' - Brazillian Fan Website

• 1990s music groups
• American musical groups
• Armenian musical groups
• Heavy metal musical groups