The current band members include lead vocalist Serj Tankian, bassist Shavo Odadjian, drummer John Dolmayan, and guitarist Daron Malakian.
Soil
Before forming SoaD, band members Tankian and Malakian had formed another band named ‘Soil.’ Soil existed from 1992 to 1994.
The original member line-up included Tankian as the lead vocalist and keyboardist, Malakian on the bass, Domingo Laranio as the drummer, and Dave Hakopyan as the guitarist.
Shavo Odadjian became the band’s manager; however, he played the second guitar for the band.
Laranio and Hakopyan quit the band in 1994.
System of a Down
After two former members quit, the remaining members formed another band named ‘System of a Down.’
A poem written by Malakian inspired the band’s name. The poem was titled ‘Victims of a Down.’ They changed the band’s title from victims to the system to cater to a broader audience.
Odadjian, who initially played the guitar, switched instruments from the guitar to the bass. Drummer Andy Khachaturian joined the band.
Music Career
The band released demo tapes which alleviated their popularity. Although the initial two demo tapes were not released commercially, a third one titled ‘Demo Tape 3’ came out in 1997.
Drummer Khachaturian quit the band around the same time. John Dolmayan replaced him.
At the end of 1997, the band recorded a fourth demo tape to distribute to various record companies.
SoaD won the Best Signed Band award at the Rock City Awards.
System of a Down released their self-titled debut album in June 1998, which met with moderate success. Two singles from the album, ‘Spiders’ and ‘Sugar,’ became favorites with radio listeners.
System’s second studio album ‘Toxicity’ debuted at the number one position on the Canadian and American music charts. The first single from the album ‘Chop Suey’ turned out to be controversial due to political references in the song and was logically taken off-air.
The other two singles from the album- ‘Aerials’ and ‘Toxicity- became quite popular with the listeners.
The band released their third studio album, ‘Steal This Album!’ in November 2002. The promo single from the album ‘Innervision’ received a favorable fan response.
They released a double album, in two parts, in 2004 and 2005, respectively. They were titled ‘Mezmerize’ and ‘Hypnotize,’ respectively.
The band announced their hiatus of at least three years in May 2006. During this break, they focussed on their respective careers and personal interests.
The band eventually reunited for a string of music tours across the globe in 2010. However, there was no update on releasing a new album.
The release of their new album was unclear due to the ongoing internal differences between the band members. The band, however, came out with two new songs in November 2020.
These songs were titled ‘Protect the Land’ and ‘Genocidal Humanoidz.’ The band was still unclear about releasing a new album.
Accolades
System of a Down has sold more than 40 million records globally. They have received several awards nominations and awards for their inspiring music.
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