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System of a Down shows music as a way to speak the truth

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  • System of a Down shows music as a way to speak the truth

    Edmonton Journal (Alberta)
    September 30, 2005 Friday
    Final Edition

    System of a Down shows music as a way to speak the truth: Band's
    intense message connects with real people

    by Chanel Carson, The Edmonton Journal


    Welcome to the Soldier side, where there's no one here but me ... or
    should I say 12,000 fans flicking on lighters, swaying in time to the
    strumming of an acoustic guitar, watching the black, curtain-covered
    stage as Serj Tankian's singing silhouette is illuminated from a
    spotlight behind.

    Then, the curtain drops, and guitarist Daron Malakian screams out his
    long-awaited question "Why do they always send the poor?!"

    I am talking, of course, about System of a Down. Performing at Rexall
    Place last week with opening guests Hella and the Mars Volta, SOAD
    was a blast of fresh air after a somewhat uneventful summer for the
    Edmonton concert scene.

    I admit that even after seeing acts like David Bowie and Aerosmith,
    it is safe to say that this was the best and most enjoyable concert
    I've ever attended.

    The lights went down half an hour before the concert was scheduled to
    start, and an already confused audience got even more confused with
    the band Hella, not knowing whether the group was just warming up, or
    actually playing songs.

    Confusion turned to psychedelia as the Mars Volta took the stage,
    Mexican entourage and all. One in tight jeans, the other sporting an
    even tighter pin-striped suit, singer Cedric Bixler Zavala and
    guitarist Omar Rodriguez-Lopez shimmied out the famous 32-minute-
    long Cassandra Gemini, followed by The Widow.

    Throwing in some improvising to go along with Cedric's screaming and
    dancing, the Mars Volta completed their nearly hour-long set to a
    standing ovation, unplugged and took down the Mexican flag draped
    over the keyboard.

    It was then that System of a Down took their place onstage. They
    plowed through 26 of their hits, joked with the audience, and made up
    their own words to Dire Straits' Sultans of Swing, with Malakian
    singing at the chorus, "We are the System of a Down."

    Since forming in 1993, SOAD has recorded four studio albums: System
    of a Down (June 1998); Toxicity (September 2001); Steal This Album!
    (November 2002); and most recently their two-part album
    Mezmerize/Hypnotize. Mezmerize was released in May; Hypnotize will be
    available in November.

    SOAD are widely known for their controversial songs about the
    American government, the American economy and the destructive
    lifestyles of people living in Los Angeles. But the messages they try
    to get across on their albums don't end when they leave the studio.

    Tankian, along with guitarist Malakian, bassist Shavo Odadjian and
    drummer John Dolmayan are lobbying the U.S. government to officially
    recognize the genocide that occurred in Turkey between 1915 and 1923,
    acknowledging the deaths of 1.5 million Armenians.

    When politicians block the road to justice, SOAD turns to music to
    get the truth out.

    As I watch Malakian's eyes bulge as he screams insanely into the
    microphone, or Tankian twirl childlike in the middle of the stage, it
    dawns on me that these guys are cool. Like, really cool. There is
    something in their performances, the way they interact with their
    fans, the things they sing about, and the way they live their lives.

    They don't try and pretend to be badass rock stars, because what they
    really are is themselves. They are real, fighting for real people,
    speaking out and defending the real people that can't defend
    themselves. System of a Down is the voice of the people.

    Chanel Carson is in Grade 12 at Harry Ainlay high school

    GRAPHIC:
    Photo: Larry Wong, the Journal; Vocalist Serj Tankian of System of a
    Down in concert at Rexall Place

    From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress
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