The fact that his voice is generally clear and easy to understand only accentuates an underlying problem that has haunted the band from day one: terrible lyrics.Īt some point, the words just become unintentional comedy. Tankian's voice has always been one of the most unique aspects of the band, and to hear him step aside for Malakian's whiny, nasally drawl is a disappointment. But now, Malakian sings on every song, in some cases as the lead vocalist. On the band's second album, 2001's Toxicity, Malakian's voice was a welcome accent to front man Serj Tankian's commanding, operatic howls and barks. The biggest problem on both of these albums is the increased vocal presence of guitarist/primary songwriter Daron Malakian. Later, on "Holy Mountain", the band syncs up, firing every beat, every stroke, and every syllable together, punching their way through the track. "Dreaming", one of the strongest tracks from either album, builds layers of vocals, varying rhythms, and harmonies over blast- beat drums. As the less ambitious of the two albums, Hypnotize is at once more aggressive and more restrained. Mezmerize's strongest moments are when the band drops the eccentricities and just rocks out: On the two-minute "Cigaro", Serj Tankian's dominating vocals go from growl to howl while the band thrashes along behind him, and single "Question!" morphs from whispery and acoustic to loping and menacing.įor the most part, the same holds true on Hypnotize, with musical mannerisms working best when they're accenting songs rather than controlling them. The songs generally gravitate toward one of two extremes- rapid-fire, full throttle thrash songs, such as Mezmerize's "Cigaro" and Hypnotize's "Attack" and "Dreaming", or slow, heavy songs like Hypnotize's title track and "Holy Mountain". The band's oddball characteristics are even more upfront on Mezmerize, with the group shifting styles unexpectedly and incorporated more non-Western sounds than ever before. They ride the line separating thrash metal and more radio-friendly fare, with some hardcore metal fans believing the band isn't metal enough, and fans of more straightforward alterna-metal finding them too leftfield. System of a Down have always evoked strong love/hate feelings from listeners. Six months later, they're offering the second side of the album, Hypnotize, which is meant as a companion piece Mezmerize's "Soldier Side Intro" begins what Hypnotize's "Soldier Side" ends 23 songs later. In the past six months, System of a Down have doubled their album output: In May, the critically successful quartet delivered Mezmerize, an 11-song, 36-minute blast of hyper-aggressive riffing, breakneck rhythm shifts, and Middle Eastern accented melodies.
0 kommentar(er)
