| Written by Alex Stojanovic SYSTEM OF A DOWN IS: Serj Tankian - Vocals Daron Malakian - Guitars & vocals Shavo Odadjian - Bass John Dolmayan - Drums Release Date: November 6, 2020 Label: American Recordings / Columbia Records Website: www.systemofadown.com Can you believe that it has been 15 years since we had new music from System Of A Down? Me neither. Out of nowhere, they dropped two new songs for the first time in 15 years last month. The last time they released new music, I was 13 years old in the 8th grade. Where has the time gone? They also took longer than Tool did to release any new music. |  |
While a new full-length album still seems like an impossibility, two new songs is better than no music at all, right? As many people are aware, System Of A Down are always on top of what's going on politically over in Armenia. As many people are aware, Armenia is facing a tough time right now with Azerbaijan and Turkey, and this is what brought SOAD to put out new music. It took a war to happen for them to release new music. Given that it has been 15 years since they released anything new, it's quite obvious that expectations were astronomical. The new songs "Protect The Land" and "Genocidal Humanoids" both showcase the two musical sides that System Of A Down are known for, and all the proceeds from the downloads of the songs are going to Armenia Fund to bring aid to those who have been affected by the atrocities.
Going into the tracks, "Protect The Land" is the less intense track. Since Daron Malakian said that it was initially intended to be a Scars On Broadway track, it made sense as to why the intensity was down a few notches, because even the softer SOAD songs still had an intensity to them. However, that doesn't mean that the riff and the overall feel isn't good. If you found "Protect The Land" a little tame, then "Genocidal Humanoids" resurrects the signature SOAD aggression. Even if it's not on the same level of aggression as "B.Y.O.B" or "Chop Suey", the riffing will definitely make you feel nostalgic. The blast beats give the bridge a big black metal vibe, I was kind of expecting Daron to go into a screeching black metal vocal.
Since Daron wrote both songs, it makes sense as to why a majority of the lead vocals were handled by him as opposed to Serj. Creative control seems to be the issue that's keeping System Of A Down from coming to an agreement on a new full length album. I think it's just gotten to a point where they should just focus on releasing singles as opposed to an album because it's obvious that an album is an impossibility at this point, and they're not getting younger. In the meantime, it sure feels rather great to have new System Of A Down tunes after such a long time. The last time they released new music, there was no YouTube, no Facebook, no Twitter, no Instagram, no Snapchat, none of that. Crazy, right? We should all strongly savor this moment, because who knows if this moment will come back again in the future.
Highs: System Of A Down is back with new music after 15 years.
Lows: Serj certainly should've had a bit more time in the vocal spotlight.
Going into the tracks, "Protect The Land" is the less intense track. Since Daron Malakian said that it was initially intended to be a Scars On Broadway track, it made sense as to why the intensity was down a few notches, because even the softer SOAD songs still had an intensity to them. However, that doesn't mean that the riff and the overall feel isn't good. If you found "Protect The Land" a little tame, then "Genocidal Humanoids" resurrects the signature SOAD aggression. Even if it's not on the same level of aggression as "B.Y.O.B" or "Chop Suey", the riffing will definitely make you feel nostalgic. The blast beats give the bridge a big black metal vibe, I was kind of expecting Daron to go into a screeching black metal vocal.
Since Daron wrote both songs, it makes sense as to why a majority of the lead vocals were handled by him as opposed to Serj. Creative control seems to be the issue that's keeping System Of A Down from coming to an agreement on a new full length album. I think it's just gotten to a point where they should just focus on releasing singles as opposed to an album because it's obvious that an album is an impossibility at this point, and they're not getting younger. In the meantime, it sure feels rather great to have new System Of A Down tunes after such a long time. The last time they released new music, there was no YouTube, no Facebook, no Twitter, no Instagram, no Snapchat, none of that. Crazy, right? We should all strongly savor this moment, because who knows if this moment will come back again in the future.
Highs: System Of A Down is back with new music after 15 years.
Lows: Serj certainly should've had a bit more time in the vocal spotlight.
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