History Music / SystemOfADown

* EpicRocking: "Holy Mountains"

* AerithAndBob: Serj, Daron, Shavo and... John.
* AudienceParticipationSong - [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K7yAO-QCSWA The video for "Boom"]] was shot by MichaelMoore during the ''massive'' worldwide anti-war protests in 2003. Most of the lines are sung by random protestors. It also includes a HarsherInHindsight moment when the video shows a the "scary" factoid that the war could cost $200 billion. The total cost is estimated at almost '''[[http://costofwar.com/ 1 trillion]]''' so far.

** "Prison Song" becomes this live, as does the bridge for "War?".
* BookEnds - ''Mezmerize'' & ''Hypnotize'' double-album, the one's outro echoing the other's intro.
** Hypnotize's lyrics from Hypnotize include 'They disguise it, Hypnotize it' and 'Mesmerize the simple-minded'.
** The packaging for both albums interlock, as well.
* CarefulWithThatAxe - Frequently, though mixed with other vocal styles as well. See SopranoAndGravel below.
* {{Crossdresser}} - In the song "She's Like Heroin"

* DigitalPiracyIsEvil - After outtakes from the Toxicity sessions were leaked to the internet as ''Toxicity II'', System of a Down rerecorded most of the tracks, added some new ones, named it to ''Steal This Album!'' and changed the art to look like it was a burned CD with the title written with a Sharpie. More a parody or commentary than outrage, as the band later said they don't care if fans download their music as long as it's after the work is released.

* DissonantSerenity - The stylistic disconnect between a frantic verse & a calm chorus ("Chop Suey", "B.Y.O.B.", "Viscinity of Obscenity", "Violent Pornography", among others).
** The song "Temper" from their 2nd demo is the opposite of this, a relaxed, mid-tempo verse and a brutal grindcore chorus.
* EpicRocking - "Holy Mountains".
* EverythingIsAnInstrument - The end-section of "Aerials".
* GenreBusting - Not just as their musical style ({{Rock|AndRoll}}[=/=]{{hard rock}}[=/=][[AlternativeRock alt rock]]/[[AlternativeMetal alt metal]][=/=]{{progressive metal}}[=/=]{{progressive rock}}[=/=]Experimental[=/=]self-described as 'pop'), but the combination of clearly stated protest & absurdity.

* IceCreamKoan - "Aerials", and arguably most of their repertoire.
* IndecipherableLyrics - Fast vocal riff for "B.Y.O.B.", large portions of a lot of their more absurdist songs, such as "Vicinity of Obscenity", "Bounce", etc. A lot of their music isn't quite indecipherable, but is quite hard to cipher.
** All of which is nothing compared to the end of the second verse of "Sugar", which sound like Serj is just babbling crazily. There are in fact words in there but they're almost impossible to detect.

*** I-E-A-I-A-I-O from ''Steal This Album!'' flirts with this trope. The lyrics are decipherable, but performed at such high speed that it takes several re-listenings to make them out properly.

* IntercourseWithYou - "She's Like Heroin", "Violent Pornography", "Bounce", "Virginity", & "Vicinity of Obscenity".
* LargeHam - Started out as Serj ("Sugar, "Bounce", pretty much most of the first 2 albums), but Daron slowly began to take the spotlight ("Needles", much of Mezmerize/Hypnotize), while Serj sits at the {{Cloudcuckoolander}} ("This Cocaine Makes Me Feel Like I'm On This Song", "Vicinity of Obscenity", "Revenga", "Radio/Video") / DeadpanSnarker ("Cigaro")/occasionally TheQuietOne ("Lost in Hollywood") position. With the release of Serj's 2 solo albums, he's gone back to the LargeHam he's meant to be ("Lie Lie Lie", "Beethoven's {{C|ountryMatters}}unt", pretty much everything else).
* LastNoteNightmare - "Aerials", for one.
* LoudnessWar - To some extent, a LOT of their work, especially just about everything on ''Toxicity''.

* LyricalDissonance - Many, including "Bounce" (a very heavy song about group sex), "Shimmy" (a hard song including lyrics about indoctrination & subjugation, also about wanting to dance all night & not being late for school).

* MinisculeRocking - Just as an example, ''Steal This Album!'' is sixteen tracks over 43 minutes— that's just over 2:30 on average, with "Bubbles" just under two minutes long and "36" only forty-five seconds long. A song that lasts for four minutes or more is extremely hard to come by in general, though there usually is one track per album that exceeds five minutes and at least one other that equals or exceeds four (the sole exception being ''Steal This Album!'', where only one song exceeds four minutes in length and none exceed five).
* MohsScaleOfRockAndMetalHardness - Usually about a 7 or 8. Some of their ballads go as low as a 4 or so.
* NWordPrivileges - Their [[InTheStyleOf reworking]] of "[[Music/{{Wu-Tang Clan}} Shame on a Nigga]]".

* NewMediaAreEvil - ''Steal This Album!''
** However, as noted above this isn't a straight example of the trope, seeing as it essentially encourages the fans not to buy it, and nothing about the album suggests that S.O.A.D were angry about the material being leaked or potentially "stolen".
* NonAppearingTitle - "Stealing Society", "This Cocaine Makes Me Feel Like I'm On This Song", "B.Y.O.B.", "Chop Suey!", "36", "U-Fig".
* OneHitWonder - Technically. "B.Y.O.B." is their only song to ever trouble the Top 40 of the Billboard Hot 100, achieving this feat with absolutely no help from pop radio and mostly from single sales, downloads and what little rock radio airplay contributes to Billboard Hot 100 chart placement. Subverted, however, in that several of their albums have sold more than ten million copies anyway.
* ProtestSong - "B.Y.O.B.", "Prison Song", "Deer Dance", etc.
** Tentative may also fit, it's a protest against War.
* PunctuatedForEmphasis - Repeated a few times in "Soil".
* RidingTheBomb - Music video to "Boom".
* RockstarSong - "Radio/Video".
* SanitySlippageSong - The last 60 seconds of the song [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5vBGOrI6yBk "Sugar"]] is a good example of this.
* ScienceIsWrong - "Science": "Science has failed our Mother Earth."
* SelfTitledAlbum - Their debut.
* TheSomethingSong - "Prison Song" and "Highway Song".
* SopranoAndGravel - Serj does this all by himself on the first album, going from screeching to clean singing to guttural roars.
* SubduedSection - Many, many songs. A few of the best examples are "She's Like Heroin", "Aerials", & "Chop Suey".
* UncommonTime - "Question!", a song with so many time signatures the band has had trouble performing it live. Many other songs as well, using time signatures like [[UncommonTime 6/8, 7/8, 6/4, 3/4 and 15/8]] (7/8 + 8/8 in the riff of the song "Soil") along with 4/4.

* UnusualEuphemism - The entirety of "Bounce".
* WordSaladLyrics - Too many to list, but especially "I-E-A-I-A-I-O", "Vicinity of Obscenity" and "Old School Hollywood".
** Don't forget Suite Pee. Which Daron himself admitted was just a bunch of random lines strung together.

* UnommonTime - "Question!", a song with so many time signatures the band has had trouble performing it live. Many other songs as well, using time signatures like [[UncommonTime 6/8, 7/8, 6/4, 3/4 and 15/8]] (7/8 + 8/8 in the riff of the song "Soil") along with 4/4.

* CommonTime - Some of their songs, with the [[AvertedTrope notable exception]] of "Question!", a song with so many time signatures the band has had trouble performing it live. However, they avert the trope in many other songs as well, using time signatures like [[UncommonTime 6/8, 7/8, 6/4, 3/4 and 15/8]] (7/8 + 8/8 in the riff of the song "Soil") along with 4/4.

** Hypnotize's lyrics from Hypnotize include 'Mezmerize and Hypnotize that television made you buy it'.

System of a Down is an Armenian-American rock group consisting of lead singer/keyboardist Serj Tankian, backup vocalist/guitarist Daron Malakian, bassist Shavo Odadjian, & drummer John Dolmayan, formerly drummer/one-time vocalist Ontronik Khachaturian. Their sound isn't genre-definable but they sound similar to [[HeavyMetal metal]], {{alternative|Rock}}, & {{progressive|Rock}}, but most of their work fits well enough under the general label of "rock" music. In 2006 they parted ways to work on various non-System of a Down projects (Tankian's solo effort, ''ScarsOnBroadway'' formed by Malakian and Dolmayan, and Odajian's work with RZA); all of them except Malakian claimed this was an indefinite hiatus, but a lot of fans assumed it was more of a break-up until they [[AndTheFandomRejoiced reunited]] for a tour this year.

* OneHitWonder - Technically. "B.Y.O.B." is their only song to ever trouble the Top 40 of the Billboard Hot 100, achieving this feat with absolutely no help from pop radio and mostly from single sales, downloads and what little rock radio airplay contributes to Billboard Hot 100 chart placement.

* MinisculeRocking - Just as an example, ''Steal This Album!'' is sixteen tracks over 43 minutes— that's just over 2:30 on average, with "Bubbles" just under two minutes long and "36" only forty-five seconds long. A song that lasts for four minutes or more is extremely hard to come by in general.

System of a Down is an Armenian-American rock group consisting of lead singer/keyboardist Serj Tankian, backup vocalist/guitarist Daron Malakian, bassist Shavo Odadjian, & drummer John Dolmayan, formerly drummer/one-time vocalist Ontronik Khachaturian. Their sound isn't genre-definable but they sound similar to [[HeavyMetal metal]], [[AlternativeRock alternative]], & [[ProgressiveRock progressive]], but most of their work fits well enough under the general label of "rock" music. In 2006 they parted ways to work on various non-System of a Down projects (Tankian's solo effort, ''ScarsOnBroadway'' formed by Malakian and Dolmayan, and Odajian's work with RZA); all of them except Malakian claimed this was an indefinite hiatus, but a lot of fans assumed it was more of a break-up until they [[AndTheFandomRejoiced reunited]] for a tour this year.

* ThrowItIn - The beginning to "Chop Suey!" is three drumstick taps and the engineer's voice saying "We're rolling 'Suicide'," the track's working title.

* WhatCouldHaveBeen - System of a Down is the 2000's version of Music/{{Soundgarden}}, in terms of a band that disbanded at roughly the height of its popularity. In many respects, rock music has still not fully recovered from SOAD's split. Rock radio fractured into a mix of post-grunge interchangables and Music/GunsNRoses imitators. The rise of VideoGame/GuitarHero, coupled with the return or reforming of veteran bands that preceded SOAD (Music/{{Metallica}}, Music/PearlJam, Music/RageAgainstTheMachine, Music/AliceInChains, Stone Temple Pilots, Music/{{Soundgarden}}) just about saved the hard rock format from being wiped from the radio dial in the late 2000's.
** In all fairness, they haven't permanently split up so much as taken a long hiatus, which ends (at the time of writing) this summer with their reunion tour. Fans can only hope this leads to new material, but there hasn't been mention of this from the band.

* CrossDresser - In the song "She's Like Heroin"
--> "He wants nothing less, [[CrowningMomentOfFunny but to wear a little dress]]."

* GenreBusting - Not just as their musical style ([[RockNRoll rock]][=/=][[HardRock hard rock]][=/=][[AlternativeRock alt rock]]/[[AlternativeMetal alt metal]][=/=]{{progressive metal}}[=/=]{{progressive rock}}[=/=]Experimental[=/=]self-described as 'pop'), but the combination of clearly stated protest & absurdity.

* LargeHam - Started out as Serj ("Sugar, "Bounce", pretty much most of the first 2 albums), but Daron slowly began to take the spotlight ("Needles", much of Mezmerize/Hypnotize), while Serj sits at the CloudCuckooLander ("This Cocaine Makes Me Feel Like I'm On This Song", "Vicinity of Obscenity", "Revenga", "Radio/Video") / DeadpanSnarker ("Cigaro")/occasionally TheQuietOne ("Lost in Hollywood") position. With the release of Serj's 2 solo albums, he's gone back to the LargeHam he's meant to be ("Lie Lie Lie", "Beethoven's [[CountryMatters Cunt]]", pretty much everything else).

* NWordPrivileges - Their [[InTheStyleOf reworking]] of "[[TheWuTangClan Shame on a Nigga]]".

** Tentative may also fit, its a protest agianst War

* TheSomethingSong - "Prison Song" and "Highway Song"

* WhatCouldHaveBeen - System of a Down is the 2000's version of Music/{{Soundgarden}}, in terms of a band that disbanded at roughly the height of its popularity. In many respects, rock music has still not fully recovered from SOAD's split. Rock radio fractured into a mix of post-grunge interchangables and Music/GunsNRoses imitators. The rise of GuitarHero, coupled with the return or reforming of veteran bands that preceded SOAD (Music/{{Metallica}}, Music/PearlJam, RageAgainstTheMachine, Music/AliceInChains, Stone Temple Pilots, Music/{{Soundgarden}}) just about saved the hard rock format from being wiped from the radio dial in the late 2000's.

* EpicRiff - "Chop Suey", "Aerials"

* FreudWasRight: "Cigaro", which is about dictators and their phallic love of cigars.

* RecordOfLoudnessWar - To some extent, a LOT of their work, especially just about everything on ''Toxicity''.

* LevelAte - WHAT A SPLENDID PIE! PIZZA PIZZA PIE!

* TheSomethingSong - "Prison Song"

* ThrowItIn - The beginning to "Chop Suey!" is three drumstick taps and the engineer's voice saying "We're rolling 'Suicide'," the track's working title.
* TitleOnlyChorus - "I-E-A-I-A-I-O".

* WhatCouldHaveBeen - System of a Down is the 2000's version of Music/{{Soundgarden}}, in terms of a band that disbanded at roughly the height of its popularity. In many respects, rock music has still not fully recovered from SOAD's split. Rock radio fractured into a mix of post-grunge interchangables and Music/GunsNRoses imitators. The rise of GuitarHero, coupled with the return or reforming of veteran bands that preceded SOAD ({{Metallica}}, PearlJam, RageAgainstTheMachine, Music/AliceInChains, Stone Temple Pilots, Music/{{Soundgarden}}) just about saved the hard rock format from being wiped from the radio dial in the late 2000's.

* TheSomethingSong - "Prison Song"

* TheTropeSong - "Prison Song"

* WhatCouldHaveBeen - System of a Down is the 2000's version of {{Soundgarden}}, in terms of a band that disbanded at roughly the height of its popularity. In many respects, rock music has still not fully recovered from SOAD's split. Rock radio fractured into a mix of post-grunge interchangables and Music/GunsNRoses imitators. The rise of GuitarHero, coupled with the return or reforming of veteran bands that preceded SOAD ({{Metallica}}, PearlJam, RageAgainstTheMachine, Music/AliceInChains, Stone Temple Pilots, {{Soundgarden}}) just about saved the hard rock format from being wiped from the radio dial in the late 2000's.