History Music / SystemOfADown

* NotChristianRock: The bandmembers are of Armenian descent, and "Science" has a definite pro-spirituality slant. But they are not a Christian band.

* MotorMouth: One of the band's very defining characteristics. Almost every song by them has Serj singing really, ''really'' fast, [[UpToEleven so fast]] [[IndecipherableLyrics most of the lyrics can't be easily figured out with no help]]. "I-E-A-I-A-I-O" in particular contains several rapidly-spoken tongue-twisters.

*** It's followed by a hidden track that's a tribal rendition of the Armenian church hymn "Der Voghormia".[[note]]"Lord, have mercy"[[/note]]

->''"Wake up! (wake up)\\

Hide the scars to fade away the shake-up! (hide the scars to fade away the...)\\

Here you go create another fable!"''
-->-- "Chop Suey!"

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. The name ultimately derives from a poem written by Daron titled "Victims of the Down." They changed the name to "System of a Down" [[AscendedFanboy so that their CD's could be shelved closer to their musical idols]], {{Music/Slayer}}. In their early years, they were (more or less incorrectly) labeled NuMetal. This gradually subsided once the band gained further respect among both metal fans and the more critical segment of the mainstream. With that said, their sound isn't genre-definable but they sound similar to [[HeavyMetal metal]], {{alternative|Rock}}, & {{progressive|Rock}}. In general, most of their work fits well enough under the general label of "rock" music.

After the success of their fourth and fifth albums, ''Music/MezmerizeHypnotize'', in 2006 they parted ways to work on various non-SOAD projects (Tankian's solo effort, ''Music/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 reunited for a tour in 2011. The band have continued to tour since, and they announced to the 'Kerrang!' magazine that they'll release a new album in 2017, though this would not come to pass due to CreativeDifferences and Serj refusing to release anything that he felt was less than the band's absolute best.

Their lyrics often revolve around themes of isolation, insanity, and criticisms of modern society. Some of their songs have absurdist lyrics, others are sung as if speaking directly to the listener and feature terse statements and lots of questions/demands, and others yet are more sarcastic and satirical. [[SignatureStyle Probably their most well-known attribute is their rapid tone/tempo/time signature changes]], giving the music a schizophrenic feel (most noticeable in songs like "Question!," "I-E-A-I-A-I-O," "B.Y.O.B.," and, of course, [[SignatureSong "Chop Suey!"]]).

* AlternativeMetal: It's both an accurate and an [[NeoclassicalPunkZydecoRockabilly inadequate]] [[AvantGardeMetal descriptor]] for them.

* NeoclassicalPunkZydecoRockabilly: A mix of of alternative rock, hardcore punk, grindcore, thrash metal, death metal, progressive rock, and Middle Eastern folk, all wrapped up in a package of Frank Zappa/Mike Patton-esque idiosyncrasy and weirdness. While commonly called nu metal (a scene that certainly embraced them, though they rejected the label and generally were not fans of the genre), they generally spurned easy stylistic labels and refused to participate in genre debates, usually just stating that they sounded like themselves.

* MohsScaleOfRockAndMetalHardness: Usually about a 7 or 8. Some of their ballads go as low as a 4 or so.

+ Music/{{Slayer}}, Music/FrankZappa, Music/MrBungle, Music/{{Kiss}}, Music/DeadKennedys, Music/OzzyOsbourne, Music/VanHalen

* RecycledTheme: The leaked Toxicity outtake "Desecrate" (also known as "Defy You") and "Nuguns" on Steal This Album share the same instrumental, but entirely different lyrics.

* ArcNumber: 36 had always had its title since it was written and demoed back in the 90s, but the band specifically held over releasing it until it could actually be the 36th album track they released (It became this as the 9th track on Steal This Album). The band slightly changed the title frm its original 36 to .36 to symbolise it was the 36th track. This numbering doesn't count demo tracks, bonus tracks or B-Sides, which would obviously push the numbers up.

* PrecisionFStrike: In the middle of "Lost in Hollywood", a slow ballad, Daron sings "All you [[ThisIsForEmphasisBitch bitches]] put your hands in the air and wave em' like you just don't care".

* ''Music/[[MezmerizeHypnotize Hypnotize]]'' (2005)

* ''Music/{{Mezmerize}}'' (2005)
* ''Music/{{Hypnotize}}'' (2005)

The band released five studio albums:
* ''System of a Down'' (1998)
* ''Music/{{Toxicity}}'' (2001)
* ''Steal This Album!'' (2002)
* ''Music/{{Mezmerize}}'' (2005)
* ''Music/{{Hypnotize}}'' (2005)

* RapMetal: Delved into this when they did a version of "[[Music/WuTangClan Shame on a Nigga]]

** “Chop Suey” is so well-known for this that it’s somewhat of a meme.

---> Peter's pecker picked another pickle-bearing pussy pepper! Why?! / Meetin' John Dale Jr, winked an eye, point a finger! Why?! / A former cop, undercover, just got shot, now recovered! Why?! / Fightin' crime with a partner! Lois Lane 'n Jimmy Carter! Wooo!!

In 2020, the band released their [[https://systemofadown.bandcamp.com/track/genocidal-humanoidz-2 first new songs in over 15 years]], "Protect the Land" and "Genocidal Humanoidz." The songs were released to raise awareness of the war being perpetrated by Turkey and Azerbaijan Artsakh and Armenia.

* XtremeKoolLetterz: "[[HeavyMetalUmlaut Nüguns,]]" thanks to the umlaut.

In 2020, the band released their [[https://systemofadown.bandcamp.com/track/genocidal-humanoidz-2 first new songs in over 15 years]], "Protect the Land" and "Genocidal Humanoidz." The songs were released to raise awareness of the war being perpetrated by Turkey and Azerbaijan in Armenia.

In 2020, the band released their [[https://systemofadown.bandcamp.com/track/genocidal-humanoidz-2 first new songs in over 15 years]], "Protect the Land" and "Genocidal Humanoidz."