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Yahoo
5 days ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
System of a Down's Daron Malakian strikes familiar, violent chords on new Scars on Broadway album
Fans of System of a Down desperately hoping the Armenian American alt-metal band will one day release a full-length follow-up to their chart-topping 2005 companion albums "Mezmerize" and "Hypnotize" can at least seek some solace in the latest offering from band co-founder Daron Malakian. "Addicted to the Violence," the third album from his solo project Daron Malakian and Scars on Broadway, may lack System frontman Serj Tankian's mellifluous singing, iconoclastic rants and feral screams, but its eclectic structure, melodic earworms, fetching vocal harmonies and poignant themes are sonically and structurally similar to System of a Down — and with good reason. 'All of my songs can work for either Scars or System because they come from my style and have my signature,' Malakian says from his home in Glendale. 'When I wrote for System, I didn't bring guitar riffs to the band. Like with [System's 2002 breakthrough single] 'Aerials.' That was a complete song. I wrote it from beginning to end before I showed it to them.' Malakian — who tackled vocals, guitar and bass — assembled "Addicted to the Violence" (out Friday) during the last five years, using songs he'd written over roughly two decades. The oldest track, 'Satan Hussein,' which starts with a rapid-fire guitar line and features a serrated verse and a storming chorus, dates to the early 2000s, when System's second album, "Toxicity," was rocketing toward six-times platinum status (which it achieved nine months after release). With Scars, Malakian isn't chasing ghosts and he's not tied to a schedule. He's more interested in spontaneity than continuity, and artistry takes precedence over cohesion. None of the tracks on the band's sporadically released three albums — 2008's self-titled debut, 2018's "Dictator," and "Addicted to the Violence"— follow a linear or chronological path. Instead, each includes an eclectic variety of songs chosen almost at random. 'It's almost like I spin the wheel and wherever the arrow lands, that's where I start,' he explains. 'I end up with a bunch of songs from different periods in my life that come from different moods. It's totally selfish. Everything starts as something I write for myself and play for myself. I never listen to something I've done and say, 'Oh, everybody's gonna love this.' For me, a song is more like my new toy. At some point, I finish playing with it and I go, 'OK, I'm ready to share this with other kids now.'' Whether by happenstance or subconscious inspiration, "Addicted to the Violence" is a turbulent, inadvertently prescient album for unstable times — a barbed, off-kilter amalgam of metal, alt-rock, pop, Cali-punk, prog, Mediterranean folk, alt-country and psychedelia — sometimes within the same song. Lyrically, Malakian addresses school shootings, authoritarianism, media manipulation, infidelity, addiction and stream-of-consciousness ramblings as dizzying as an hour of random, rapid-fire channel surfing. Is writing music your way of making sense out of a nonsensical world? I like to think of it as bringing worlds together that, in other cases, may not belong together. But when they come out through me, they mutate and turn into this thing that makes sense. In that way, music is like my therapist. Even if I write a song and nobody ever hears it, it's healthy for me to make and it helps me work stuff out. When I write a song, sometimes it affects me deeply and I'll cry or I'll get hyped up and excited. It's almost like I'm communicating with somebody, but I'm not talking to anyone. It's just me in this intimate moment. Is it strange to take these personal, intimate and therapeutic moments and turn them into songs that go out for the masses to interpret and absorb? I want people to make up their own meanings for the songs, even if they're completely different than mine. I don't even like to talk about what inspired the songs because it doesn't matter. No one needs to know what I was thinking because they don't know my life. They don't know me. They know the guy on stage, but they don't know the personal struggles I've been through and they don't need to. Was there anything about "Addicted to the Violence" that you wanted to do differently than "Dictator"? Different songs on the album have synthesizer and that's a color I've never used before in System or Scars. Every painting you make shouldn't have the same colors. Sometimes I'm like, "Will that work with the rest of the songs? That color is really different." But I'm not afraid to use it. [Warning: Video includes profanity.] 'Shame Game' has a psychedelic vibe that's kinda like a hybrid of Strawberry Alarm Clock and Blue Oyster Cult, while the title track has a prog rock vibe redolent of Styx, Rush and Mars Volta. I love all that stuff. I spend more time listening to music than playing guitar. It's how I practice music. I take in these inspirations and it all comes out later when I write without me realizing it. In 2020, System released the songs 'Protect the Land' and 'Genocidal Humanoidz,' which you originally planned to use for Scars on Broadway. At that time, I hadn't recorded 'Genocidal Humanoidz' yet, but I had finished 'Protect the Land,' and my vocals on the song are the tracks I was going to use for my album. Serj just came in and sang his parts over it. Why did you offer those songs to System when every time you tried to work on an album with them after 2010, you hit a creative impasse? Because [the second Nagorno-Karabakh War] was going on in Artsakh at that time between [the Armenian breakaway state Artsakh and Azerbaijan], and we decided we needed to say something. We all got on the phone and I said, 'Hey, I got this song 'Protect the Land,' and it's about this exact topic.' So, I pulled it off the Scars record and shared it with System. You released the eponymous Scars on Broadway album in 2008, almost exactly two years after System went on a four-year hiatus. Did you form Scars out of a need to stay creative? At the time, I knew that if I wanted to keep releasing music, I needed a new outlet, so Scars was something that had to happen or I would have just been sitting around all these years and nobody would have heard from me. You played a few shows with Scars before your first album came out in 2008, but you abruptly canceled the supporting tour and only released one more Scars song before 2018. That was a really strange time. I wanted to move forward with my music, but we had worked so hard to get to the point we got to in System, and not everyone was in the same boat when it came to how we wanted to move forward. I just wasn't ready to do a tour with Scars. Was it like trying to start a new relationship after a bad breakup? I might have rushed into that second marriage too quick. I had [System drummer] John [Dolmayan] playing with me, and I think that was [a sign that] I was still holding onto System of a Down. That created a lot of anxiety. A few years later, you announced that you were working on a new Scars album and planned to release it in 2013. Why did it take until 2018 for you to put out "Dictator"? I was writing songs and thinking they were amazing, but in my head I was conflicted about where the songs were going to go. "Should I take them to Scars? Is that premature? Would System want to do something with them?" I underwent this constant struggle because Serj and I always had this creative disagreement. I finally moved past that and did the second album, but it took a while. System of a Down played nine concerts in South America this spring, and you have six stadium gigs scheduled in North America for August and September. Is there any chance a new System album will follow? I'm not so sure I even want to make another System of a Down record at this point in my life. I'm getting along with the guys really well right now. Serj and I love each other and we enjoy being onstage together. So, maybe it's best for us to keep playing concerts as System and doing our own things outside of that. The cover art for "Addicted to the Violence" — a silhouette of a woman against a blood-red background holding an oversize bullet over her head, and standing in front of a row of opium poppies — is the work of your father, Iraqi-born artist Vartan Malakian. Was he a major inspiration for you? My approach to art and everything I know about it comes from my dad, and the way we approach what we do is very similar. We both do it for ourselves. He has never promoted himself or done an art exhibition. The only things most people have seen from him are the album covers. But ever since I was born, he was doing art in the house, and he's never cared if anyone was looking at it. Do you seek his approval? No, I don't. He usually is very supportive of what I do, but my dad's a complicated guy. I admire him a lot and wish I could even be half of the artist that he is. And if he and my mom didn't move to this country, I would not have been in System of a Down. I would have ended up as a soldier during Desert Storm and the Second Gulf War. That's my alternative life. It's crazy. Have you been to Iraq? When I was 14 years old, I went there for two months to visit relatives and it was a complete culture shock. I'm a kid that grew up in Hollywood, and I went to Baghdad wearing a Metallica shirt and I was a total smart aleck. Everywhere we went, I saw pictures and statues of Saddam Hussein. I turned to my cousin and said, 'What if I walked up to one of the statues and said, 'Hey Saddam, go f— yourself?'' Just me saying that made him nervous and scared. Talking like that was seriously dangerous and I had no idea. That was a definite learning experience of what I could have been. And it inspired me later to write 'Satan Hussein.' You had a glimpse of life under an authoritarian regime. Do you have strong feelings about the Trump administration and the way the president has, at times, acted like a dictator? I don't hate the guy and I don't love the guy. I'm not on the right, I'm not on the left. There are some things both sides do that I agree with, but I don't talk about that stuff in interviews because when it comes to politics, I'm not on a team. I don't like the division in this country, and I think if you're too far right or you're too far left, you end up in the same place. Is "Addicted to the Violence," and especially the song 'Killing Spree,' a commentary on political violence in our country? Not just political violence, it's all violence. 'Killing Spree' is ridiculous. It's heavy. It's dark. But if you listen to the way I sing, there is an absolutely absurd delivery, almost like I'm having fun with it. I'm not celebrating the violence, but the delivery is done the way a crazy person would celebrate it. So, it's from the viewpoint of a killer, the viewpoint of a victim, and my own viewpoint. I saw a video on social media of these kids standing around in the street, and one of them gets wiped out by the back end of a car and flies into the air. These kids are recording it and some of them are laughing like's it's funny. I don't want to say that's right or wrong, but from what I'm seeing, a lot of people have become desensitized to violence. You're releasing "Addicted to the Violence" about six weeks before the final six System of a Down dates of 2025. Have you figured out how to compartmentalize what you do with System of a Down and Scars on Broadway? There was a time that I couldn't juggle the two very well, but now I feel more confident and very comfortable with where System and Scars are. I love playing with System, and I want to do more shows with Scars. I couldn't tell you how either band will evolve. Only time will tell what happens and I'm fine with that as long as it happens in a natural way. Everything we've experienced has brought us to where we are now. And now is all we've got because the past is gone and the future isn't here yet. So, the most important thing is the present. Get notified when the biggest stories in Hollywood, culture and entertainment go live. Sign up for L.A. Times entertainment alerts. This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
Scotsman
06-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Scotsman
Crowd crushes: What to do if you find yourself in one at a summer music festival?
Feel safer heading into the crowds during the summer festival season with these tips if you're involved in a crowd crush Sign up to our daily newsletter Sign up Thank you for signing up! Did you know with a Digital Subscription to Edinburgh News, you can get unlimited access to the website including our premium content, as well as benefiting from fewer ads, loyalty rewards and much more. Learn More Sorry, there seem to be some issues. Please try again later. Submitting... Heading out to one of this year's big music festivals or concerts, but concerned about the crowds? While many other festival-goers will no doubt look out for you and other revellers, there are some tips to take with you ahead of the next show you're heading to. Here is some important advice on what to do if you find yourself in a crowd crush – most importantly, how to remain calm and what to do before entering the crowd. We all love wading into crowds during the summer festival season – joining revellers to have a dance, a pogo, or, in some cases, a mosh, as our favourite acts take to stages across fields, stadiums, and arenas this year. But as newer music fans might make their first pilgrimage to the likes of Leeds and Reading Festival, or the numerous Oasis reunion concerts that are also set to take place throughout the remainder of the year, there might be some of you out there concerned about overcrowding and the very serious, real nature of crowd crushes. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Speaking from personal experience, I have found myself in only two crowd crushes throughout the numerous years of attending concerts and festivals; both times happened to be during System Of A Down sets. Even if the crowd seems lucid before the act takes to the stage, the moment that music hits, it can feel like every person for themselves. So what should you do if you find yourself in a crowd crush, or start to feel overwhelmed by the sheer volume of people around you at one of the remaining festivals or concerts taking place throughout 2025? Global travel insurance experts World Nomads are urging festival-goers to stay informed and vigilant in crowded spaces, with practical advice on how to stay safe in the event of a crowd crush – and have offered salient advice even the most hardened concert-goer will attest is incredibly useful What is a crowd crush? Learn more about 'The Accordion Method' and what else you should do if you find yourself in a crowd crush at one of this year's many concerts and festivals. | Canva A crowd crush, also known as a crowd collapse or progressive crowd collapse, occurs when a dense group of people becomes so tightly packed that individuals are compressed against each other, or against barriers, to the point where they can no longer breathe. This is not typically caused by people falling or tripping, but rather by the sheer force exerted by the collective mass of bodies. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad In such extreme density, typically reaching 6–7 people per square metre, individuals lose control over their own movement. Waves of pressure can ripple through the crowd, leading to a "domino effect" where people are pushed and squeezed with immense force, often exceeding hundreds of pounds per square inch. This pressure can cause compression asphyxia, leading to suffocation, and also results in severe internal injuries from being crushed. What to do if you find yourself in a crowd crush during a concert or festival? Know your exits Take a moment before enjoying the music to familiarise yourself with your surroundings and all the exits you can spot – not just the one you came through. In an emergency situation, a less crowded means of escape can provide important seconds to ensure your and everyone else's safety. Stay on your feet It's a dreaded concern for many: what happens if I fall over in the crowd during a crush? If you do fall, try to get up quickly. Protect your head and keep your arms up in front of your chest to create breathing space and guard against pressure – a good crowd will know to help those who stumble back onto their feet. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Don't push or shout Nothing gets done when people shove or shout, especially during a situation such as a crowd crush. Stay calm and move with the flow of the crowd when possible to make your way to one of those exits we spoke about earlier. A rather loud concert also means trying to compete with the music by shouting won't do much, so instead use non-verbal cues to those around you if you need help. Hand signals, eye contact, and pointing will help communicate with those around you more than yelling in their faces. Help others Pit hospitality is a big thing, even if it seems everyone is smashing into one another. Ultimately, despite how frantic a mosh can get, everyone knows to help other people if things get too hectic. Pick people up if they fall on the floor, allow people space if they don't feel comfortable and want to leave, and perhaps just as important – respect those who don't want to get 'Caught in a Mosh' (to quote Anthrax). Circle pits can get very big very quickly. The Accordion Method When navigating a dense, surging crowd, a key technique to extract yourself is employing what's known as The Accordion Method. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad As the mass of people pushes forward in wave-like motions, strategically utilise the subsequent brief lull to shift diagonally into any emerging gaps. By consistently repeating this calculated movement during each ebb in the crowd's flow, you can gradually work your way towards the safer, less congested edges of the crowd. Trust your instincts Ultimately, only you know your limits when it comes to joining in with crowd activities during a performance. If you start to feel unsure while in the crowd or you feel that it is getting a little too crowded – don't be a hero. Take the chance to step away from the bulk of the bodies in the crowd and perhaps look at sticking around the edges to the side of the stages, or take advantage of some of the big screens many music festivals offer. It's far more important to get a chance to see your favourite band another time, another place than to risk your safety just to be front-and-centre for them. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Have you any tips for those attending concerts and festivals for the first time who might feel anxious about wading into the crowd? Share your advice or put some of those minds at ease by leaving your comments down below.
Scotsman
06-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Scotsman
Crowd crushes: What to do if you find yourself in one at a summer music festival?
Feel safer heading into the crowds during the summer festival season with these tips if you're involved in a crowd crush Sign up to our Arts and Culture newsletter Sign up Thank you for signing up! Did you know with a Digital Subscription to The Scotsman, you can get unlimited access to the website including our premium content, as well as benefiting from fewer ads, loyalty rewards and much more. Learn More Sorry, there seem to be some issues. Please try again later. Submitting... Heading out to one of this year's big music festivals or concerts, but concerned about the crowds? While many other festival-goers will no doubt look out for you and other revellers, there are some tips to take with you ahead of the next show you're heading to. Here is some important advice on what to do if you find yourself in a crowd crush – most importantly, how to remain calm and what to do before entering the crowd. We all love wading into crowds during the summer festival season – joining revellers to have a dance, a pogo, or, in some cases, a mosh, as our favourite acts take to stages across fields, stadiums, and arenas this year. But as newer music fans might make their first pilgrimage to the likes of Leeds and Reading Festival, or the numerous Oasis reunion concerts that are also set to take place throughout the remainder of the year, there might be some of you out there concerned about overcrowding and the very serious, real nature of crowd crushes. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Speaking from personal experience, I have found myself in only two crowd crushes throughout the numerous years of attending concerts and festivals; both times happened to be during System Of A Down sets. Even if the crowd seems lucid before the act takes to the stage, the moment that music hits, it can feel like every person for themselves. So what should you do if you find yourself in a crowd crush, or start to feel overwhelmed by the sheer volume of people around you at one of the remaining festivals or concerts taking place throughout 2025? Global travel insurance experts World Nomads are urging festival-goers to stay informed and vigilant in crowded spaces, with practical advice on how to stay safe in the event of a crowd crush – and have offered salient advice even the most hardened concert-goer will attest is incredibly useful What is a crowd crush? Learn more about 'The Accordion Method' and what else you should do if you find yourself in a crowd crush at one of this year's many concerts and festivals. | Canva A crowd crush, also known as a crowd collapse or progressive crowd collapse, occurs when a dense group of people becomes so tightly packed that individuals are compressed against each other, or against barriers, to the point where they can no longer breathe. This is not typically caused by people falling or tripping, but rather by the sheer force exerted by the collective mass of bodies. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad In such extreme density, typically reaching 6–7 people per square metre, individuals lose control over their own movement. Waves of pressure can ripple through the crowd, leading to a "domino effect" where people are pushed and squeezed with immense force, often exceeding hundreds of pounds per square inch. This pressure can cause compression asphyxia, leading to suffocation, and also results in severe internal injuries from being crushed. What to do if you find yourself in a crowd crush during a concert or festival? Know your exits Take a moment before enjoying the music to familiarise yourself with your surroundings and all the exits you can spot – not just the one you came through. In an emergency situation, a less crowded means of escape can provide important seconds to ensure your and everyone else's safety. Stay on your feet It's a dreaded concern for many: what happens if I fall over in the crowd during a crush? If you do fall, try to get up quickly. Protect your head and keep your arms up in front of your chest to create breathing space and guard against pressure – a good crowd will know to help those who stumble back onto their feet. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Don't push or shout Nothing gets done when people shove or shout, especially during a situation such as a crowd crush. Stay calm and move with the flow of the crowd when possible to make your way to one of those exits we spoke about earlier. A rather loud concert also means trying to compete with the music by shouting won't do much, so instead use non-verbal cues to those around you if you need help. Hand signals, eye contact, and pointing will help communicate with those around you more than yelling in their faces. Help others Pit hospitality is a big thing, even if it seems everyone is smashing into one another. Ultimately, despite how frantic a mosh can get, everyone knows to help other people if things get too hectic. Pick people up if they fall on the floor, allow people space if they don't feel comfortable and want to leave, and perhaps just as important – respect those who don't want to get 'Caught in a Mosh' (to quote Anthrax). Circle pits can get very big very quickly. The Accordion Method When navigating a dense, surging crowd, a key technique to extract yourself is employing what's known as The Accordion Method. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad As the mass of people pushes forward in wave-like motions, strategically utilise the subsequent brief lull to shift diagonally into any emerging gaps. By consistently repeating this calculated movement during each ebb in the crowd's flow, you can gradually work your way towards the safer, less congested edges of the crowd. Trust your instincts Ultimately, only you know your limits when it comes to joining in with crowd activities during a performance. If you start to feel unsure while in the crowd or you feel that it is getting a little too crowded – don't be a hero. Take the chance to step away from the bulk of the bodies in the crowd and perhaps look at sticking around the edges to the side of the stages, or take advantage of some of the big screens many music festivals offer. It's far more important to get a chance to see your favourite band another time, another place than to risk your safety just to be front-and-centre for them. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad
Yahoo
07-02-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Polyphia are making a 'heavy' new album with System Of A Down and Babymetal
When you buy through links on our articles, Future and its syndication partners may earn a commission. Polyphia have teased a 'heavy' new album featuring System Of A Down singer Serj Tankian and Babymetal. Guitarist Tim Henson offers a glimpse of what the Plano, Texas four-piece are cooking up to Guitar World, saying that where latest album Remember That You Will Die explored multiple genres, their next effort will zero in on metal. 'It's heavy,' he says. 'That's exciting for us, and I think last year was really eye-opening for us in terms of how we should start composing for the live performance. 'Playing a nylon-string to 80,000 people is a little like… when you think of a nylon-string, you think of a dude in a coffee shop, right? So, it's a little disconnect there. We're excited to really hone that in and really make the music bigger for that kind of audience now.' Henson adds that there will be plenty of eight-string guitar. 'We're just making new guitars that don't exist for the sole purpose of writing something really, really cool with it, so that if you want to learn it, you're gonna have no choice but to buy that guitar!' Moving on to guest spots, he continues: 'We have one with Serj from System Of A Down and we just finished a second Babymetal collab – that's for their record, though, and we're working on one to send them for our record. So hopefully we'll make that one come to fruition.' Polyphia collaborated with Babymetal over the summer, joining the J-metal icons for a performance of their song Brand New Day at the Saitama Super Arena in Tokyo in June. As for Tankian, he's a noted Polyphia fan. He told The Jesea Lee Show last summer that a friend introduced him to the quartet's music and that he found them 'really interesting'. Polyphia are no strangers to star collaborations. Remember That You Will Die had songs featuring Deftones vocalist Chino Moreno and superstar guitarist Steve Vai, among others.
Yahoo
28-01-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
"A small subset of fans had a practice of showing up to gigs in Nazi regalia." System Of A Down's Serj Tankian on why supporting one iconic metal band was like "rock 'n' roll boot camp"
When you buy through links on our articles, Future and its syndication partners may earn a commission. It seems almost unimaginable now that a metal band as massive and universally loved as System Of A Down - a band with numerous Billboard number one albums and a couple of songs in the Spotify billions club, no less - were once greeted with outright hostility as a relatively unknown opening act. To have it all make more sense, we probably need to bear two key things in mind. Firstly, their sheer size makes it easy to forget just how fundamentally weird System Of A Down are. To metal crowds in the late 90s, fed on a scene dominated by Metallica, Korn, Pantera and Marilyn Manson, a bunch of Armenian-American misfits playing a politically-tinged mix of heavy metal, scrappy punk rock, Armenian folk music and Zappa-esque, avant-garde absurdity was like nothing they'd heard before. Oh, and secondly: fucking Slayer crowds. In his thoroughly engaging 2024 memoir Down With The System, System Of A Down frontman Serj Tankian recalls one of the defining tours of the band's early days, when they were invited to open for Slayer in 1998. While the four-piece were creating a buzz around Southern California after breaking out of LA, many national audiences weren't familiar with System's game, and Slayer's infamously stubborn audience weren't exactly delighted to see them. "We were opening for Slayer, which was a massive opportunity for a band who hadn't yet released their first album,". Serj explains "But that tour was like going to rock 'n' roll boot camp. Slayer fans famously love Slayer and hate just about everything and everyone else. As their opening act, the crowd saw us as the one thing standing between them and Slayer. This was a group of fans for whom 'homemade' knife-carved tattoos were not unusual, so when we'd turn up - me in tribal makeup, Daron [Malakian, System guitarist] sporting pink hair and a glammy little outfit, they were not necessarily predisposed to welcome us with open arms. In fact, when we'd take the stage, we'd often be facing a wall of crossed arms and extended middle fingers." Serj goes on to reveal that System were more than up to the challenge, claiming that the band's sheer "moxie eventually started winning fans over." "Sometimes, though, shit just got out of hand," he admits. "At a show in Utah, when it started to rain, the concert was canceled, much to the dismay of the fans who'd turned up there. Trash started flying, fights broke out all over the place, and I jumped behind our merch table to help our merch person pack up all our stuff. After a few minutes, I realized it was a lost cause." Sadly, there were also small but noticeable pockets of Slayer's fanbase that proved particularly problematic and seemed hell-bent on making themselves seen and heard. Eventually, one incident in particular led to Serj losing his temper and stunning a room full of Slayer fans in to complete silence. "A small subset of Slayer fans had a disturbing practice of showing up to gigs in full Nazi regalia," he writes. "I distinctly recall watching a team of African-American bouncers at a club in Detroit called Harpos brawling with these Slayer fans outside the club after we'd finished our set. "Later that year, while we were touring with Slayer through Europe, we were onstage in Poland being pelted with coins by fans who were also raising Nazi salutes in our direction. At one point, I was hit in the face with a bagel and lost my shit. I told our lighting guy to point the lights into the audience and target the bagel-thrower. Then I launched into an angry tirade and threatened to start kicking people's asses. When I finished, the venue went dead silent. You could literally hear a pin drop in that place. Then we walked off." Despite System Of A Down's now classic, self-titled debut album having seen release by the time Slayer's tour hit Europe, establishing them as one of the hottest new bands in metal, it seemed Slayer's fans still weren't any more welcoming. At least not at first; in 2014, Daron Malakian amusingly described one hardline tactic he and his bandmates adopted in Berlin to win them over. 'I said, 'Look, if these guys don't applaud for us after we play the first song, Know, we're gonna play it again, over and over, until they react,'' he explained. 'We played Know and the crowd was pretty silent. So John [Dolmayan, System Of A Down drummer] started Know again, and we all played it. Halfway through the song, they were actually cheering for us. My attitude was, 'You're gonna love us whether you like it or not, and if you don't, you're gonna hear this song over and over again.'' Of course, people would grow to love System Of A Down; come their next album, 2001's Toxicity, they had officially become one of the biggest metal bands on the planet. Arguably, though, they never got any less weird.
