System of a Down (album)

System of a Down is the eponymous debut studio album by American heavy metal band System of a Down, released on June 30, 1998, by American Recordings and Columbia Records. The album was certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of America on February 2, 2000. Two years later, after the success of System of a Down's next album, Toxicity, the album was later certified platinum.[3]

System of a Down
Studio album by System of a Down
Released	June 30, 1998
Recorded	November 1997 – February 1998
Studio	Sound City Studios, Van Nuys The Mansion (Recording Studio) , Hollywood, California
Genre	Nu metal[1] alternative metal[2]
Length	40:36
Label	American Columbia
Producer	Rick Rubin System of a Down
System of a Down chronology
System of a Down (1998) Toxicity (2001)
Singles from System of a Down
"Sugar" Released: May 24, 1998 "Spiders" Released: February 10, 1999

Artwork

The cover artwork is from a 1928 anti-fascist poster designed by visual artist John Heartfield for the Communist Party of Germany.[3] The text on the original poster is: "A hand has 5 fingers! With these 5 grab the enemy!"[4] This slogan inspired part of the text contained on the back of the System of a Down album: "The hand has five fingers, capable and powerful, with the ability to destroy as well as create". Later, it is written in bold letters: "Open your eyes, open your mouths, close your hands and make a fist" (used later by Serj Tankian in the song "Uneducated Democracy").

Reception

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[2]
Drowned in Sound	10/10[5]
Pitchfork	7.5/10[6]
Q	[7]
The Rolling Stone Album Guide	[8]
Sputnikmusic	5/5[9]

System of a Down received acclaim from music critics.[10] Q called it "an excellent starting point for this most curious band".[7]

The album is featured in the book 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die.[11] Loudwire included the album in its list of The Best Metal Debut Albums, at number 22.[12]

Track listing

All lyrics written by Serj Tankian, except where noted, and all music written by Daron Malakian, except where noted.

No.	Title	Lyrics	Music	Length
1.	"Suite-Pee"			2:31
2.	"Know"		Shavo Odadjian, Malakian, Tankian	2:56
3.	"Sugar"		Odadjian, Malakian	2:33
4.	"Suggestions"			2:44
5.	"Spiders"			3:35
6.	"DDevil"		Odadjian, Malakian	1:43
7.	"Soil"			3:25
8.	"War?"			2:40
9.	"Mind"		Odadjian, Malakian, Tankian	6:16
10.	"Peephole"			4:06
11.	"CUBErt"	Tankian, Malakian		1:50
12.	"Darts"			2:42
13.	"P.L.U.C.K." (Politically Lying, Unholy, Cowardly Killers)			3:33
Total length:				40:36

Japanese Edition

No.	Title	Length
14.	"Marmalade"	3:02
15.	"Störagéd"	1:19
Total length:		44:57

Limited Edition bonus CD

No.	Title	Music	Length
1.	"Sugar" (Live)	Odadjian, Malakian	2:27
2.	"War?" (Live)		2:48
3.	"Suite-Pee" (Live)		2:58
4.	"Know" (Live)	Odadjian, Malakian, Tankian	3:04
Total length:			13:17

The songs "Honey" and "Temper" from Demo Tape 2 were recorded for this album as well but ultimately did not make the cut. The re-recorded versions of these songs have yet to surface anywhere.[13][14]

Personnel

System of a Down

• Serj Tankian – vocals, keyboards, samples
• Daron Malakian – guitars, vocals
• Shavo Odadjian – bass
• John Dolmayan – drums

Production

• Produced by Rick Rubin with System of a Down
• Mixed by D. Sardy
• Engineered by Sylvia Massy
• Engineer/Assistant Engineer: Greg Fidelman
• Additional Recording/Finishing Touches: D. Sardy
• Assistant Engineers: Sam Storey, Nick Raskulinecz
• Assistant Mixdown Engineers: James Saez, Greg Gordon, Andy Haller
• Second Assistant Mixdown Engineer: Bryan Davis
• Extra piano by Rick Rubin
• Photography: Anthony Artiaga
• Cover Art: John Heartfield
• Art Direction: Frank Harkins & System of a Down
• A&R Direction: Dino Paredes, Sam Wick
• Management: Velvet Hammer Management, David Benveniste
• Recorded at Sound City, Van Nuys, CA
• Vocals and Additional Recordings at Akademie Mathematique of Philosophical Sound Research, Hollywood, CA
• Mixed at Record Plant Studios, Hollywood, CA & Hollywood Sound, CA
• Mastered by Vlado Meller at Sony Studios, New York, NY

Footnotes

Before some of the lyrics in the booklet for the album, footnotes appear.

• "Spiders" :

"Your thoughts, and dreams are no longer sacred, as they are exposed to a
weapon known as remote viewing and monitoring."

• "DDevil" :

"For those that control the central nervous system,
control society, and the world."

• "War?" :

"We first fought the heathens in the name of religion, then Communism, and now in
the name of drugs and terrorism. Our excuses for global domination always change."

• "Mind" :

"Mind control technology has been used by the CIA since the 1950s as part of
their non-lethal, covert weapons program."

• "Peephole" :

"The February 18 edition of Britain's NEW SCIENTIST Magazine reports that the
Geneva-based World Health Organization suppressed, under political pressure,
a report which confirmed that marijuana is safer than either alcohol or tobacco."

• "Darts" :

"Why do old societies hold the pantheon of 12 gods to be true,
while modern societies generally have one God?"

• "P.L.U.C.K." :

"System of a Down would like to dedicate this song to the memory of the 1.5
million victims of the Armenian Genocide, perpetrated by the Turkish
Government in 1915."

Booklet message

In the booklet, underneath the band member's photos, the text reads in all capitals: "Announce your anthems on the ceiling. We dance, annexed by power. Casual neckties embrace, the hungry hunger further, images rule through the media, commercial Orwellianism, producing unveiled icebergs, running transparent electrical cables, curving string ensembles, witnessed by hangings from flagpoles of souls avenged by Dr. Clock. Fresh paint, naked melting figures mixing the revolution against T.V. sentencing, at the hands of brutal men and their military business world. Let us instigate the revolt, down with the system!" This message was also found in some of the Toxicity booklets.

Charts and certifications

Chart performance Album Year Chart Position 1999 Billboard 200 124 Top Heatseekers 1 Singles Year Single Chart Position 1999 "Sugar" Mainstream Rock Tracks 28 Modern Rock Tracks 31 2000 "Spiders" Mainstream Rock Tracks 25 Modern Rock Tracks 38

Sales and certifications Region Certification Certified units/sales Brazil (Pro-Música Brasil)[15] 5-album bundle Platinum 40,000^* Canada (Music Canada)[16] Gold 50,000^^ Italy (FIMI)[17] Gold 50,000^* United Kingdom (BPI)[18] Gold 100,000^^ United States (RIAA)[19] Platinum 1,000,000^^ ^*sales figures based on certification alone ^^shipments figures based on certification alone

References

1. Burgess, Aaron (September 9, 2014). "10 Nu-Metal Albums You Need to Own". Revolvermag. NewBay Media. Retrieved July 21, 2015. Technically spotless, wildly eclectic, and out-outspokenly, er, Armenian, System of a Down’s 1998 self-titled debut turned more nu-metal on its ear; and with this darker and more streamlined follow-up, the band proved that it was more than just a novelty–though spastic lead single “Chop Suey” is still one of the most awesomely bizarre songs to ever get repeated play on the radio.
2. Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. "System of a Down – System of a Down". AllMusic. Retrieved November 21, 2010.
3. "17 Years Ago: System of a Down Release Self-Titled Debut Album". Loudwire.com. Retrieved 2016-05-09.
4. "John Heartfield Poster - Five Fingers Has The Hand". Johnheartfield.com. Archived from the original on 2016-08-15. Retrieved 2016-05-09.
5. Nettleton, Chris (April 21, 2003). "Album Review: System Of A Down – System of A Down". Drowned in Sound. Retrieved January 8, 2019.
6. Ruggeri, Kevin. "System of a Down: System of a Down". Pitchfork. Archived from the original on October 3, 2000. Retrieved August 15, 2019.
7. "System of a Down: System of a Down". Q. No. 182. October 2001. p. 152.
8. Harris, Keith (2004). "System of a Down". In Brackett, Nathan; Hoard, Christian (eds.). The New Rolling Stone Album Guide (4th ed.). Simon & Schuster. pp. 800. ISBN 0-7432-0169-8.
9. Hanson, John (August 19, 2006). "System of a Down – System of a Down". Sputnikmusic. Retrieved February 11, 2011.
10. "System of a Down: Armenian Metal Proprietors". Musiclegendtrend.com. 2013-03-12. Retrieved 2016-05-10.
11. Robert Dimery; Michael Lydon (23 March 2010). 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die: Revised and Updated Edition. Universe. ISBN 978-0-7893-2074-2.
12. Hartmann, Graham. "No. 22: System of a Down, 'System of a Down' – Best Debut Metal Albums". Loudwire. Retrieved 8 January 2019.
13. "r/systemofadown - Honey and Temper Re-Recorded versions on Limewire?". Reddit. Retrieved 8 January 2019.
14. https://www.ascap.com/repertory#ace/works/publisher/423440/DDEVIL%20MUSIC
15. "Brazilian album certifications – System of a Down – System of a Down" (in Portuguese). Associação Brasileira dos Produtores de Discos.
16. "Canadian album certifications – System of a Down – System of a Down". Music Canada.
17. "Italian album certifications – System of a Down – System of a Down" (in Italian). Federazione Industria Musicale Italiana. Retrieved July 22, 2019. Select "2019" in the "Anno" drop-down menu. Select "System of a Down" in the "Filtra" field. Select "Album e Compilation" under "Sezione".
18. "British album certifications – System of a Down – System of a Down". British Phonographic Industry. Select albums in the Format field. Select Gold in the Certification field. Type System of a Down in the "Search BPI Awards" field and then press Enter.
19. "American album certifications – System of a Down – System of a Down". Recording Industry Association of America. If necessary, click Advanced, then click Format, then select Album, then click SEARCH. 

External links

• "Sugar" Live Performance Video on YouTube
• "War?" Live Performance Video on YouTube
• "Spiders" Live Performance Video on YouTube