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“Ever since I was a kid, I knew
I was destined for this,” says System Of A Down drummer John
Dolmayan. “I used to go to shows and think, ‘I’m going to be on that stage
one day.’ It’s really easy for me to say that now, but I knew it back then. And
if you talk to people who knew me back then, they’ll tell you the same thing.”
The “this” Dolmayan is speaking of is his place in life today as an immensely
successful modern rock drummer for the multi-platinum Los Angeles–based group
System Of A Down.
Nearly 4 years ago, Dolmayan and his band released the Rick Rubin–produced
Toxicity, a blistering collection of material that was anything but
the traditional sophomore slump. It offered some of the wildest and most
intriguing singles to hit modern rock airwaves in recent memory. (If you doubt
this, go back and give a listen to “Chop Suey,” “Aerials,” and “Psycho.”)
After an intense, multi-year tour schedule in support of Toxicity, System
headed back into the recording studio last year to begin work on the follow-up
to their most successful album to date. With sessions again helmed by Rubin
(whose credits include Slayer, Danzig, and The Beastie Boys, among many others),
Dolmayan soon found himself testing his own skills and pushing his
limits—largely with incredible results. In fact, these sessions were so prolific
that they yielded a double-album’s worth of material, which will be broken into
two separate releases, titled Mezmerize and Hypnotize.
The new music is quite
a wild ride, something Toxicity only hinted at back in ’01. For
example, the intricately composed “Kill Rock ’N’ Roll” catapults with an
imposing tom intro,
eventually breaking into some Bonham-esque kick
patterns, before finally capping off with an unexpected, frenzied
crash/snare sprint. And that’s just one of several examples of
Dolmayan’s impressive kit work on the new releases.
Most drummers would’ve given up a dozen bars into a composition as
involved and demanding as the aforementioned one—or frankly, just about
anything in System Of A Down’s repertoire. But Dolmayan’s tenacious
spirit, coupled with a thirst for constant learning, has molded the
drummer into a world-class, albeit rather humble, hard rock powerhouse.
“Believe me,” he says, “if there was no System Of A Down, I’d still be
trying.”
MD: How did the sessions for the new albums differ from those for
Toxicity?
John: I think the major difference between this session and the
Toxicity session is that we did this one at Rick’s house instead
of a traditional studio, which made a big difference in how the drums
sound, which drums were used, and especially what snares were used. I
used a completely different setup. I kind of accommodated my playing
style to the music that was being written.
The recording process this time took considerably longer. Last time I
did my drums in six days, but this time I didn’t have that luxury
because we weren’t finished with pre-production when we went in. The
last time, I had three weeks of playing the songs every day, kind of
like preparing for a show, except we were preparing to record. This
time, we were still doing pre-production. We’d bring in a song, Rick
would go over it, and then we’d try to play it the best we could. Then
we’d have to re-write certain parts. So it was a much slower process. In
the end, I think that both ways worked well. The sessions for
Toxicity worked really well, because that’s where we were at. But
for these new albums, we had to take a totally different approach
because it’s totally different music. |
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MD: What was your drum
setup this time around?
John: The configuration was different; I used two actual kick drums,
which was interesting because I’d never done that before. It’s like jumping into
someone else’s bed; it’s still a bed but you’ve got to get used to it.
MD: Was that a
feel thing or was it more of a sound issue?
John: Well, I never really considered myself much of a double
bass player. I’ve always concentrated more on my hands than on my feet.
Unfortunately for me, or actually fortunately for me, the new
music called for more double bass stuff. It forced me to get into a
different area. And I felt that two bass drums would sound better
tone-wise than a single drum with a double pedal, so I switched to two.
MD: How much involvement did Rick have on your drums?
John: Rick had a lot of good suggestions, and I left it up to him
and Daron [Malakian, System Of A Down guitarist] to help me select my
snare drums. A drum will sound one way to me since I’m on top of it, but
it will sound totally different in the control room. So I collaborated
with them and we came up with some really cool sounds.
MD: Your snare has a very different vibe than the drum you played
on Toxicity.
John: It’s a wood snare, as opposed to last time, when I used a
bell brass. |
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MD:
Yes, the Toxicity snare seemed much drier, as opposed to what you
have nowadays, which sounds meatier and thicker.
John: You’re going to get that with a wood snare. Also, the room
had a lot to do with the sound. Plus you have to take into consideration
that the music is significantly different. We always like to think it
maintains a lot of the characteristics of System Of A Down, which it has
to, since it’s us playing. But I think the music has grown in a lot of
ways and it’s a lot more diverse.
We’re always trying to outdo what we did in the past. So in order for
that to happen, you have to make changes in your sound and you have to
grow with the music. So we needed something that had a little more depth
to it and had a warmer sound, and I think we accomplished that with the
wood snare.
MD: Will you be using this new configuration on stage?
John: Yes. It’s a Tama Starclassic kit, which sounds great.
Starclassics always sound really good, man, especially live. As for the
snare drum I’ll use on stage, I’m thinking about the bell brass.
MD: What’s your cymbal setup?
John: I use Paiste cymbals, mostly from their Signature line, but
with a couple of Dimensions in there as well. I’ve got some big cymbals,
24s and 22s. And the bell on my 22" Dimension Mega-Bell ride is almost
the same size as my old ride! But the Mega-Bell sounds great and really
cuts through.
by Waleed Rashidi
See the 07/2005
Modern Drummer Magazine for more of the story
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