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Daron Malakian never expected commercial success as a musician. Born to immigrant parents and raised in a ramshackle area of Hollywood, System of a Down's guitarist and vocalist admits he's a little leery of mainstream adulation. "I always knew I would be an artist, but to be successful is crazy," Malakian says. "I have two parents who are artists, but they never made any money." Indeed, the Los Angeles quartet, all of Armenian descent, would seem an unlikely candidate for arena rock band status. They're definitely not pretty boys. Two of them sport creative facial hair. And their music is confrontational and unrelenting in a time of "American Idol" pop ballads and heartfelt emotion
Their latest album, "Mezmerize," mines their Hollywood roots - not the sunny, star-studded image but the gritty underbelly. The band members were raised in the Armenian enclave of Los Angeles. Those memories fuel the lyrics to "Lost in Hollywood," a place where "vicious streets are filled with strays" and "phony people come to pray." "To really get to know any place in the world, you have to go to its ghettos," Malakian says. "You can say I lived in the ghettos. I grew up in a neighborhood where there was a hotel with hookers out in front and stuff like that." As part of their cultural heritage, the band members also grew up in the shadow of the Armenian genocide. For the past three years, System of a Down has performed a benefit concert to commemorate the genocide and raise money for human rights groups. More than a half-million Armenians died at the hands of the Ottoman Turks between 1915 and 1923. The survivors scattered across the globe. The diaspora is evident by looking at the birthplaces of the four System members. Malakian is the only U.S. native. Lead vocalist Serj Tankian and drummer John Dolmayan were born in Beirut. Bassist Shavo Odadjian was born in Armenia. Malakian, Tankian and Odadjian met as students at a private Armenian school in Hollywood. They formed System of a Down in 1995, with Dolmayan coming on board the following year. "Mezmerize" is their first release since "Toxicity" in 2001. It's also the first part of a two-CD set - "Hypnotize" will come out in the fall. Malakian said the band decided to release the two CDs separately to give each disc breathing room: A double album is like being introduced to 30 people at a party, Malakian says. You can't possibly spend quality time with each song. "I'm not the type of person who thinks that just because we sold a zillion records, everyone has to sit there and listen to our album," he says. System of a Down has developed a reputation for questioning the powers that be and for biting political and social commentary. "Mezmerize" is no exception. In the track "BYOB," Malakian and Tankian share vocal duties. The war in Iraq transforms into a party where everybody is "dancing in the desert blowing up the sunshine." Then they ask: "Why don't presidents fight the war?/ Why do they always send the poor?" In the case of the war in Iraq, the political is also personal for Malakian. His parents emigrated from Iraq. The family has many relatives there. "Having them over there is not easy," he says. "I try to think as positive as I can. If anything, it makes me sympathize with families who have their own sons and daughters out fighting the war, a crazy and stupid war. Some people say, 'He must hate America.' Actually I sympathize more with the families that have young kids over there. There's no reason for them to be there." "Mezmerize" tempers the outrage with moments of kookiness, too. A song about Dodger Stadium has the actor Tony Danza cutting in line. The bizarre lyric that gets the most ink comes from "This Cocaine Makes Me Feel Like I'm on This Song," which pairs the words "gonorrhea" and "gorgonzola." The self-effacing Malakian says he never expects anyone to like the band's songs. Despite the acclaim that "Toxicity" brought, the group never once thought about how "Mezmerize" and "Hypnotize" would be received by critics or by fans. Trying to force songs into a mold is the artistic kiss of death, Malakian says. "We've got to be our favorite band," he says. "We have to love ourselves. If you love yourself, other people love you, too. "Even my own tastes can't interfere with the song," he continues. "The song comes from another place. You can't feed the song what you want. The song asks for things, and you have to give them."
By MARIKO BECK
Special to The Record
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