System of a Down just have one extra large pipe, where nothing is lost in the process. Now, the stuff thatвЂ™s comes out of those pipes does eventually all come back together. To put it into perspective, imagine most bands having four or five pipes that their music comes out of. In fact, thatвЂ™s what makes System of a Down so brutally good the sounds they achieve are so sublimely made and fit so well with a songs lyrical content. Using some vivid imagery, Serj & Daron perfectly describe what its like to go on a bad acid trip, and do so in an entirely too real manner, even replicating a sound that resembles that feeling.

Previously mentioned, Peephole is a semi-cautionary tale on drug use, describing what essentially equates to a bad high. It really is one of the most honest portrayals of coping with suicide on album you donвЂ™t curse that person for killing themselves, you curse the things around him. Soil then bursts in with a tale of suicide that touches your heart, but System decide against making it sentimental, and instead focus on the anger those around the deceased person feel towards god, while downplaying the part the deceased played in it themselves. His delivery (and the guttural squawk he gives) gives the lyrics a heightened sense of danger, as the unraveling of it near its end (and the repetition of the haunting вЂњLook at each otherвЂ¦вЂќ) makes you just feelвЂ¦well, sad. Mind is another highlight with Serj describing the pain of childhood abuse. War?, the definitive political song by them, clearly states that what we do today is no longer even able to be considered вЂњwarвЂќ, and the fervor with which they do so is convincing, regardless of political beliefs. Instead of drawing everything out into huge metaphors and using literary allusions to say вЂњwar is badвЂќ, System really just say what they mean here. Going back to the element of surprise, listening now, itвЂ™s astounding how good the lyrics are.

It makes for some of the most interesting vocal melodies this side of Mike Patton, and for him to draw such a comparison in the midst of all that is going on can be no less of an understatement. It also helps heвЂ™s such an diverse vocalist he can instantly change his tone and pitch, almost in the middle of a word, without having to drag it out. It just sounds like he wants to be into the music more than on any other album, and this lends him an air of likeability he normally doesnвЂ™t get. He screams, he growls, he goes from screaming and growling into falsettos, and then heвЂ™ll still start to psuedo-rap if the mood strikes him. He isnвЂ™t quite as strong a vocalist as he would later become, so instead of being as detached or operatic as he would later be, he opts to just give it everything heвЂ™s got. Getting onto SerjвЂ™s vocals, however, itвЂ™s a strange conundrum. You may not piss your pants, but if youвЂ™ve ever been in those shoes the lyrics allude to, youвЂ™ll certainly get a tad bit frightened. Peephole puts itself on echo to warn you of whatвЂ™s coming, and is actually a scary song to listen to. Instead, what you get are supremely odd songs like Ddevil, which just bounces along to ShavoвЂ™s bouncy bass technique (ah, back in the days when we could hear him) and SerjвЂ™s most eclectic vocal work. The songs are simpler than they would end up being despite all the uniqueness and originality theyвЂ™d express here, you arenвЂ™t going to get a technical masterpiece like Soldier Side or B.Y.O.B here. While he isnвЂ™t as competent as he would later be, he was certainly more interesting to listen to. He also experiments more with sudden time changes and complete turnarounds in playing style here more often than anywhere else Mind goes from a roaring riff to a single, elongated note, to a droning guitar line, back to that pounding riff, and then into a black metal-inspired riff-fest. This is most clearly expressed in DaronвЂ™s guitar playing, which focuses far less on the chugging riffs of latter material, and more so on strangely constructed chord progressions. Not in the normal sense, but in that they never wanted to go over the top with their music, without there being a real purpose for it. Forget about what you think you know about System from past reviews, sans a few tracks on Steal This Album, the general sound of this album could be an entirely different band from that who made Toxicity.Д«efore they decided to pursue their thrash-y roots, System of a Down was a very minimalist, cautious band. In fact, System of a Down as a whole still pretty much totally owns any album ever, period.

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