Mezmerize

 Mezmerize is the fourth studio album by the alternative metal band System of a Down and was released on May 17th, 2005. When Mezmerize was released, it hit number one on the Billboard 200. It’s been almost 20 years since we’ve got a System of a Down album and how does it hold up? What are the best tracks? Are there any skips on this album? I think it’s important to highlight the fact that this album was made during two American-led wars, the Iraq War and the Afghanistan War. In addition, System of a Down has always been a very political band, which makes them stand out from other metal artists. Sure “One,” by Metallica was a scathing indictment of the horrors of war, but previous songs by System of a Down such as “Prison Song,” and “Deer Dance,” are tracks that criticize the prison industrial complex and police brutality. Their music comes from a very unique point of view as the band members are all either Armenian-Americans, or the children of Armenian immigrants, and they have historically spoken out against American exceptionalism and military imperialism. 

           “Soldier Side Intro” is a brief bleak intro that sets the tone for the rest of the album, but the first track we get is “BYOB,” which is one of my favorite cuts off of the record. “BYOB,” which in this context, stands for “Bring Your Own Bombs” is a scathing critique of the Bush administration’s wars. It begins with a fast aggressive guitar intro from guitarist Daron Malakian, and then the heavier, more layered guitar riff comes in with the thrashing drums of John Dolmayan. “Why do they always send the poor!?” is screamed by Malakian before lead vocalist Serj Tankian’s fast yells and accusatory lyrics illustrate the emotions of a man truly furious with his country’s government. “You depend on our protection, yet you feed us lies from the tablecloth!” I love how the guitar riffs go from thrashing and aggressive during the verses, to loud but more laidback in the chorus. I also enjoy the comparison of the war to a party that the countries have been invited to. The imagery in the chorus is so poetic as well, “Dancing in the desert blowing up the sunshine,” is symbolic of not only the human life lost but the destruction of the area’s happiness, as sunshine is a symbol of positive emotions. The war is destroying people mentally and emotionally as a result. Another line I like is in the second verse, “kneeling roses disappearing into Moses’ dry mouth.” The lyric is effective because it’s not only criticizing war’s destruction of human life but the environment as well. The screamed outro asking the president, “Where the fuck are you?” and “Why don’t presidents fight the war, why do they always send the poor?” highlight how the American war machine relies on recruiting poorer individuals to die in their wars. 

         After “BYOB,” we get another solid political track in “Revenga.” Tankian’s rapid-fire lyrics about an abortion pair with the equally rapid guitar during the verses. The bridge is beautiful too, with Malakian singing, “I saw her laugh, then she said, ‘Go away’, which symbolizes the girl’s father protesting against her choice. Then a reverb-soaked guitar solo from SOAD’s guitarist is full of emotion, which to me symbolizes the girl’s regret over the decision. Still, music is open to interpretation, as are many of SOAD’s songs such as “Chop Suey.”

    Next is, “Cigaro” which opens with a somewhat vulgar metaphor, symbolizing global superpowers showing off their weapons, and how much better they are than the others, at the expense of their people. This is demonstrated by the refrain, “We’re cool in denial, we’re the cruel regulators smoking cigaro, cigaro.” The “cruel regulators” being the corporate CEOs and bureaucratic types that destroy the planet and ruin the lives of the poor. My favorite line is, “Burning through the world’s resources then we turn and hide.” Illustrating the destruction that corporations inflict on the world at large.

     The next track, “Radio/Video,” starts with a softer guitar riff, before the chorus of “Hey man, look at me rocking out, I’m on the radio,” a break from the political nature of the previous three tracks, the song is a nostalgic walk down memory lane for Daron Malakian, as he sings that his friends, “sweet Danny and Lisa,” take him away from the strangest places. When he and Serj sing about themselves “rocking out on the radio/video”, they’re celebrating how far they’ve come. In addition, they’re also reflecting on simpler times, to when they’d be spending time with their friends as kids. I especially love the bridge where it goes from a slow tempo to gradually building up and getting faster as it reaches a climactic chorus. 

      We’re followed by another non-political track, “This Cocaine Makes Me Feel Like I’m On This Song.” I love the guitar riff hammered by Daron on this track, along with the frantic, yelped singing by Serj. “There’s nothing wrong with me, there’s something wrong with you,” sounds exactly like something a cocaine addict would say. The song is painting the ups and downs of cocaine use, this drug is lethal but gives people an energetic high. And the addicts are “crying for their next fix” as a result.

     We return to a song that serves as a social critique of how normalized sex and violence are in our media and culture. “Everybody fucks, sucks, cries, and dies” the singers' rap on “Violent Pornography.” Violence is something that’s been normalized in our society with the lack of action on preventing school shootings. A message that has aged incredibly well. The band doesn’t seem to be advocating for the banning of sex and violence in our media but rather encourages us to understand the media that we consume, and how it can have an effect on us.

    “Question!,” is another solid cut off the record. “Sweet berries ready for two, ghosts are no different than you,” is a beautifully dark lyric about suicide. This song doesn’t have a political message, it’s more focused on questioning our own mortality and the afterlife. Questions that we, unfortunately, will never find the answer to, we can only come up with speculations.

    “Sad Statue” has a chugging guitar riff that sounds like a locomotive at full speed. Then the chorus comes in: “You and me we’ll all go down in history, with a sad statue of liberty and a generation that didn’t agree.” Hearing Serj and Daron harmonize over those power chords is truly beautiful. I especially like the continuation of the anti-war theme. Then the lead singer asks the listener, “What is in us that turns a deaf ear to the cries of human suffering?”

     The second to last track, “Old School Hollywood,” talks about a celebrity baseball game that Daron Malakian took part in. It’s an enjoyable track, but compared to the other tracks it feels a little bit out of place. For most of the album the tracks flow pretty smoothly, but the transition from “Sad Statue,” to “Old School Hollywood,” is noticeably different. Not a bad track but definitely not my favorite, still I won’t skip it when it comes on.

     The final track, “Lost in Hollywood,” has a much softer sound than the rest of the album. There are no thrashing drums or distorted guitars, instead, it trades those for a more stripped-back sound. Daron Malakian also sings more prominently on the track. “Lost in Hollywood,” is a warning about how the Hollywood lifestyle corrupts people, “You should’ve never trusted Hollywood.” My favorite part of the track is the bridge where Tankian and Malakian harmonize beautifully, with the lyrics “Phony people come to pray.” This song serves as a warning of how Hollywood can change people’s lives for the worse, and it’s conveyed very effectively.

       In conclusion, I believe that Mezmerize is a truly fantastic album. System of a Down provides a unique perspective as a band whose members are all Armenian-Americans. Their anti-war songs and critical lyrics of the United States government have aged beautifully, as many of the issues that they mention in the album are still very much relevant today. Compared to their other albums, which are very much classics, Mezmerize is tied with Toxicity as System of a Down’s best album. It’s truly a masterpiece and I’d recommend it to anyone who is a metalhead or just a music fan. The aggressive heavy guitars and crashing drums paired with the vocal anti-war and heavily critical political messages make for an engaging listen. 

Overall Score: 10/10

Favorite Tracks: “BYOB,” “Radio/Video,” “Question!”, “Lost in Hollywood,” “Violent Pornography,”

Least Favorite Tracks: none

Listen To Mezmerize: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zUzd9KyIDrM

Genre: Alternative Metal/Hard Rock