SYSTEM MONTH
Twenty Years Later, System Of A Down’s Toxicity Is Politically Relevant and Powerful As Ever
Celebrating 20 years of System of a Down’s breakthrough release
No one guessed four guys from an obscure Los Angeles metal band would receive notoriety with their sophomore release. The group didn’t expect to hit number one on the album charts, have millions of copies sold, and achieve triple platinum status. The band System of a Down was experiencing stardom, and it’ll only go uphill from here.
Today marks twenty years since their second album, Toxicity hit store shelves, and airwaves on September 4, 2001, with American Recordings and Columbia Records, and produced by Rick Rubin. It left a positive mark on the metal community and inspired many teenagers to listen to metal. Your humble author is one of those teenagers.
Let’s look at how a small Armenian band from Los Angeles became bona fide rock stars.
Right after System of a Down released their eponymous debut in ‘98, the boys went straight to work on their follow-up. Where their self-titled was raw and striking, with Toxicity, System of a Down headed in an experimental direction. They incorporated folk, progressive rock, jazz, and middle eastern styles of music. System of a…
