Not many bands can headline stadiums, and even fewer can do it without having put out an album in 20 years. But System of a Down is one of them.
The “Chop Suey!” metallers launch a North American tour Wednesday, which consists of two nights in three different stadiums: MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey, Soldier Field in Chicago and Rogers Stadium in Toronto. Four of the six shows are sold out.
“We’re very fortunate that this many years in, haven’t put out a record in a very long time, and we’re … not even still selling, like, we’ve now kinda graduated to selling out football stadiums,” guitarist Daron Malakian tells ABC Audio.
The last System record was 2005’s Hypnotize. Aside from two singles released in 2020, the drought of new System music has continued.
As Malakian sees it, that SOAD can sell out stadiums despite not having fresh material in two decades speaks to the impact of the albums they have released.
“We have those five records,” Malakian says. “Those records have lived with people and lived with different age groups, too. Some of these kids I saw in South America looked like they weren’t even born when our last record came out.”
“It blows me away, man,” Malakian adds of System’s continued success. “I’m grateful for it.”
As for what System has planned for the upcoming shows, Malakian laughs, “We’ll come out there and we’ll just play System of a Down-style rock ‘n’ roll music.”
The bill for the System shows will also feature Korn in East Rutherford, Avenged Sevenfold in Chicago and Deftones in Toronto.
Malakian also just put out a new album, Addicted to the Violence, with his Scars on Broadway project.
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