System Of A Down Releases 2 New Songs To Benefit Artsakh, Armenia Attacks

Johnnie Crow — Sat, 07 Nov 2020 17:24:39 +0000

IT TOOK AN ATTACK AGAINST ARMENIANS TO BRING IT ABOUT,

BUT THE WAIT IS OVER

SYSTEM OF A DOWN RELEASES TWO BRAND NEW SONGS

TO RAISE AWARENESS AND FUNDS TO AID THE PEOPLE

OF ARTSAKH AND ARMENIA AFTER CONTINUED ATTACKS

BY AZERBAIJAN AND TURKEY

“We’re probably the only rock band that has governments as enemies,

the only rock band that’s at war, so I wrote these songs to boost the morale

of our troops and Armenians around the world.“ – Daron Malakian

Clockwise, from Top Left: Daron Malakian, John Dolmayan, Shavo Odadjian, Serj Tankian

Photo Credit: Armen Keleshian

LOS ANGELES, CA – It’s been 15 years since the GRAMMY®-winning, multi-Platinum-selling SYSTEM OF A DOWN, one of the most beloved rock bands in the world, released new music. For years, fans and press speculated about this, and of late, the rumor mill has gone into overdrive hypothesizing when the band might return to the studio. Today, motivated by the recently-erupted conflict between Artsakh and Azerbaijan, the latter aided by Turkey and accountable for the greatest violence the region has endured in 26 years, System Of A Down – Daron Malakian/guitars, vocals, Serj Tankian/vocals, Shavo Odadjian/bass, and John Dolmayan/drums – announces the release of its first new songs in 15 years: “Protect The Land” and “Genocidal Humanoidz.” Produced by Malakian, who also wrote the music and lyrics, both songs are streaming now on all DSPs and are available for purchase on Bandcamp with band royalties earmarked for the Armenia Fund. You can check out the music video for “Protect The Land”.

So why now? Last month, profoundly affected by the unwarranted surprise attacks and bombings of civilians perpetrated by Azerbaijan and Turkey (Turkey was responsible for the genocide of 1.5 million Armenians in 1915 as well as over 100 years of denial), Dolmayan texted his three bandmates. Said Dolmayan, “I texted, ‘no matter how we feel about each other, no matter what issues linger from the past, we need to put them aside because this is bigger than System Of A Down and bigger than all of us…..we need to do something to support our people.'” Joined together on a subsequent conference call, everyone voiced the same concern and the vital importance of helping in some way, the way they knew best – music.

“The aggression and injustice being perpetrated against the Armenian people in Artsakh and Armenia by Azerbaijan and Turkey is a human rights violation and a war crime,” said Tankian. “All of us in System realize this is an existential battle for our people, so this is very personal for us. What we need right now is for the world to put politics aside and support Armenia by sanctioning Turkey and Azerbaijan and recognizing Artsakh.”

Today, System Of A Down also releases the music video for “Protect The Land,” that incorporates recent footage of the protests and on-the-ground fighting in Artsakh, but in a very personal and aesthetic way. As he did for all previous System Of A Down releases, Odadjian executive produced the music video and curated the cover and brand art for the project. “I wanted to show the unification of our people around the world for one common cause, illustrating the power in numbers,” he said, “so we brought together people from all ages and professions who believe in and are fighting for that same cause. It’s one thing to come up with an idea, but to see it come alive as happened with this video, has been just incredible.”

On the recording of “Protect The Land” and “Genocidal Humanoidz,” Odadjian added, “It was such a pleasure for us to be together in the studio again, very comforting and natural, like no time had passed at all.”

L-R: Daron Malakian, Serj Tankian, Shavo Odadjian, John Dolmayan. Photo Credit: Clemente Ruiz

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https://systemofadown.com

System Of A Down Releases 2 New Songs To Benefit Artsakh, Armenia Attacks first appeared on Game On Media.

Solo Guitar Virtuoso Steve Dadaian to Release New Album “Follow The Light” on February 1, 2019

Johnnie Crow — Thu, 29 Nov 2018 04:27:51 +0000

Solo Guitar Virtuoso STEVE DADAIAN to Release New Full-Length Album, “Follow The Light”, on February 1, 2019

Stream New Track/Watch Music Video for “Follow The Light” via Guitar World

Pre-Order Now via Bandcamp | Pre-Orders Available via Additional Retailers in December

Artwork by Shane Rice Studio

Armenian-American fusion guitarist STEVE DADAIAN discovered his love for the guitar at a young age. Even while studying at the prestigious Columbia University in the city of New York, Dadaian continued to hone his craft as an artist. The then 21-year-old classically-trained guitarist spent the little spare time he had reaching top spots at national guitar competitions hosted by Slash, John Petrucci (Dream Theater) and Jon Donais (Anthrax, Shadows Fall), performing at events with the likes of Yngwie Malmsteen, Steve Vai, and Nicko McBrain, and dazzling crowds at venues like the Kimmel Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

With his formative years behind him, New Jersey native STEVE DADAIAN has shifted his artistic focus toward the upcoming release of his new full-length concept album, Follow The Light, out February 1, 2019. Follow The Light can be pre-ordered via Bandcamp now, with additional pre-orders available via iTunes, Amazon and more beginning in December.

Today, STEVE DADAIAN revealed the first single and music video from Follow The Light, the title track, “Follow the Light”, in partnership with Guitar World. In the video, bass is performed by Jon-Michael Caldwell and drums by Follow The Light engineer Ethan Bill.

Watch the video and hear the first tidbit of the album here: https://www.guitarworld.com/news/steve-dadaian-premieres-new-follow-the-light-music-video

Dadaian says about the track, “The title track ‘Follow the Light’ has special meaning to me as it was the first song I wrote for this album, and ultimately inspired the other eight songs on the album. With this video, I wanted to showcase the performance in a setting that had imagery consistent with the album artwork. This song represents the ancient structure on the album cover and the beginning of the events that unfold thereafter.”

Featuring razor-sharp solos, theatrical, symphonic soundscapes and unforgettable melodies, Follow The Light starts strong with an ominous, movie-soundtrack-ready introduction preparing the listener for the album, aptly titled “The Journey Ahead”. The album wastes no time beginning its epic tale with the metal/jazz fusion track “Follow The Light”, and continues to flux amid orchestral-influenced pieces such as “Forest Requiem” and larger-than-life metal opuses like “Soul Connection”, the latter of which not only features guest vocals by Soilwork‘s Bjorn Strid, but was originally written by Dadaian for a 2018 songwriting competition held by Serj Tankian of System of a Down. All proceeds from the sale of the track will go to the Creative Armenia Fund, an arts foundation created to discover, develop, produce and promote creative talent around the world.

Follow The Light track listing:

1) The Journey Ahead

2) Follow the Light

3) Forest Requiem

4) Red River

5) Beneath the Citadel

6) Soul Connection (guest vocals by Bjorn Strid of Soilwork, intro theme by Serj Tankian of System of a Down)

7) Presence of Mind

8) Clash in the Corridor

9) On Silver Shores

Follow The Light includes a written component, allowing the listener to follow the album’s epic story both on paper and in auditory form. Dadaian says, “The story follows a mage who has been wandering in a forest in search of a citadel which has been considered folklore. The title Follow The Light refers to the light emanated from the top of the citadel he eventually finds. Though he felt lost, it was actually this light that drew him to his destination.”

“Listeners can find the track titles in the story to get a sense of what I was thinking when I wrote each song,” adds Dadaian. “I personally wrote a short story to accompany the track listing because the music itself has an epic, cinematic aspect to it. This is a different take on the traditional concept album I hope fans of the genre can enjoy.”

STEVE DADAIAN endorses DR strings, ESP Guitars, Synergy Amps, and Lunastone pedals. Dadaian is scheduled to appear at NAMM 2019, with more details to be announced soon.

Album Credits:

Guitar & Bass – Steve Dadaian

Drums – Ryan Bertone

Tracking – Room368 Productions (Haworth, NJ)

Mixing & Mastering – Develop Device Studios

STEVE DADAIAN online:

Facebook – www.facebook.com/stevedadaianguitar

Instagram – www.instagram.com/stevedadaian

YouTube – www.youtube.com/stevedadaian

Solo Guitar Virtuoso Steve Dadaian to Release New Album “Follow The Light” on February 1, 2019 first appeared on Game On Media.

Serj Tankian Archives - Game On Media

System Of A Down Releases 2 New Songs To Benefit Artsakh, Armenia Attacks

Solo Guitar Virtuoso Steve Dadaian to Release New Album “Follow The Light” on February 1, 2019