Serj Tankian addressed rumors about an unreleased System of a Down album in an interview with Sona Oganesyan on her podcast.
“I would say there is no album that is written,” Tankian clarified. “Years ago, I tried to come to minds with myself and the guys in the band. I approached them with what I jokingly call a manifesto. I said, ‘Listen, if we’re going to move forward, let’s do things in a more egalitarian fashion. Let’s equally split publishing.”
“Let’s equally bring in songs’ — especially the creators, mostly Daron [Malakian, guitarist/vocalist] and I, Shavo [Odadjian, bassist] as well. And everyone gets a veto on songs, like all these amazing kind of, you know, theoretical, positive, egalitarian terms,” Serj added.
“Apparently, it doesn’t work in a metal band. The joke is on me. So it didn’t work,” he continued.
“And so at one point, we had a band meeting — a very long one — and we didn’t come to terms on stuff, but the guys wanted to work on some of those songs,” Tankian explained. “I was in New Zealand. And so they started working in a rehearsal studio on some of those songs, which included Daron’s songs and a few of mine, if I’m not mistaken. Nothing was recorded. And they had sent it to me, I was in New Zealand at the time.”
“And nothing, like when I say recording, I’m talking about like a tape from a rehearsal studio, you know, not a recording per se,” he added. “But you know, some of those, a lot of those are Daron songs, and some of them he may have released recently [via Scars On Broadway], and some of those are my songs which I released, probably on ‘Elasticity.’ So that’s the story. I mean, there is no ‘record.'”
This recent revelation adds another chapter to the band’s complex history of creative differences and attempted reconciliations.
MetalSucks reported that tensions within the band peaked in 2017. Tankian offered to quit and suggested teaching his replacement how to properly perform his vocal parts.
The creative differences between band members persisted over time. Loudwire highlighted how Tankian’s vision for an ‘egalitarian approach’ to songwriting and publishing became a major point of contention.
The material from these attempted recording sessions found different outlets. Daron Malakian released songs through his project, Scars on Broadway. Tankian incorporated his contributions into his solo EP ‘Elasticity. ‘
Blabbermouth noted that despite these creative hurdles, the band maintains their ability to perform live together. Their personal relationships remain intact even as new material proves elusive.
