Mezmerize

Mezmerize
Studio album by System of a Down
Released	May 16, 2005 (EU); May 17, 2005 (U.S.); May 18, 2005 (JP)
Recorded	The Mansion; Laurel Canyon, Los Angeles, California; Akademie Mathematique of Philosophical Sound Research; Los Angeles, California
Genre	Alternative metal, art rock, hard rock
Length	36:15
Label	Columbia (UK); American/Columbia (U.S.); Sony Music Japan (JP);
Producer	Rick Rubin, Daron Malakian
Professional reviews
	Allmusic (4.5/5) link; Audio Video Revolution (8/10) link; Entertainment Weekly (A-) link; Kerrang! (5/5); Pitchfork Media (7.1/10) link; PopMatters (9/10 link; Rolling Stone 3.5/5 link; Stylus Magazine (B-) link;
System of a Down chronology
Singles from Mezmerize
	"B.Y.O.B."; Released: March 29, 2005; "Question!"; Released: August 29, 2005;

Mezmerize is the fourth studio album by System of a Down and the first half of the Mezmerize/Hypnotize double album. It was released on May 17, 2005, six months before Hypnotize.

Album information[]

Around November of 2004, The Album was set to be released around late 2005 after Hypnotize^[1]^[2]^[3], in December 2004 it was scheduled to September 27th, 2005^[4]^[5]. On January 8th, 2005, Daron Malakian mentioned on Rolling Stone Magazine that Mesmerize would be in the spring, leaving the release date unknown^[6]. In February 2005, it was rescheduled to April 26th, 2005^[7]^[8]. Finally in March of 2005, the album would be set on May 17th, 2005.

Despite the time difference between releases, the album actually takes its name from the lyrics in the song Hypnotize; Mezmerize and Hypnotize were recorded within the same time frame. The album features guitarist Daron Malakian sharing most of the vocal work with vocalist Serj Tankian, splitting the vocals at least halfway on most of the tracks.

The album debuted at number one in at least twelve countries^[9], including the US Billboard 200, and has since been certified Platinum by the RIAA. It was also chosen as one of Amazon.com's Top 100 Editor's Picks of 2005. The album has sold over 4 million copies worldwide since its release.

The vinyl pressing contains a slightly different mix of 'Soldier Side - Intro' without strings.

Reception[]

Rolling Stone (No. 975, pp.67-70) - 3.5 stars out of 5 - "[E]verything on Mezmerize hits and splits with viciously honed purpose."
Spin (p.101) - "Moods are muddled even more artfully on Mezmerize." - Grade: B+
Robert Christgau - "Firm in their convictions and (relatively) simple in their art-rock" Grade: 1-star honorable mention

Track listing[]

#	Title	Lyrics	Music	Length
1.	"Soldier Side - Intro"	Daron Malakian	Malakian	1:03
2.	"B.Y.O.B."	Malakian, Serj Tankian	Malakian	4:15
3.	"Revenga"	Malakian, Tankian	Malakian	3:48
4.	"Cigaro"	Malakian, Tankian	Malakian	2:11
5.	"Radio/Video"	Malakian	Malakian	4:09
6.	"This Cocaine Makes Me Feel Like I'm On This Song"	Malakian, Tankian	Malakian	2:08
7.	"Violent Pornography"	Malakian	Malakian	3:31
8.	"Question!"	Tankian	Tankian, Malakian	3:20
9.	"Sad Statue"	Malakian, Tankian	Malakian	3:25
10.	"Old School Hollywood"	Malakian	Malakian	2:56
11.	"Lost in Hollywood"	Malakian, Tankian	Malakian	5:20

Personnel[]

System of a Down is:

Daron Malakian — vocals, guitars, bass, keyboards
Serj Tankian — vocals, keyboards
Shavo Odadjian — bass
John Dolmayan — drums

Produced by Rick Rubin and Daron Malakian
Mixed by Andy Wallace
Engineered by David Schiffman
Editing by Jason Lader and Dana Neilsen
Assistant Engineer: Phillip Broussard
All Artwork by Vartan Malakian
Design: System of a Down and Brandy Flower
String Arrangement: Serj Tankian and Mark Mann
Worldwide Representation: Velvet Hammer Music and Management Group
Mix Protools Engineer: John O'Mahony
Mix Assistant Engineers: Steve Sisco (Soundtrack) & Joe Peluso (Enterprise)
Album Production Coordinator: Lindsay Chase / Braden Asher
Recording Location: The Mansion in Laurel Canyon, Los Angeles, CA and Akademie Mathematique of Philosophical Sound Research, Los Angeles, CA
Mixed at Soundtrack Studios, New York, NY And Enterprise Studios, Los Angeles, CA
Mastered by Vlado Meller at Sony Music Studios, New York, NY

Chart performance[]

Album[]

Year	Chart	Position
2005	Billboard 200	1
	UK Albums Chart	2
	Australian ARIA Top 50	1
	Canadian Album Chart	1
	New Zealand Top Album Chart	1

Singles[]

Year	Single	Chart Title	Chart Position
2005	"B.Y.O.B."	The Billboard Hot 100	27
		Modern Rock Tracks	4
		Mainstream Rock Tracks	4
	"Question!"	Modern Rock Tracks	9
	"Question!"	Mainstream Rock Tracks	7

References[]

This page uses Creative Commons Licensed content from Wikipedia (view authors).

[1] System of a Down - Wikipedia from November 2004

[2] Mezmerize - Wikipedia from November 2004

[3] System of a Down promises Hypnotize/Mezmerize in 2005 | Punknews.org

[4] System of a Down - Wikipedia from December 2004

[5] Mezmerize - Wikipedia from December 2004

[6] Systemofadownonline.com via Wayback Machine (archive.org)

[7] System of a Down - Wikipedia from February 2005

[8] Mezmerize - Wikipedia from February 2005

[9] System Of A Down Mezmerizes Music Fans Worldwide

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