Was System of a Down the Defining Artist of the 9/11 Era in 2001? (Greatest Pop Stars Podcast)

As America was reeling from the unimaginable scaries of the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks, the No. 1 album in the nation was a disorderly, incredulous and definitely incendiary alt-metal LP– filled with tunes that objected war, questioned authority and firmly insisted listeners awaken to the condition surrounding them. System of a Down didn’t compose or tape-record Toxicity with 9/11 or any of the occasions that followed in mind, however it turned into one of the timeliest soundtracks for the minute, as the Hollywood quartet of Armenian descent made the not likely dive to fame with its confrontational mix of squashing riffs, stunning consistencies, off-kilter humor and straight-faced politics.

This month on the Greatest Pop Stars podcast, we’ve returned with another mini-series spin-off of our normal Vintage Pop Stardom series, entitled Vintage Almost-Pop Stardom. All October, we’ve been inviting on a few of our preferred visitors (and a couple of first-timers) to take a look at a quintet of truly intriguing artists throughout years in which they brushed versus pop fame, however possibly never ever rather got all the method there (a minimum of in this nation). Today, we end the series with the dazzling Craig Jenkins of Vulture discussing System of a Down’s whirlwind 2001, where the band ended up being questionable chart-toppers with music and rhetoric that was transfixing at the time, and has actually just gotten more resonant (and more popular) in the quarter-century sense.

Along the method, we address all the most important concerns about 2001 System: What situations enabled this thrashy, arty, clearly difficult kind of metal to get in the mix for the top of the Signboard charts? Did the band’s combustibility– and the really various characters of its 4 members– wind up feeding its music? Just how much did the Clear Channel Memorandum really impact the airplay of “Chop Suey”? How do we feel about Serj Tankian’s polarizing “Understanding Oil” essay and how he dealt with the blowback from it? Was it a huge offer for Toxicity to be called SPIN’s No. 1 album of 2001? And maybe most significantly: Will the band ever record brand-new music once again?

Examine it out above– in addition to a YouTube playlist of a few of the most essential minutes from System of a Down’s 2001, all of which are gone over in the podcast. And sign up for the best Pop Stars podcast on Apple Music or Spotify (or anywhere you get your podcasts) for weekly conversations every Thursday about all things associated with pop fame!

Discover Craig’s work at Vulture hereand follow him at Bluesky here

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