Last week I had the chance to talk with System of a Down’s Daron Malakian and John Dolmayan about their new project, “Scars on Broadway,” which is playing at Coachella this weekend.
I wrote a piece that ran in today’s paper, but here are some tidbits that didn’t make the story:
First off, I just want to say how cool these guys were and that they are really dedicated to Scars on Broadway.
The band actually did a surprise show at the Whisky A Go Go in Hollywood on April 11 and Malakian was stunned by the reaction of the fans.
“The kids were responding like they’ve known the songs forever,” he said.
He said the Whisky show was a bit nerve-wracking, playing with new people for the first time with a new project.
“I kind of got those little butterflies out,” he said. “Now it’s just the everyday show jitters.”
As for the music, both explained that Scars on Broadway is not where System of a Down left off. There are electronics involved. Malakian said he’s hoping some more of his 1970s influences bleed through, but the songwriting process isn’t much different, he said.
“I write for the band, I don’t just write for me…in this case it was different instruments,” he said.
“One thing Daron is really good at is creating melody,” Dolmayan said.
Malakian and Dolmayan both said one of the toughest things in putting the project together was whittling down songs for the debut album. There are just shy of two dozen recorded and selecting the songs has been a challenge.
Dolmayan talked about the importance of finding the right balance of songs on a record.
“You want to provide the listener with a roller coaster,” he said.
And while there won’t be any cross-pollination between Scars on Broadway’s set and System of a Down frontman Serj Tankian’s solo set on Friday, don’t be shocked if you see the members at each other’s performances.
“He’s a friend first,” Dolmayan said.
