Very enjoyable, though if I may offer one point of constructive feedback... I enjoy some analysis of lyrics by a music expert, but what I essentially come for is music expert analysis of music. Personally, I prefer when that forms the majority of the content.
@@christopherjohn84 their harmony is largely the reason I love SOAD. Honestly I don't consider either of them back up singers. This band has two lead singers and they are both incredible. My favorite demonstration of their vocals is Radio/Video.
The System Of A Down rabbit hole is one of the most life changing experiences anyone can go through. They are an absolutely incredible, thought provoking, critically thinking band that were way ahead of their time pushing for these important subjects to be heard through the power of music and they have defiantly been the most successful band at doing so.
When I was in high school, I thought their music was awesome and fun, and now I’m listening at thirty, and I’ve been just been a big cry baby and coming to tears. Their music can certainly bring you to tears understanding how deep their songs truly are.
My best friend died in 1999 and even two years later I wept for him when I first listened to this song. Riding in the back of my parents' van, grey knock off Walkman cd player, Chop Suey on repeat for an hour. There are only so many events where I can say I know where I was and what I was doing when they happened; that song has stuck in my grey matter decades later. That breakdown chorus still gets me from time to time.
And that's a very real, personal experience. The value in this song (not having experienced that) is it makes me think 'what does this mean'. I don't think they give (or have) answers, but they put out a question that is foundational to who we are as individuals, family, friends, people. I don't know they thought this - perhaps they just loved the transitions. In 2023, I remembered how I felt when I was so much younger.... and how I wondered... and yet time washed away those thoughts (to be replaced with a reality that we were told was real). thought-provoking.
I still remember where I was when I found out Chester Bennington died and I still remember where I was when I found out Chris Cornell died and I still remember where I was when I found out Michael Jackson died. Some things really do just stick with you forever. Sorry for your loss.
I lived in an apartment on the second floor and I had a neighbor on the third floor, who played this record several times a day very loud. Years later, I bought the cd, when this neighbor left the building.
That made me feel like the first time I heard it, me and my brother talking away with music on in the background then this played, and we both went quiet and listened to the whole thing. Not many songs make you speechless like that they only come along every few years.
I was already into classic metal and extreme metal by the time SOAD hit, I thought "Sugar" was a fun song but never gave their first album much of a thought. When I saw the video for this song and that outro section kicked in, the melody, the harmonies, I was really blown away by how talented and emotional they came across in this one. Toxicity still one of my favorite albums ever.
I think it needs pointing out that Serj Tankian is / was an exceptional vocalist. His ability to do both the shouty and melodic emotional stuff really made SOAD stand out. For reasons I don't really understand, listening to them always cheers me up!
For me they cheer me up because 90% of their songs have harmonies, and it's fun to join in. That's kinda a rarity in metal, especially when so many metal singers have far greater range than you, or they sing in that distorted growly unclean way that not many can mimic.
I think this is the best analysis of this song I've ever heard. SOAD's music is steeped with politics, spirituality, and mental health and you got all three of these aspects almost immediately. I would love to hear your opinion of any of their other songs.
@@MF______ I'm almost positive that he did BYOB already, but I couldn't find it....I swear that I remember him at one point focusing on what was being displayed on the goggles of the troops and in another part he was discussing Bring Your Own Bomb...makes me wonder if it was taken down or if I'm confusing him with another channel
"This is almost political speech." It is exactly political speech, as so many of their songs are. Serj is a passionate and vocal social justice activist.
Serj wrote next to nothing though lol. Sure, he's pollical, but he's actually the least contributing member of the band. Daron wrote almost everything alongside record label corporate song writers.
@@pottingsoil Eh, Serj stepped back creatively, but he wrote most of his own lyrics up until that era. I'm less inclined to believe that record label writers contributed a significant amount of lyrics. And it isn't like Serj wasn't involved in the lyric writing. He's the one who found the quote for the Father I commend my spirit bit when they were struggling with what to do there. And, even if Daron wrote all the lyrics himself, my point remains that they are precisely sociopolitical lyrics.
You hit the nail on the head with the religious connotations. A short documentary on this song mentions how Serj was a bit stuck with lyrics and the song was almost not making it into their album, but he sat in Rubins’ library and happened to pull out a bible and opened it on the passage where Jesus calls out to his father. I think that shaped the rest of the song as well. Thanks for the breakdown and your thoughts. Always on point
I remember reading an article in the 2000's where Daron Malakian talked about putting as much stuff as you can into song in a short span of time to make almost a small opera. It is cool to see a classic composer analyze this years after he said it.
oh bro instant sub at you not only getting the meaning through thinking about it but wanting to listen a second time round, that's NEVER done. I like you bro, you're a rare one in reactions.
Appropriate facial expression when the last chorus starts, Douglas. Haunting, epic, hard as hell to sing properly, that chorus hits me every time, still, 20 years later.
Has it been 20 years already? I still remember the first time i saw this mv pop on my tv set and i was so confused because it didn't sound like all the other music.
@@NoisieBastrdd I think Daron deserves some credit too for that vocal harmony at the end of the song. They both sang their hearts out, you can feel the passion and the emotion between them
I like how you name all the members in the band. a lot of people that react don't frame bands like that and only focus on the vocals but your classicalness shines through
@@MattBargain This was only their second album, so I'd disagree. Their first really only got War, Suite Pee and Spiders, which I'd count as underground hits. Toxicity was an album basically full of songs where any one of them could've been legitimately considered a single. After this, they had 'Steal this Album', which was released as a full album, but many think (myself included) that it was b-sides from Toxicity and their debut album, but only had a couple interesting songs. After that, they released Mezmerize. This was where they won a grammy for BYOB, which launched them into the stratosphere. I was in college at the time and had been a fan since their first album, but this is when I started hearing songs other than Chop Suey and Toxicity get constant radio play. Hypnotize was a lot like Steal this Album, but had significantly more bangers than duds and got them a Grammy nom. Honestly, they probably would've continued to be successful, but the two singers had a falling out. Both went on to form separate bands, but neither could capture what they had as a group.
Floods needs to come next. It remedies the one issue he had with Cemetery Gates, it being a bit too short. And he's still right, Cemetery Gates needed at least another minute or so.
What really makes this song such a classic imo is the contrast between the heavy rock and Serj’s loud vocals with the beautiful melodic chorus and Serj’s softer vocals. Add on top of that the simple but profound lyrics about how we should not judge those who die one way (drugs, suicide, driving too fast, alcohol, etc) over those who die in ways we “accept”.
Serj is actually an orchestral composer as well, I highly recommend his first solo album. It's like SOAD with an orchestra. Edit: I recommend the song which is actually titled “Beethoven’s Cunt”
Doug, this is one of my very favorite videos of yours. You are adept at parsing through layers of meaning, reflecting on your own life, and expressing them in ways that connect with universal human feelings and experiences. Your students are fortunate to learn from you and not just about how to make music.
You can actually pick any system of a down and your going to be impressed. Personally I've gone back through system of a downs catalog recently and honestly i think that "Question!" Is the most underrated song of system of a down. It is absolutely haunting at times.
Eh, debatable. Don’t get me wrong, I like a lot of their songs, but they’re not exactly super creative or technical in their musical composition in some songs. Songs like Prison Song or Aerials are great examples of super simple music composition. I love both songs, just saying.
@@alexschneider8494 they might be simple compositions but aerials sounds nothing like anything but a system of a down song. And on top of that the transitions in aerials are some of the smoothest I've heard anywhere. I don't understand what you mean SOAD is not exactly creative... You can take any two SOAD songs and they will sound nothing alike, on top of that you can take any SOAD song and compare it to any other NU, Industrial, Prog metal bands of the era and yeah there are similarities but they sound nothing alike
@@wolfinthesno I said some songs aren’t creative. Songs like Chop Suey, BYOB, or Question are creative and very different. They have some others as well that are quite different, but I wouldn’t say they’re different in a good way. They venture into just being flat out weird sometimes. However songs like Aerials, Toxicity, Spiders, etc are all very basic sounding rock/metal songs in my opinion. Just because the music in a song doesn’t sound like any other band, doesn’t mean it doesn’t still follow the same tropes and styles of said genre of music. I like these songs, I’m just saying that songs like Toxicity or Aerials are the type of music I could come up with sitting in my room playing around on my instruments lol
Toxicity is definitely one of the greatest metal albums of all time. Nowadays I listen to mostly progressive or death metal but Toxicity is still in my top 10 albums.
Really great breakdown, Doug. It's awesome to see you get so taken by a song a d give such a detailed analysis. Most SOAD songs have some social or political philosophy behind them.
never seen one of your videos before, but i’m really enjoying your dissecting style of reacting, whether it’s music and/or lyrics, and i’m subscribing. fantastic job, Doug!
Never get tired of Doug reacting to metal. Whenever he likes the song he starts shaking his head and I'm just sitting here, bobbing alond and screaming internally "F#!K YES, DOUG!"
This is the first of your videos I watch and wow! A few years ago I went through suicidal ideation, and this song captures it perfectly. You force yourself to live, to pretend you're ok, you recriminate yourself for every little mistake, you hide how you feel and you believe you deserve all that, and you think it's only one way out, but you can't say because everybody judges. That's all there in the lyrics. When I know that someone else, with the same struggle and pain, finally reaches the breaking point and "leaves" this world behind, I moan their passing, even if i barely knew them, because I understand how they felt, I understand they were sensitive beings going through so much. "I cry when angels deserve to die." This song really speaks to me, and I love how dynamic, powerful and beautiful it is. I think you did a great analysis and I'll be checking out more of your channel. ❤
This is the best explanation of the song I've ever heard, and as someone who's been listening to SOAD since childhood, your first listen to it made me understand the song even better than I had previously.
Could you do aerials by system of a down pretty please, vocally the song is very beautiful and interesting. I think you would find a lot to talk about. An interesting tuning as well
Here's the story behind the lyrics in that bridge, as told by lead singer Serj Tankian: “With Rick Rubin, our producer, during ‘Chop Suey!’ in the lyrical process, I had the chorus and we had the verse, and I was looking for the breakdown, the middle eighth section, lyrically. I was just trying to come up with something, and I was just stuck for a second. We were in the studio, hanging out, and he said, ‘You know what? Let’s take a break, let’s go to my house.’ We went to his house, he had this huge library, and he goes, ‘Just pick a book, any book.”’And I just reached out, picked the book. And he goes, ‘Open to any page.’ I opened to a page, put my finger on it, and that was the middle eight lyrically. Using the universe to guide you was incredible, and the way that it worked with the rest of the lyrics was what stunned me.” The lyrics in question are, "Father, into your hands I commend my spirit," and the book in question was apparently the Bible. "Jesus called out with a loud voice, 'Father, into your hands I commend my spirit.' When he had said this, he breathed his last." (Luke 23:46)
SOAD is so good! I'm a lover of metal and tons of other rock music and I just got my masters in opera performance. I love when the metal/rock world collides with the classical world, so thanks for this video
I've been listening to this song for 20 years and always kinda felt the meaning in it but could never put that anguish of being judged into words. You hit the nail on the head immediately and have changed this song for me forever.
this is the only react channel where i actually end up leaving with a deeper understanding of the song in question then where i went in. so many similar youtubers say so many words with so little meaning. but doug really dives deep and provides a different perspective i never would have had access to from my own listening.
I love hearing the musical breakdown of songs I love. It helps me appreciate the complexity of what I've heard and the level of talent. Sure, I like seeing react videos of songs I love but I want to hear the why, the how, the what is going on
"Why have you forsaken me?" is a direct quote from the Bible. Jesus on the cross turns to his father and asks the question. It's a powerful connection between faith and emotion.
The line from the song is, "father, why have you forsaken me." Does that answer your question? However, I believe Rick Rubin spoke on this on the Joe Rogan podcast and said it was just random how they added it and had no larger meaning. Like literally flipped to a random page of the bible as a joke or something like that.
Some young friends of mine played this at their recent wedding reception. For some reason they were surprised that I knew the words and could hold my own with the head-banging and pogo-ing. (My kids were into SoaD). I wonder what you'd make of some Linkin' Park...?
My grandmother was a huge fan of System of a Down. She didn't really love the rest of the music I liked - although she was raised in Birmingham so she had a soft spot for Black Sabbath - but this really appealed to her. Love that they have cross generational appeal!
Other explanation... Depression, living just becouse of daily routine, for show (creating a fable), without hope and joy... Yet seeking empathy, not being judged...
Awesome breakdown. This song bring me to tears every time the chorus hit and at each repetition of it, it strike harder. The lyrics in their full meaning came later in my listening experience (EN’s not my mother tongue and I knew the song before being fluent) so it was just that coming back to the tonal center making the magic for me. Thanks for spending the time with a song that has been this important for my generation and the ones after us (my son now listens to SOAD)
@@jojomellon Mr. Bungle is eclectic but nobody had this Armenian folk flavored metal. alongside the political and societal context they completely changed the game it was like the intensity of RATM without the hip hop and more of the metal with the unique duality of Daren and Serjs lyrics. serjs typically get the spotlight but listen to them in isolation and you see just how much their layering and counterpoint accentuate each other.
@@jojomellon in the spectrum of Nu-metal and just metal in general, they're quite unique. i don't even understand what you mean by "not unique if you only listen to Nu-metal"... How the fuck am i supposed to compare them to anything that NOT Nu-metal? And no, i don't only listen to Nu-metal.
As someone who lives in a right to die state, I want to point out that for many people death is not a horrible thing but a release from pain. In that context, "I cry while angels deserve to die" could be interpreted to mean that allowing people to suffer for extended periods of time because of the taboo against assisted death is cruel.
Loved this episode. Growing up in the 2000’s I always thought of this as a fun/wacky song. But your breakdown of the lyrics gives me a completely different view of it now.
So to me a part of it is that, "I cry when angels deserve to die" is that no matter how society views you, no matter how downtrodden a person is by the heavy views of society, they still love themself and know their own goodness, and so their own perception is of their soft heart and goodness that they have, despite the contrary views of society, that makes them into an angel, who by the views of society, makes them deserve to die. Despite what society has told them, they love themself, but are still persecuted to death due to being misunderstood.
Your analysis is really interesting, and I think you're right on the money with a lot of stuff. I've always thought it's about a co-dependent relationship; the lines "grab a brush and put a little makeup, hide the scars to fade away the shakeup" speaks very strongly to me of a domestic violence situation and the morning after a fight, looking in the mirror and trying to cover up the bruises. And quite possibly using that kind of abusive relationship as a metaphor for how we sacrifice ourselves to goals and ends that aren't worth it in society as well, as if choosing to suffer is in and of itself a moral good.
I think both readings are valid. One a literal thing and one a metaphorical one...but then I'm shit at literature type things. It's really powerful lyrically and musically.
I remember when I first heard this some 20 years ago. I was not ready for it. The heaviness, but also so melodic, such a bipolar song structure wise, but absolutely brilliant. The fact that it sounds so fresh over 20 years later makes this song an instant classic IMO.
Great analysis. For these reasons you mention, I've re-found SOAD in my adult years from a completely new perspective as opposed to just the angry music with interesting lyrics that I listened to as a teen.
I have listened to this song 1000's of times and your reaction and analysis of this song is like no other. System is one of my all time favorite bands. So glad you took the time to check this song out. I enjoyed that you wanted to go through it one more time after the initial analysis. Bravo!
That was a fantastic analysis of this song. I love System of a Down. They came at the same time as other Nu Metal bands, but they were just not like anything else and I miss them like crazy.
I have been watching "react" videos for years and you analysis was by far the best one I have ever seen. Thank you for even re listening to this piece of art. There is a video showing the make off Toxicity album and this song has a whole orchestra in the background. Cellos, piano and violins. Amazing work.
Hey would love to see your reaction to another one of their songs, "Sugar". IMO, it's another great critique on the madness of society, perfectly communicated in their one-of-a-kind way! They're such an awesome band!
Man, I just adore this song. I can listen to it over and over again and it still moves me like it did back in 2001. Especially when the keys come in towards the end. You are right, Doug, it is political speech in the broader sense, because it deals with certain societal taboos that people are not comfortable engaging with and throws it in everybody's face. It almost demands thinking about the subject matter it's covering and demands answers to the questions it's raising. Lots of love to you!
Thank you Doug! I enjoy your analyse! Please do more of their musics. And another thing that is interesting is the Armenian touch and melodies in their songs. I'm from Iran and can relate very well.
Hi Doug I have a band you should check out called The Warning. 3 sisters from Monterey Mexico that started out playing classical piano and their parents got them the game rock band. They fell in love and started doing covers and did a cover of Enter Sandman when they were ages 9,12,14 that went viral with over 28 million views. They have 2 EPs and 2 full length albums and releasing their 3rd album on the 24th of June.
Love the section starting @12:02, where Doug's eyes light up at the realization that they go back to the same "routine" @12:08. Great song, great analysis.
This is also not my usual cup of tea, Doug, but I really loved how you dug into the lyrics and meaning and gave me a much better appreciation of this song.
It’s one of my favourites too, particularly for Daron and Serj’s harmonising, yet I haven’t got a clue what any of the lyrics mean, if they actually mean anything at all.
I've been listening to this for 2 decades. Seeing Doug hearing it and digesting it for the first time was a wonderful and heavy revisting of this special song.
“Father into your hands I commend my spirit” I read in an interview he says that part of the song didn’t have lyrics when they were finishing up the album and one day they just randomly open up the Bible and pointed to a verse and used the first thing that they pointed to. So it pretty much doesn’t have a real meeting it was pretty random…
I'll happily accept that the words came by looking in the bible but I very much doubt they were looking randomly. Those are supposed to be the last words of Jesus before he died on the cross. Given that Jesus' death was meant to be his personal sacrifice for the benefit of the human race, it's pretty close to a self righteous suicide...
that "Father forsaken me" verse was gotten from producer Rick Ruben telling him to grab a book off Rick's shelf and any book, open to any page and read what's there....He didn't know what to do for that section and just read a random page out of a book and that's what came out of it. There's a video and interview with Rick regarding that verse. Very cool exit on the song and an amazingly great band.
Fun fact: Rick Rubin (producer) was on Joe Rogan's podcast talking about recording this track and he said the bridge "Father into your hands I commend my spirit ..." they couldn't think of lyrics for that part so Rick told the Serge to grab a book from the shelf, open it and point to a sentence. That ended up being the lyrics to the bridge.
This literally made me weep. Especially the second time. Right when you said the name "Jesus"...I lost it. Much love and thank you covering one of the best songs in existence...twice. I won't get into the Biblical connotations here, but you were on point. God bless 🙌
Its weird I know, but thank you for breaking this down for the world in the way it was meant to be. I've adored them since I first heard them and can never put them down. I can't help but need to listen to them almost always. Thank you.
These videos make my day.Thanks Doug.
Makes my day too!
Very enjoyable, though if I may offer one point of constructive feedback...
I enjoy some analysis of lyrics by a music expert, but what I essentially come for is music expert analysis of music. Personally, I prefer when that forms the majority of the content.
@@Doug.Helvering 5:55 just vibin
he is for sure under the top 3 reaction channels....
"These guys are effective musicians."
Bingo.
Their song Aerials is another good demonstration of Serj’s great vocals.
Toxicity too
Everyone forgets how talented Daron is as well
Love the harmonies with Serj and Daron on Aerials 👌
suggestions is by far the song with the hardest serj vocals
@@christopherjohn84 their harmony is largely the reason I love SOAD. Honestly I don't consider either of them back up singers. This band has two lead singers and they are both incredible. My favorite demonstration of their vocals is Radio/Video.
"Y'all wanna listen to it again?"
The greatest musical composition of the last two decades? Sure, Doug, I'm in.
The System Of A Down rabbit hole is one of the most life changing experiences anyone can go through. They are an absolutely incredible, thought provoking, critically thinking band that were way ahead of their time pushing for these important subjects to be heard through the power of music and they have defiantly been the most successful band at doing so.
@chetsenior7253☝️🤓
Rage Against the Machine would like a word.
@@ConnorHammond Yeah but Soad did it better
@@ConnorHammond Queensrÿche entered the chat.
Where do I start to go down this rabbit hole?
When I was in high school, I thought their music was awesome and fun, and now I’m listening at thirty, and I’ve been just been a big cry baby and coming to tears. Their music can certainly bring you to tears understanding how deep their songs truly are.
My best friend died in 1999 and even two years later I wept for him when I first listened to this song. Riding in the back of my parents' van, grey knock off Walkman cd player, Chop Suey on repeat for an hour. There are only so many events where I can say I know where I was and what I was doing when they happened; that song has stuck in my grey matter decades later. That breakdown chorus still gets me from time to time.
🙏
And that's a very real, personal experience. The value in this song (not having experienced that) is it makes me think 'what does this mean'. I don't think they give (or have) answers, but they put out a question that is foundational to who we are as individuals, family, friends, people. I don't know they thought this - perhaps they just loved the transitions. In 2023, I remembered how I felt when I was so much younger.... and how I wondered... and yet time washed away those thoughts (to be replaced with a reality that we were told was real). thought-provoking.
I still remember where I was when I found out Chester Bennington died and I still remember where I was when I found out Chris Cornell died and I still remember where I was when I found out Michael Jackson died. Some things really do just stick with you forever. Sorry for your loss.
I lived in an apartment on the second floor and I had a neighbor on the third floor, who played this record several times a day very loud. Years later, I bought the cd, when this neighbor left the building.
Your new neighbors can definitely be proud of you.
Hahaha. You're story made me laugh, thank you.
That made me feel like the first time I heard it, me and my brother talking away with music on in the background then this played, and we both went quiet and listened to the whole thing. Not many songs make you speechless like that they only come along every few years.
I was already into classic metal and extreme metal by the time SOAD hit, I thought "Sugar" was a fun song but never gave their first album much of a thought. When I saw the video for this song and that outro section kicked in, the melody, the harmonies, I was really blown away by how talented and emotional they came across in this one. Toxicity still one of my favorite albums ever.
@@godofdeadlydeath It certainly made Me research Their previous Disc.
You know the song is good when it's 3'29'' and has like 8 sentences and still takes 15 minutes for Doug to assimilate it properly. Awesome.
I think it needs pointing out that Serj Tankian is / was an exceptional vocalist. His ability to do both the shouty and melodic emotional stuff really made SOAD stand out. For reasons I don't really understand, listening to them always cheers me up!
For me they cheer me up because 90% of their songs have harmonies, and it's fun to join in. That's kinda a rarity in metal, especially when so many metal singers have far greater range than you, or they sing in that distorted growly unclean way that not many can mimic.
@@Relyx Most people can do growls with a bit of practice. Came to me more easily than normal singing.
What he did better is just jump between them like it’s natural
@@AnonYMooseBoG growl is easy but not that easy to master ,if you do it incorrectly you could pretty easily damage your vocal chords
I think this is the best analysis of this song I've ever heard. SOAD's music is steeped with politics, spirituality, and mental health and you got all three of these aspects almost immediately. I would love to hear your opinion of any of their other songs.
Fully agree, you took the words out my mouth
War? or soil would be cool
BYOB, Prison Song or Deer Dance would be my favourites
@@MF______ I'm almost positive that he did BYOB already, but I couldn't find it....I swear that I remember him at one point focusing on what was being displayed on the goggles of the troops and in another part he was discussing Bring Your Own Bomb...makes me wonder if it was taken down or if I'm confusing him with another channel
@@Bimmer_MD
I was wondering, actually. BYOB would be the logical progression.
Possibly taken down - fuck TH-cam.
"1 billion people can't be wrong" excuse me sir, a million of those are mine
"This is almost political speech."
It is exactly political speech, as so many of their songs are. Serj is a passionate and vocal social justice activist.
Serj wrote next to nothing though lol. Sure, he's pollical, but he's actually the least contributing member of the band. Daron wrote almost everything alongside record label corporate song writers.
@@pottingsoil Eh, Serj stepped back creatively, but he wrote most of his own lyrics up until that era. I'm less inclined to believe that record label writers contributed a significant amount of lyrics.
And it isn't like Serj wasn't involved in the lyric writing. He's the one who found the quote for the Father I commend my spirit bit when they were struggling with what to do there.
And, even if Daron wrote all the lyrics himself, my point remains that they are precisely sociopolitical lyrics.
Chop Suey is actually one of the most vocally and emotionally impressive songs I've ever listened to.
You hit the nail on the head with the religious connotations. A short documentary on this song mentions how Serj was a bit stuck with lyrics and the song was almost not making it into their album, but he sat in Rubins’ library and happened to pull out a bible and opened it on the passage where Jesus calls out to his father. I think that shaped the rest of the song as well. Thanks for the breakdown and your thoughts. Always on point
This is by far the best lyrical analysis I've watched for this song. And I've watched a number of them... Thank you sir
I remember reading an article in the 2000's where Daron Malakian talked about putting as much stuff as you can into song in a short span of time to make almost a small opera.
It is cool to see a classic composer analyze this years after he said it.
oh bro instant sub at you not only getting the meaning through thinking about it but wanting to listen a second time round, that's NEVER done.
I like you bro, you're a rare one in reactions.
Wait till you watch Dougs reaction video to Octavarium by Deam Theater. Such a treat
Chop Suey is one of the songs that got me into metal. Love it!
Same
Appropriate facial expression when the last chorus starts, Douglas. Haunting, epic, hard as hell to sing properly, that chorus hits me every time, still, 20 years later.
same, man. that's Some powerful delivery from Serj
SAME
Has it been 20 years already?
I still remember the first time i saw this mv pop on my tv set and i was so confused because it didn't sound like all the other music.
@@razenburn 21 years 😄
@@NoisieBastrdd I think Daron deserves some credit too for that vocal harmony at the end of the song. They both sang their hearts out, you can feel the passion and the emotion between them
I like how you name all the members in the band. a lot of people that react don't frame bands like that and only focus on the vocals but your classicalness shines through
This song absolutely catapulted SOAD into stardom, all of their albums are excellent but Toxicity is just another level.
Nicely covered.
Well, I feel that this song was more at the end of their career.
@@MattBargain This was only their second album, so I'd disagree. Their first really only got War, Suite Pee and Spiders, which I'd count as underground hits. Toxicity was an album basically full of songs where any one of them could've been legitimately considered a single.
After this, they had 'Steal this Album', which was released as a full album, but many think (myself included) that it was b-sides from Toxicity and their debut album, but only had a couple interesting songs.
After that, they released Mezmerize. This was where they won a grammy for BYOB, which launched them into the stratosphere. I was in college at the time and had been a fan since their first album, but this is when I started hearing songs other than Chop Suey and Toxicity get constant radio play.
Hypnotize was a lot like Steal this Album, but had significantly more bangers than duds and got them a Grammy nom. Honestly, they probably would've continued to be successful, but the two singers had a falling out. Both went on to form separate bands, but neither could capture what they had as a group.
Chop Suey - it's not what anybody normally goes to, yet we all get it when we get there. "Why have you forsaken me" always gets me.
Thanks Doug. Pantera - Mouth For War
I don’t know if he’s ready for that one. But it’ll be nice to see. I like that song.
Floods needs to come next. It remedies the one issue he had with Cemetery Gates, it being a bit too short. And he's still right, Cemetery Gates needed at least another minute or so.
My favourite Pantera song
Use it for what it's for. Speak the truth about me!
Definitely Floods. Most Pantera songs are amazing, but this one is the most interesting one.
What really makes this song such a classic imo is the contrast between the heavy rock and Serj’s loud vocals with the beautiful melodic chorus and Serj’s softer vocals.
Add on top of that the simple but profound lyrics about how we should not judge those who die one way (drugs, suicide, driving too fast, alcohol, etc) over those who die in ways we “accept”.
This is ranked the #1 Metal Song of the 21st century. Hard to argue against that rank in my opinion.
Serj is actually an orchestral composer as well, I highly recommend his first solo album. It's like SOAD with an orchestra.
Edit: I recommend the song which is actually titled “Beethoven’s Cunt”
He's not really. His orchestral piece is sub par. Wouldn't recommend it to any classical composer. He would rip it apart.
Beethovens cunt? Wtf
Beethoven’s Cunt is actually one of my favorite songs from Elect The Dead.
Doug, this is one of my very favorite videos of yours. You are adept at parsing through layers of meaning, reflecting on your own life, and expressing them in ways that connect with universal human feelings and experiences. Your students are fortunate to learn from you and not just about how to make music.
They got something to say. -Doug
In a world where people focus on just making a good song, when you got all that AND a message it's something special.
You can actually pick any system of a down and your going to be impressed. Personally I've gone back through system of a downs catalog recently and honestly i think that "Question!" Is the most underrated song of system of a down. It is absolutely haunting at times.
agreed!
Let’s get this upvoted! Would love to hear Doug’s impressions!! 🙌
Eh, debatable. Don’t get me wrong, I like a lot of their songs, but they’re not exactly super creative or technical in their musical composition in some songs. Songs like Prison Song or Aerials are great examples of super simple music composition. I love both songs, just saying.
@@alexschneider8494 they might be simple compositions but aerials sounds nothing like anything but a system of a down song. And on top of that the transitions in aerials are some of the smoothest I've heard anywhere.
I don't understand what you mean SOAD is not exactly creative... You can take any two SOAD songs and they will sound nothing alike, on top of that you can take any SOAD song and compare it to any other NU, Industrial, Prog metal bands of the era and yeah there are similarities but they sound nothing alike
@@wolfinthesno I said some songs aren’t creative. Songs like Chop Suey, BYOB, or Question are creative and very different. They have some others as well that are quite different, but I wouldn’t say they’re different in a good way. They venture into just being flat out weird sometimes. However songs like Aerials, Toxicity, Spiders, etc are all very basic sounding rock/metal songs in my opinion. Just because the music in a song doesn’t sound like any other band, doesn’t mean it doesn’t still follow the same tropes and styles of said genre of music. I like these songs, I’m just saying that songs like Toxicity or Aerials are the type of music I could come up with sitting in my room playing around on my instruments lol
So happy you enjoyed this so much! These guys fucking jam so hard. Toxicity as an album is an Alt Metal classic. Throughly enjoyable front to back.
Toxicity is definitely one of the greatest metal albums of all time. Nowadays I listen to mostly progressive or death metal but Toxicity is still in my top 10 albums.
I always loved the official music video, it's got some amazing shots and editing in it. Super iconic
The drummer is cgi in the video, lol
I love how you really put your whole mind and soul into analyzing this to the point of playing it a second time. Love you! You have a lot of heart!
Really great breakdown, Doug. It's awesome to see you get so taken by a song a d give such a detailed analysis.
Most SOAD songs have some social or political philosophy behind them.
toxicity: angrily shouting statistics about drug incarceration
also toxicity: aha the pogo is his dick
Great interpretation of the lyrics. I've known this song for a long time, but you've helped me understand the lyrics more.
never seen one of your videos before, but i’m really enjoying your dissecting style of reacting, whether it’s music and/or lyrics, and i’m subscribing. fantastic job, Doug!
This is by far the best commentary I've heard on Internet for a long, long time... thank you for staying truth to the art good sir!
5:39 The feeling when you're trying to use theory to break down a composition and the breakdown grabs you.
This guy is amazing. He's not into METAL but he can't help the HEADBANGING!
I’ve seen a couple reactions and this one is perfect. Thank you for articulating this structurally and genuinely. SOAD deserves all the respect.
Never get tired of Doug reacting to metal. Whenever he likes the song he starts shaking his head and I'm just sitting here, bobbing alond and screaming internally "F#!K YES, DOUG!"
This is the first of your videos I watch and wow!
A few years ago I went through suicidal ideation, and this song captures it perfectly. You force yourself to live, to pretend you're ok, you recriminate yourself for every little mistake, you hide how you feel and you believe you deserve all that, and you think it's only one way out, but you can't say because everybody judges. That's all there in the lyrics. When I know that someone else, with the same struggle and pain, finally reaches the breaking point and "leaves" this world behind, I moan their passing, even if i barely knew them, because I understand how they felt, I understand they were sensitive beings going through so much. "I cry when angels deserve to die." This song really speaks to me, and I love how dynamic, powerful and beautiful it is.
I think you did a great analysis and I'll be checking out more of your channel. ❤
This is the best explanation of the song I've ever heard, and as someone who's been listening to SOAD since childhood, your first listen to it made me understand the song even better than I had previously.
Could you do aerials by system of a down pretty please, vocally the song is very beautiful and interesting. I think you would find a lot to talk about. An interesting tuning as well
Lots of fun, but Doug get's inundated w/requests
What tuning? Isn't it just drop C?
Here's the story behind the lyrics in that bridge, as told by lead singer Serj Tankian:
“With Rick Rubin, our producer, during ‘Chop Suey!’ in the lyrical process, I had the chorus and we had the verse, and I was looking for the breakdown, the middle eighth section, lyrically.
I was just trying to come up with something, and I was just stuck for a second. We were in the studio, hanging out, and he said, ‘You know what? Let’s take a break, let’s go to my house.’
We went to his house, he had this huge library, and he goes, ‘Just pick a book, any book.”’And I just reached out, picked the book. And he goes, ‘Open to any page.’
I opened to a page, put my finger on it, and that was the middle eight lyrically. Using the universe to guide you was incredible, and the way that it worked with the rest of the lyrics was what stunned me.”
The lyrics in question are, "Father, into your hands I commend my spirit," and the book in question was apparently the Bible.
"Jesus called out with a loud voice, 'Father, into your hands I commend my spirit.' When he had said this, he breathed his last." (Luke 23:46)
God I miss SOAD. I could die a happy man if they'd just set aside their differences and release one more album.
SOAD is so good! I'm a lover of metal and tons of other rock music and I just got my masters in opera performance. I love when the metal/rock world collides with the classical world, so thanks for this video
I've been listening to this song for 20 years and always kinda felt the meaning in it but could never put that anguish of being judged into words. You hit the nail on the head immediately and have changed this song for me forever.
this is the only react channel where i actually end up leaving with a deeper understanding of the song in question then where i went in. so many similar youtubers say so many words with so little meaning. but doug really dives deep and provides a different perspective i never would have had access to from my own listening.
I love hearing the musical breakdown of songs I love. It helps me appreciate the complexity of what I've heard and the level of talent. Sure, I like seeing react videos of songs I love but I want to hear the why, the how, the what is going on
You have a pretty name congratulations
I love the face you make to the camera when you don't expect the change that comes! 🤣🤣❤
"Why have you forsaken me?" is a direct quote from the Bible. Jesus on the cross turns to his father and asks the question. It's a powerful connection between faith and emotion.
The line from the song is, "father, why have you forsaken me."
Does that answer your question? However, I believe Rick Rubin spoke on this on the Joe Rogan podcast and said it was just random how they added it and had no larger meaning. Like literally flipped to a random page of the bible as a joke or something like that.
Some young friends of mine played this at their recent wedding reception. For some reason they were surprised that I knew the words and could hold my own with the head-banging and pogo-ing. (My kids were into SoaD). I wonder what you'd make of some Linkin' Park...?
I wish you lived on Maui... We'd be friends
@@Wendy-ov5hu Shame we're on opposite sides of the world! See us rocking the nursing home in a few years time 😀
My grandmother was a huge fan of System of a Down. She didn't really love the rest of the music I liked - although she was raised in Birmingham so she had a soft spot for Black Sabbath - but this really appealed to her. Love that they have cross generational appeal!
Other explanation...
Depression, living just becouse of daily routine, for show (creating a fable), without hope and joy...
Yet seeking empathy, not being judged...
You point out all the feeling that i can't express when i listen to this song, absolute legend
Doug, your soooo fricken cool. I love your impression of SODown and all metal songs you do. LOVE IT (and your so on point)
Thanks!
Still slaps all these years later 👍👍top job doug
This album, and even moreso Hypnotize/Mezmerise were really beautiful musically... not always,, but often.
Awesome breakdown. This song bring me to tears every time the chorus hit and at each repetition of it, it strike harder. The lyrics in their full meaning came later in my listening experience (EN’s not my mother tongue and I knew the song before being fluent) so it was just that coming back to the tonal center making the magic for me. Thanks for spending the time with a song that has been this important for my generation and the ones after us (my son now listens to SOAD)
One of the bands that changed the game, super creative.
Whaaaa. Mr Bungle says hello
@@jojomellon Mr. Bungle is eclectic but nobody had this Armenian folk flavored metal. alongside the political and societal context they completely changed the game it was like the intensity of RATM without the hip hop and more of the metal with the unique duality of Daren and Serjs lyrics. serjs typically get the spotlight but listen to them in isolation and you see just how much their layering and counterpoint accentuate each other.
@@jojomellon sure, Mr.Bungle essentially started the whole Nu-metal thing, but SOAD sounded like no one else.
@@Ennui. but, they don't. Unless all you listen to is numetal. They're not unique.
@@jojomellon in the spectrum of Nu-metal and just metal in general, they're quite unique.
i don't even understand what you mean by "not unique if you only listen to Nu-metal"...
How the fuck am i supposed to compare them to anything that NOT Nu-metal?
And no, i don't only listen to Nu-metal.
As someone who lives in a right to die state, I want to point out that for many people death is not a horrible thing but a release from pain. In that context, "I cry while angels deserve to die" could be interpreted to mean that allowing people to suffer for extended periods of time because of the taboo against assisted death is cruel.
Loved this episode. Growing up in the 2000’s I always thought of this as a fun/wacky song. But your breakdown of the lyrics gives me a completely different view of it now.
So to me a part of it is that, "I cry when angels deserve to die" is that no matter how society views you, no matter how downtrodden a person is by the heavy views of society, they still love themself and know their own goodness, and so their own perception is of their soft heart and goodness that they have, despite the contrary views of society, that makes them into an angel, who by the views of society, makes them deserve to die.
Despite what society has told them, they love themself, but are still persecuted to death due to being misunderstood.
I bought this album the day it came out and it took me 20 years to really get how powerful this song is.
That piano in the end, that grand piano! It makes the song more than what it is!
Your analysis is really interesting, and I think you're right on the money with a lot of stuff. I've always thought it's about a co-dependent relationship; the lines "grab a brush and put a little makeup, hide the scars to fade away the shakeup" speaks very strongly to me of a domestic violence situation and the morning after a fight, looking in the mirror and trying to cover up the bruises. And quite possibly using that kind of abusive relationship as a metaphor for how we sacrifice ourselves to goals and ends that aren't worth it in society as well, as if choosing to suffer is in and of itself a moral good.
I think both readings are valid. One a literal thing and one a metaphorical one...but then I'm shit at literature type things. It's really powerful lyrically and musically.
I remember when I first heard this some 20 years ago. I was not ready for it. The heaviness, but also so melodic, such a bipolar song structure wise, but absolutely brilliant. The fact that it sounds so fresh over 20 years later makes this song an instant classic IMO.
Great analysis. For these reasons you mention, I've re-found SOAD in my adult years from a completely new perspective as opposed to just the angry music with interesting lyrics that I listened to as a teen.
I loved hearing your interpretation of the lyrics, made me realize just how much I love this band.
I have listened to this song 1000's of times and your reaction and analysis of this song is like no other. System is one of my all time favorite bands. So glad you took the time to check this song out. I enjoyed that you wanted to go through it one more time after the initial analysis. Bravo!
Yep! Totally agree with you!
That was a fantastic analysis of this song. I love System of a Down. They came at the same time as other Nu Metal bands, but they were just not like anything else and I miss them like crazy.
You are sharing your expertise and knowledge for free ! Thank you
Love the use of empty space in this song.
I have been watching "react" videos for years and you analysis was by far the best one I have ever seen.
Thank you for even re listening to this piece of art.
There is a video showing the make off Toxicity album and this song has a whole orchestra in the background. Cellos, piano and violins. Amazing work.
Hey would love to see your reaction to another one of their songs, "Sugar".
IMO, it's another great critique on the madness of society, perfectly communicated in their one-of-a-kind way! They're such an awesome band!
Ok this guy just gets it, instant like and subscribed.
Man, I just adore this song. I can listen to it over and over again and it still moves me like it did back in 2001. Especially when the keys come in towards the end. You are right, Doug, it is political speech in the broader sense, because it deals with certain societal taboos that people are not comfortable engaging with and throws it in everybody's face. It almost demands thinking about the subject matter it's covering and demands answers to the questions it's raising. Lots of love to you!
Idk where you're from Doug, but I love it when you throw that "y'all" on the end of a sentence! Makes me feel at home 🤣
Thank you Doug! I enjoy your analyse! Please do more of their musics.
And another thing that is interesting is the Armenian touch and melodies in their songs. I'm from Iran and can relate very well.
This is probably the best song analysis I’ve watched not only of this song, but of any song. Thank you and congratulations.
Hi Doug I have a band you should check out called The Warning. 3 sisters from Monterey Mexico that started out playing classical piano and their parents got them the game rock band. They fell in love and started doing covers and did a cover of Enter Sandman when they were ages 9,12,14 that went viral with over 28 million views. They have 2 EPs and 2 full length albums and releasing their 3rd album on the 24th of June.
a comparison/analysis of their original cover versus the reimagined version from the Blacklist album
Love the section starting @12:02, where Doug's eyes light up at the realization that they go back to the same "routine" @12:08. Great song, great analysis.
This is also not my usual cup of tea, Doug, but I really loved how you dug into the lyrics and meaning and gave me a much better appreciation of this song.
Radio/Video is my favorite SOAD jam. I will attempt to request it through the proper channels. Keep up the good work Doug!
It’s one of my favourites too, particularly for Daron and Serj’s harmonising, yet I haven’t got a clue what any of the lyrics mean, if they actually mean anything at all.
I've been listening to this for 2 decades. Seeing Doug hearing it and digesting it for the first time was a wonderful and heavy revisting of this special song.
“Father into your hands I commend my spirit” I read in an interview he says that part of the song didn’t have lyrics when they were finishing up the album and one day they just randomly open up the Bible and pointed to a verse and used the first thing that they pointed to. So it pretty much doesn’t have a real meeting it was pretty random…
I've read that, too. And yet the lyrics fit perfectly...
It was Rick Rubin who told Serj they needed something and just step away and open up any book at random, and this was the page he opened.
I'll happily accept that the words came by looking in the bible but I very much doubt they were looking randomly. Those are supposed to be the last words of Jesus before he died on the cross. Given that Jesus' death was meant to be his personal sacrifice for the benefit of the human race, it's pretty close to a self righteous suicide...
@@PeterWasted Entirely agree. "self righteous suicide" and die on the cross like Jesus, can't be a coincidence.
Definitely NOT RANDOM.
that "Father forsaken me" verse was gotten from producer Rick Ruben telling him to grab a book off Rick's shelf and any book, open to any page and read what's there....He didn't know what to do for that section and just read a random page out of a book and that's what came out of it. There's a video and interview with Rick regarding that verse. Very cool exit on the song and an amazingly great band.
There are so many great tunes, you can check out from soad, Doug.
Spiders, Science (only live version), Question, Holy Mountains just to name a few
Never watched you channel until now. I do appreciate your ability to break this down.
Fun fact: Rick Rubin (producer) was on Joe Rogan's podcast talking about recording this track and he said the bridge "Father into your hands I commend my spirit ..." they couldn't think of lyrics for that part so Rick told the Serge to grab a book from the shelf, open it and point to a sentence. That ended up being the lyrics to the bridge.
You have such a nack for making existing fans have an even deeper understanding of long-loved songs.
Thank you so much.
This literally made me weep. Especially the second time. Right when you said the name "Jesus"...I lost it. Much love and thank you covering one of the best songs in existence...twice. I won't get into the Biblical connotations here, but you were on point. God bless 🙌
Why do I started to cry when you Doug started interprète the lyric.. omg I feel the person on that lyric
Good analysis, I've certainly viewed the song in the same light- don't judge people for the choices they make if you don't know the options they had.
Its weird I know, but thank you for breaking this down for the world in the way it was meant to be. I've adored them since I first heard them and can never put them down. I can't help but need to listen to them almost always. Thank you.
Chop Suey. Good choice!
I really enjoyed your analysis. Heavy topic and powerful punch packed into a short tune. Thanks for this.
"The day that never comes " by metallica is a must listen with a deep message
Yeah - a great song that I haven't played in far too long. Thanks for the reminder!
really fun to listen to your thoughts. I appreciated , it's my first video from you!
The best thing about SOAD and especially Daron (but also other bandmates of course) is that he wrote it all by ear on his own, never studied music.
Okay, Daron.