System Of A Down are teasing something big on their social media.
It comes just days after the iconic metal band shared details of three one-off shows planned for the summer – a show in New Jersey with KoRn, a date in Chicago with Avenged Sevenfold and a stop in Toronto with Deftones.
After tickets immediately sold out at pre-sale last week, Serj Tankian and co. went on to announce an extra date in each city, bringing their total number of shows scheduled for 2025 up to six.
Now, amid the hype of the upcoming gigs, the band have shared a cryptic teaser on social media, hinting to fans that another big announcement is on the way. Posting over the weekend, System Of A Down shared a brief clip that showed an eye opening, which featured lyrics from their fan-favourite 2001 song ‘Chop Suey!’: “WAKE UP!”
It also came with a link for fans to follow, although that provided little information. By clicking on it, fans are directed to the official band website where they can sign up for the newsletter and become “the first to know about the latest news, tour updates, and exclusive merch from System Of A Down.”
Already, fans have begun speculating what the upcoming announcement could be. Some suggested that the nod to the 2001 track could insinuate an anniversary tour for the ‘Toxicity’ album. However, in 2025 the album will be turning 24, which isn’t exactly a big milestone year to be celebrating.
There is a strong possibility that the teaser could be hinting at more tour dates being announced for 2025 and that, instead of just six US shows being confirmed, the band may be looking to embark on a full-blown world tour.
There may even be a chance of new material from the band too, although this seems unlikely given the member’s recent comments regarding the hopes for new material.
The band – which includes Tankian, Daron Malakian, Shavo Odadjian and John Dolmayan – haven’t put out an album since their two 2005 releases: ‘Mezmerize’ and ‘Hypnotize’, and speaking with Metal Hammer recently, the frontman revealed he “became very passive” during the writing and recording process.
“I had a very unique relationship with the last few records because I had, to a certain degree, emotionally checked out of the band while making them,” he said.
This wasn’t the first time that the singer admitted losing interest in the band either, as he made similar comments in interviews in the past, as well as in his autobiography Down With The System.
System of a Down perform on stage. CREDIT: Daniel Knighton/Getty Images
That being said, he did recently seem more open to the idea of new material, saying in a recent interview that a new System record would be a “fresh start in a brand new way”.
Speaking to NME, however, Shavo Odadjian revealed that he was unsure what the singer meant by the comments, and said that the hopes of new music are still slim.
“I don’t know what he means by that,” Odadjian said. “We’ve done things a certain way in our career where it’s always going in a new direction. Every time we do something new, it’s in a direction you don’t expect. Process-wise, we’ll have to see when we get together. If it goes in a way that works for one person but not the others, we won’t do it. It has to work for all four of us.”
He continued: “Once that special time comes when we’re all in sync, we’ll figure out a way to do it. I’m not saying that it’s going to happen for sure – I don’t want people to turn this into clickbait like ‘Shavo says there’s a new record coming!’ I’m just saying if something happens, it will have to be in a way that all four of us are comfortable with.”
While the band haven’t shared a full album since 2005, they did share two singles – ‘Protect The Land’ and ‘Genocidal Humanoidz’ – in 2020. Both were shared in a bid to raise funds for Artsakh and Armenia after they came under attack from Azerbaijan and Turkey.
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