System of a Down Drummer: “I Want to Kill Some of the Guys in the Band Sometimes”
Another day, another headline about no new music from System of a Down. The topic has become the “What does Corey Taylor think?” of 2020; people never tire of reading about it and it’s guaranteed hits! Plus System drummer John Dolmayan is in the press a whole lot right now promoting his new album with These Grey Men… so, why not roll with it? Here at MetalSucks we give the people what they want.
So: Billboard is hosting a stream of These Grey Men, which comes out today and features covers of Radiohead, David Bowie, The Talking Heads and more, and naturally the conversation turned to System, as it always does. And man, Dolmayan is being more and more brazen than ever, letting it all just hang out, and I’m way into it! No need to mince words at this point.
Here’s how the chat went down:
Why doesn’t System do another record?
“I don’t know. Maybe because we’re stupid? Because our egos get in the way? Maybe because there’s too much drama from the past that people can’t get past. I don’t have a good answer for you because I don’t agree with not doing an album. It sucks.”
Have you been close to getting something done in the recent past?
“Some of us are closer than others, I think. Not all of us get along very well, but I say we all get along good enough. It’s kind of like having brothers, man. You have three brothers, you’re not going to like all of them the same. They’re not all going to like you the same. Each of us has our favorites, but at the end of the day, you’re brothers nonetheless. But I want to kill some of the guys in the band sometimes.”
Dolmayan later added that he’d love to do more touring, specifically in areas the band hasn’t played in a while like Texas, Florida and the rest of the American south, “But everything is pulling teeth in my band. Sometimes I have to literally get into arguments just to get anything done.” He then reiterated, as other band members have recently, that all four of them get along just fine on the road — opinion of Bernie Sanders being one exception, it seems — and it’s only when it comes to future creative issues that they can’t make it work.
Read the rest of the Billboard chat here and stream These Grey Men’s new album there as well!
Upcoming System of a Down tour dates:
May 22 Los Angeles, CA — Banc of Hollywood Stadium [tickets]
May 23 Los Angeles, CA — Banc of Hollywood Stadium [tickets]
June 3 Amsterdam, NL – Ziggo Dome [tickets]
June 5-7 Nurburg, DE – Rock am Ring [tickets]
June 6-7 Nuremberg, DE – Rock im Park [tickets]
June 8 Berlin, DE – Waldbuhne [tickets]
June 10-13 Nickelsdorf, AT – Nova Rock Festival [tickets]
June 14 Donington, UK – Download Festival [tickets]
June 16 Prague, CZ – O2 Arena [tickets]
June 17 Budapest, HU – Laszlo Papp Sports Arena [tickets]
June 19 Zurich, CH – Hallenstadion [tickets]
June 23 Stockholm, SW – Ericsson Globe [tickets]
June 25-27 Seinäjoki, FI – Provinssirock Festival [tickets]
June 30 Krakow, PL – Tauron Arena [tickets]
June 1-4 Viveiro, ES – Resurrection Fest [tickets]
June 2-3 Lisbon, PT – VOA Heavy Rock Festival [tickets]
[via The PRP]
