SYSTEM OF A DOWN's JOHN DOLMAYAN: 'Everybody In VAN HALEN Had Something Unique And Interesting To Bring To The Table'

In a recent interview with "Paltrocast" host Darren Paltrowitz, SYSTEM OF A DOWN's John Dolmayan was asked if VAN HALEN was among the bands that made him want to start playing drums in the first place. He responded (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "I wanted to play drums before I knew who VAN HALEN was. But VAN HALEN introduced a different style, 'cause I guess you could say some of the drumming was derivative of [LED ZEPPELIN's] John Bonham, but that's really only because everybody's drumming is derivative of John Bonham after John Bonham; you're always gonna have a flavor of it. But VAN HALEN did it differently. It was more straightforward. It was heavy. It was kind of like a merging of AC/DC and LED ZEPPELIN, and [it had] exceptional musicianship, which you had quite a bit of at that time, but not many people played as melodically as VAN HALEN did. And I feel like everybody in VAN HALEN had something unique and interesting to bring to the table, irrespective of how they were perceived."]]

As previously reported, SYSTEM OF A DOWN will play a a string of stadium shows in South America next spring. The "Wake Up!" run begins on April 24 in Bogota, Colombia and concludes on May 10 in São Paulo, Brazil.

Earlier in the month, SYSTEM OF A DOWN added second shows in East Rutherford, New Jersey at MetLife Stadium on August 27 with KORN; Chicago, Illinois at Soldier Field on September 1 with AVENGED SEVENFOLD; and Toronto, Ontario at Rogers Stadium on September 5 with DEFTONES, as part of their one-of-a-kind massive stadium events next year. Their performances in Toronto mark the first hard rock act to play two nights at the brand new Rogers Stadium. Special guests POLYPHIA and WISP will open for all shows.

SYSTEM OF A DOWN has toured intermittently since ending its hiatus in 2011, but has only managed to record two songs in the last 19 years, "Protect The Land" and "Genocidal Humanoidz". Released in November 2020, the tracks were motivated by the conflict between Artsakh and Azerbaijan, with all proceeds supporting humanitarian efforts in SYSTEM OF A DOWN's ancestral homeland of Armenia. Along with other donations from fans on their social pages, they raised over $600,000.