Serj Tankian Says Collab with System of a Down Drummer John Dolmayan Is 'Like This Connection to the Past' (Exclusive)
Tankian and Dolmayan joined forces to release "Cartoon Buyer," a shelved track from System of a Down's early work together
Serj Tankian is bringing the thunder on his new EP, FOUNDATIONS.
In the time since they ceased releasing music as a band, Tankian's System of a Down has played shows together few and far apart, with only roughly 10 performances under their belt together in the last decade.
However, fans are still able to get a glimmer of the group's iconic work together in the form of the metal icon's latest collaboration with SOAD drummer John Dolmayan on, as Tankian, 57, tells PEOPLE, "a song that I intended to do with System during the Mesmerize, Hypnotize era," titled "Cartoon Buyer."
Tankian says finally putting the record out with Dolmayan "was actually fun." As for why it was shelved during the band's peak in the first place, the singer doesn't have a concise answer.
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Serj Tankian performs in San Diego in February 2022"I think time changes perspective," he shares of potential reasoning for it never seeing the light of day until now. "There are things I think in its own time that may have been less appreciated as well. And then years later... 20, 30 years later, you look at them and you're like, 'Wow, that was a unique space creatively that I was in.' "
However, he highlights his love "to kind of dig, either write a new piece or be inspired by a piece that I already have and maybe finish it or something like that. It's a wonderful thing to do actually," which inspired the revisiting of "Cartoon Buyer" for the new record.
"We had a fun day and it felt great. It's like this connection to the past in a way," he adds of his work with Dolmayan on bringing the track, and its accompanying music video, to life.
As for the prospective for Tankian to team up with other System members individually as a part of his own discography, he shares that "there [have been] occasions Daron and I have jammed ... and I probably have a couple of tracks in my studio and I've done a song probably with Shavo just solo somewhere. I remember doing a song with Shavo actually." But as of now, there are no definite plans in place.
Although "it wasn't an intentional release for John to be on the song," he says of "Cartoon Buyer," the artist surmises that the decision to team up with Solmayan after years of SOAD being on creative hiatus was due to the track having "fit the retrospective of my memoir Down with the System. And so I've brought [these songs] out and released them."
Joining "Cartoon Buyer" on FOUNDATIONS are other select offerings from Tankians vault, including "AF Day," another song he wrote over two decades ago intended for System that the star admits "I don't remember ever introducing it [to the band], and I'm not exactly sure why."
"A lot of the songs and most of the tracks were there [already]," he shares of curating the new project. "I didn't change them. The vocals are mostly exactly what they were originally."
Mick Hutson/Redferns
System of a DownUltimately, Tankian suggests that he "love[s] the fact that I was able to release some of this stuff" after having "had 'em in my vaults for so long."
"I know the songs really well, but no one else had heard 'em," he says. "So the ability to have it see the light of day, I think is special in that sense."
"Cartoon Buyer" serves as part of Tankian's latest EP, FOUNDATIONS, which is available on all major streaming services now. FOUNDATIONS comes on the heels of Tankians memoir, Down with the System: A Memoir (of Sorts), which is also available now.
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