System of a Down rock Phoenix faithful in first Valley concert in 12 years

Ed Masley | The Republic | azcentral.com

The last time System of a Down played Phoenix was 2006, when Ozzfest brought the willfully eccentric, politically righteous alternative-metal sensations to town in continued support of the previous year's acclaimed companion pieces, "Mesmerize" and "Hypnotize."

And they were treated to a proper hero's welcome by the fans who crowded into Talking Stick Resort Arena on Tuesday, nearly every song inspiring a massive singalong, especially on hits as huge as "Aerials" and "Hypnotize."

There's been no new material from System of a Down since their last trip to Phoenix, but that hasn't stopped them from drawing huge crowds on their first North American tour since 2015, which also features At the Drive-In and Skeletonwitch.

And truthfully, the fans seemed just as happy to be dealing with the songs they've known and loved for all these years, including no fewer than nine selections from the band's biggest-selling album, 2001's triple-platinum "Toxicity."

After setting the tone with "Innervision," the first single from 2002's "Steal This Album!," they treated the crowd to a 29-song overview of their career. Or 30 songs if you include that bit of "Physical," the Olivia Newton-John hit that Daron Malakian slipped between "P.L.U.C.K." and "Psycho."

They reached back to their self-titled 1998 debut for several songs, including the set-closing "Sugar," and touched on all their biggest hits, from "Chop Suey!" to "Lonely Day."

Most songs were played at maximum intensity, from "Prison Song" to "U-Fig," "Mr. Jack," "Dreaming," "Question!" and "Cigaro."

But they also made excellent use of dynamics. Several songs started with just Malakian singing and playing guitar before exploding.

They eased into "Lost Hollywood," Serj Tankian adding harmonies to Malakian's lead vocal on an understated verse before it kicked into a full-blown power ballad, the audience waving their arms as their phones lights added to the atmosphere.

A haunted snippet of "Soldier Song," delivered by Malakian alone, gave way to the intensity of "B.Y.O.B." (short for "Bring Your Own Bomb"), accompanied by images of bombs exploding and Benjamin Franklin's face on a $100 bill.

They didn't talk much, allowing the Clash-like political fervor of their lyrics to carry the message, reinforced on occasion by video images.

In "Prison Song," Tankian weighed in on the prison-industrial complex with "Minor drug offenders fill your prisons / You don't even flinch / All our taxes paying for your wars / Against the new non-rich."

On "U-Fig," they shouted down the mob mentality of modern politics. And on "B.Y.O.B.," it all came down to one impassioned question, the singers demanding an answer to "Why do they always send the poor?"

For a set whose newest songs were released in 2005, the most overtly political lyrics were still as depressingly relevant as they were then.

It would be nice to have some new songs in the mix, of course. But in the meantime, these songs haven't lost the power to electrify a crowd, and System of a Down put them out there with the urgency required.

Skeletonwitch and At the Drive-In

Skeletonwitch set the tone with a ferocious set of extreme-metal madness led by the throat-shredding vocals of Adam Clemans while making their way through such headbanging highlights as “Fen of Shadows” and “Beyond the Permafrost.”

At the Drive-In, who reunited in 2016 and played the Marquee Theatre last year, followed with their own brand of intensity.

Taking the stage in a hail of cacophonous feedback, they treated fans to a set whose highlights included “Arcarsenal,” “Governed By Contagions” and “One Armed Scissor" while offering shout-outs to such local institutions as the Crescent Ballroom, the Nile Theatre and Tent City.

Setlist

Innervision

Prison Song

I-E-A-I-A-I-O

Soldier Side - Intro

B.Y.O.B.

U-Fig

Violent Pornography

Aerials

Mr. Jack

Deer Dance

Dreaming

Needles

Radio/Video

Hypnotize

ATWA

Bounce

Suggestions

P.L.U.C.K.

Psycho

Physical (Olivia Newton-John)

Chop Suey!

Lost in Hollywood

Question!

Lonely Day

Know

A.D.D.

Spiders

Cigaro

Toxicity

Sugar

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