Mezmerize
Untitled | |
---|---|
Aggregate scores | |
---|---|
Source | Rating |
Metacritic | 85/100 [3] |
Review scores | |
Source | Rating |
Allmusic | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
Entertainment Weekly | A− [5] |
Kerrang! | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
People | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
Drowned In Sound | (8/10)[11] |
PopMatters | 9/10[7] |
Blabbermouth.net | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
Rolling Stone | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
Stylus | B− [10] |
BBC Music | Very Favorable [1] |
Mezmerize is the fourth studio album by the band System of a Down. It is the first half of the Mezmerize/Hypnotize double album. It was released on May 17, 2005, six months before Hypnotize, on Columbia Records.
Background
Mezmerize was lauded by critics, scoring 85 at Metacritic based on 19 reviews.[3] The album debuted at number one in at least 12 countries,[12] including the US Billboard 200, with 453,000 copies,[13] and has since been certified Platinum by the RIAA. It was chosen as one of Amazon.com's Top 100 Editor's Picks of 2005. The hit single "B.Y.O.B." won a Grammy Award in 2006 for Best Hard Rock Performance.
Despite the time difference between releases, Mezmerize and Hypnotize were recorded within the same time frame. The album features guitarist Daron Malakian sharing most of the vocal work with vocalist Serj Tankian, splitting the vocals at least halfway on many of the tracks.
Malakian wrote "Old School Hollywood" after playing in a celebrity baseball game for charity. The song mentions Tony Danza and Frankie Avalon, who also played in the game.[14]
The Japanese version of the album contains a slightly different mix of "Soldier Side (Intro)" with strings, while the leaked mp3 version of "Cigaro" contains a 4-stick hit intro not present in the retail version. The album artwork is done by the father of guitarist Daron Malakian, Vartan Malakian.
Soundtrack appearances
"B.Y.O.B." Appeared In Guitar Hero: World Tour, Guitar Hero: Live and was DLC for Rock Band 2.
The single "Lost in Hollywood" was also sampled by rap duo Capone-N-Noreaga (CNN) in a 2008 promotional single for The War Report 2: Report the War—the single was simply entitled "Hollywood."
The single "Lost in Hollywood" was also used by YouTuber "PewDiePie" in some of his videos as his outro song from October 2012 to January 2013.
Track listing
No. | Title | Lyrics | Music | Length |
---|---|---|---|---|
1. | "Soldier Side - Intro" | Malakian | Malakian | 1:03 |
2. | "B.Y.O.B." ("Bring Your Own Bombs") | Malakian, Tankian | Malakian | 4:15 |
3. | "Revenga" | Malakian, Tankian | Malakian | 3:48 |
4. | "Cigaro" | Malakian, Tankian | Malakian | 2:11 |
5. | "Radio/Video" | Malakian | Malakian | 4:09 |
6. | "This Cocaine Makes Me Feel Like I'm on This Song" | Malakian, Tankian | Malakian | 2:08 |
7. | "Violent Pornography" | Malakian | Malakian | 3:31 |
8. | "Question!" | Tankian | Tankian, Malakian | 3:20 |
9. | "Sad Statue" | Malakian, Tankian | Malakian | 3:25 |
10. | "Old School Hollywood" | Malakian | Malakian | 2:56 |
11. | "Lost in Hollywood" | Malakian, Tankian | Malakian | 5:20 |
Total length: | 36:06 |
Personnel
System of a Down
- Serj Tankian – vocals, keyboards, guitars, graphic design, string arrangement
- Daron Malakian – vocals, guitars, production, graphic design
- Shavo Odadjian – bass, backing vocals, graphic design
- John Dolmayan – drums, percussion, graphic design
Vocals
- Soldier Side - Intro: Daron Malakian and Serj Tankian (both main).
- B.Y.O.B: Tankian (main), Malakian (second voice).
- Revenga: Tankian (main), Malakian (second voice).
- Cigaro: Tankian (main), Malakian (second voice).
- Radio/Video: Malakian and Tankian (both main).
- This Cocaine Makes Me Feel Like I'm on this Song: Tankian.
- Violent Pornography: Malakian and Tankian (both main).
- Question!: Tankian (main), Malakian (backing vocals).
- Sad Statue: Malakian and Tankian (both main).
- Old School Hollywood: Malakian and Tankian (both main).
- Lost in Hollywood: Malakian (main) and Tankian (second voice).
Production
|
|
Charts
Year | Chart | Position |
---|---|---|
2005 | Billboard 200 | 1 |
UK Albums Chart | 2 | |
Australian ARIA Top 50[15] | 1 | |
Canadian Albums Chart[16] | 1 | |
Finnish Albums Chart[17] | 2 | |
Norwegian VG-lista | 2 | |
New Zealand Top Albums Chart[18] | 1 | |
Polish Albums Chart[19] | 5 |
Certifications
Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
---|---|---|
Austria (IFPI Austria)[20] | Gold | 20,000* |
Australia (ARIA)[21] | Platinum | 70,000^ |
Belgium (BEA)[22] | Gold | 25,000* |
Brazil (Pro-Música Brasil)[23] | Gold | 50,000* |
Brazil (Pro-Música Brasil)[24] 5-album bundle |
Platinum | 40,000* |
Canada (Music Canada)[25] | 3× Platinum | 300,000^ |
Finland (Musiikkituottajat)[26] | Platinum | 33,068[26] |
France (SNEP)[28] | Gold | 129,000[27] |
Germany (BVMI)[29] | Gold | 100,000^ |
Ireland (IRMA)[30] | Platinum | 15,000^ |
New Zealand (RMNZ)[31] | Platinum | 15,000^ |
Switzerland (IFPI Switzerland)[32] | Gold | 20,000^ |
United States (RIAA)[33] | Platinum | 1,000,000^ |
* Sales figures based on certification alone. |
References
- ^ a b BBC - Music - Review of System Of A Down - Mesmerize/Hypnotize
- ^ System of a Down: Hypnotize | PopMatters
- ^ a b Reviews for Mezmerize by System Of A Down - Metacritic
- ^ Loftus, Johnny. "Mezmerize: System of a Down". Allmusic. Retrieved 2009-11-30.
- ^ Sinclair, Tom (May 16, 2005). "Mezmerize Review". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved 2009-11-30.
- ^ Arnold, Chuck (2005-06-27). "Picks and Pans Review: System of a Down (Mezmerize)". People. Retrieved 2013-08-25.
{{cite web}}
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(help) - ^ Begrand, Adrien (2005-05-25). "System Of A Down: Mezmerize". PopMatters. Retrieved 2009-11-30.
- ^ CD Reviews - Mezmerize System Of A Down - Blabbermouth.net
- ^ Fricke, David (2005-06-02). "System of a Down: Mezmerize". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on 2007-04-28. Retrieved 2012-01-29.
{{cite web}}
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suggested) (help) - ^ Pemberton, Rollie (2005-07-22). "System Of A Down: Mezmerize". Stylus Magazine. Retrieved 2009-11-30.
- ^ Album Review: System Of A Down - Mezmerize / Releases / Releases // Drowned In Sound
- ^ System Of A Down Mezmerizes Music Fans Worldwide
- ^ System Of A Down Mezmerizes Music Fans Worldwide
- ^ Moss, Corey (2007). "System of a Down: Doubleheader". MTV. Retrieved 2015-01-07.
- ^ australian-charts.com
- ^ hitparade.ch
- ^ Finnish charts
- ^ charts.org.nz
- ^ Polish charts
- ^ "Austrian album certifications – System of a Down – Mezmerize" (in German). IFPI Austria.
- ^ "ARIA Charts – Accreditations – 2005 Albums" (PDF). Australian Recording Industry Association.
- ^ "Ultratop − Goud en Platina – albums 2007". Ultratop. Hung Medien.
- ^ "Brazilian album certifications – System of a Down – Mezmerize" (in Portuguese). Pro-Música Brasil.
- ^ "Brazilian album certifications – System of a Down – System of a Down" (in Portuguese). Pro-Música Brasil.
- ^ "Canadian album certifications – System of a Down – Mezmerize". Music Canada.
- ^ a b "System Of A Down" (in Finnish). Musiikkituottajat – IFPI Finland.
- ^ "Les Albums Or :" (in French). Infodisc.fr. Retrieved October 13, 2012.
- ^ "French album certifications – System of a Down – Mezmerize" (in French). Syndicat National de l'Édition Phonographique.
- ^ "Gold-/Platin-Datenbank (System Of A Down; 'Mezmerize')" (in German). Bundesverband Musikindustrie.
- ^ "The Irish Charts - 2005 Certification Awards - Platinum". Irish Recorded Music Association.
- ^ "New Zealand album certifications – System of a Down – Mezmerize". Recorded Music NZ.
- ^ "The Official Swiss Charts and Music Community: Awards ('Mezmerize')". IFPI Switzerland. Hung Medien.
- ^ "American album certifications – System of a Down – Mezmerize". Recording Industry Association of America.