On August 5th, I attended one of the best concerts I have ever been to. System of a Down performed at Nikon Jones Beach in Long Island, New York. Everything was perfect that night except for the weather. A storm hit the amphitheater, but that didn’t seem the phase the hardcore System fans. I couldn’t find any flaws in the bands performance. Serj’s voice was on point throughout the night and so was Daron’s (who happens to also be the lead guitarist). It amazes me how four guys can make so much noise.
The Armenian rock band started off their set with”Prison Song” and I was amazed to see how many people in the crowd knew the words to this hard rock track. From Serj’s whispering in the beginning to his fast paced sung verse, the crowd was singing almost every word. The performance sounded almost as good if not better then the bands studio recording. After “Prison Song”, the band went into “Soldier Side” then “B.Y.O.B.” Even during the slower paced single “Soldier Side”, the crowd still seemed alive. The band then performed “Radio/Video” as the crowd sung along to even the melody. I was very impressed by how quick the band was able to switch up the tempo from track to track. Even on tracks like “Radio/Video” where the tempo and melody slow down mid way, the band was able to make the changes look effortless. After “Radio/Video”, SOAD went into “Hypnotize” then one of my personal favorites, “Question!” Serj went from playing the keyboard to the guitar to belting out his vocals throughout the night. All members of the band are equally talented in their own ways. It was beyond great to see them together on stage, but it would have been nice if the venue had sold out. When performing “Forest” Daron played a nice guitar solo as did Shavo. The band went through more tracks off of Toxicity, even the title track and had the crowd intrigued the whole night.
If you ever have the chance to see the band live, I highly recommend it and if you don’t know who they are watch the video of the band live performing at Nikon Jones beach below thanks to NextMosh (not the best quality, but it will suffice).
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J6n-L4nHMS4]
