“What the f**k is an Armenian to someone who lives in Kentucky?! We looked like aliens to people”: Daron Malakian on how System Of A Down cracked America to become “the biggest band on the sunset strip” in the mid ’90s

System Of A Down’s Daron Malakian has taken a trip down memory lane, recalling how the band felt like “aliens” when trying to make it in the US.

Known these days for their structurally-playful and extravagant brand of metal, the Armenian-American band found it pretty tricky in their early years to get signed to a label, as they didn’t fit the typical mould of the nu-metal bands that were gaining popularity at the time.

Despite feeling like outcasts, Malakian feels things worked out for the band due to their sheer resilience. After forming in California in the mid ’90s, they dedicated themselves to turning West Hollywood’s famed Sunset Strip venues upside down.

Speaking to Metal Hammer for its new print edition, Malakian explains, “At first nobody wanted to sign us, because we didn’t sound like Korn or Limp Bizkit, and we were four Armenian guys! I mean, what the fuck is an Armenian to somebody that lives in Kentucky?! They don’t even know what Armenians are!

“We looked like we were just fucking aliens to people, the way our stage presence was and the way our look was at the time. Serj [Tankian, SOAD singer] is a very different, unique kind of frontman, I’m the guitar player who sings and screams and does all the crazy stuff. People didn’t get it at first, but we got it.”

Asked what changed as time went on, Malakian replies, “We just went out and did what we did. We were young and hungry, we believed in what we were doing. You’ve got to understand, we were an army before we were signed, we were fucking tearing down the Sunset Strip.

“Our shows were packed when we weren’t signed,” he adds. “It started with our group of friends, but that shit grew and grew and grew, and we became the biggest band on the Sunset Strip.”