Serj Tankian’s critically-revered Elasticity EP, the System of a Down singer’s first solo release since 2013’s Orca, is available now. The Los Angeles and New Zealand based musician has simultaneously unveiled a second video featuring music from the five-song collection, debuting the “Electric Yerevan” video this morning.
Tankian said of the track: “The song was inspired by the successful Electric Yerevan protests in Armenia in the summer of 2015 where people protested against proposed hikes in utility prices. My writing from that time is inscribed word for word in the song.” The Garin Hovannisian-directed clip provides a visual timeline of the events leading up to the 2015 “Electric Yerevan” protests and the ensuing 2018 Velvet Revolution, while simultaneously showcasing the power of peaceful demonstrations across the globe.
The Armenian capital of Yerevan also figures prominently in the recently released documentary, “Truth to Power” (April 27 on VOD, truthtopowerfilm.com). The film, with exclusive interviews, adventures, and some original footage personally filmed by Serj, allows audiences backstage access to an international rock star whose faith in music not only revolutionized heavy metal, but also world events. Throughout his life, the musician has pursued social justice, harnessing the power of his songs and celebrity for real political change. Serj’s voice is equally likely to take on American corporate greed as lambast the corrupt regime of his homeland. His decades-long campaign for formal U.S. recognition of the Armenian Genocide was finally adopted by Congress in December of 2019.
Elasticity is a diverse suite of songs that runs gamut from hard-driving, electronically enhanced anthems like the title track (watch the “Elasticity” video here), “Electric Yerevan” (the aforementioned rallying cry for his beloved Armenia), “Your Mom” (the tongue-in-cheek political mash-up), the piano-laden “How Many Times?” to “Rumi,” a song that Serj wrote both about his son Rumi and Rumi the Sufi love poet. The EP is available now digitally and on CD, as is an Elasticity-themed collection of merch. Vinyl pre-orders are also available, including a limited-edition indie retail purple vinyl variant and a galaxy vinyl web exclusive. The full collection can be found here.
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