All My CDs, pt. 107: Elect the Dead

Elect the Dead - Serj Tankian

A while after I heard that System of a Down were breaking up, I was perusing a record store with some friends and one of them recommended Serj Tankian’s new solo album; I picked it up right away and began to love it. Before I listened to it for the first time, I wasn’t sure how Tankian’s music would sound without the rest of the band, and suspected it would be similar, but less. Instead, I have to say that his music is similar, but more. Many of the same themes and styles are there, but something is added as well, as if going solo allowed Tankian the freedom to express his musical voice more fully.

What’s added? Most obviously, there is a lot more piano and orchestral strings. The piano plays an important role in this album’s sound, and it’s not the pensive, melancholic piano you find with artists like Tori Amos. It’s a more gutsy incarnation of the instrument, and the same applies to the strings that show up from time to time. Each song is overloaded with a multitude of diverse instruments, and the resulting sound is unlike anything else, a genre unto itself.

There’s something about the lyrics too. Tankian is a poet in his own right, having also produced a book of poetry that graces my bookshelf, and his distinct poetic voice is present in the lyrics of these songs. They have the directness of System of a Down’s lyrics, but subjectively they seem more present, more heartful, like they’re more in sync both with the instrumentation and with the expressiveness of the vocals. I don’t think the lyrics are any more clear about their meaning, but I do think that the emotional content of the songs is more aligned with their intellectual message.

It isn’t always the case that a member of a great band will be equally great going solo, but I think that’s exactly the case with Serj Tankian.

Next: Imperfect Harmonies