Back in 2014, System Of A Down drummer John Dalmayan went on Kickstarter to fund his new project These Grey Men with $55,000, a goal which was reached.
Explaining the project, John said:
About two years ago, I began to feel somewhat incomplete. I was touring and having a great time with my friends in System Of A Down, but something was missing. After some soul searching, it hit me that I hadn't given anything new artistically to the world in far too long. Though touring was fantastic, it didn't fulfill a fundamental need that was growing day by day within me. A need to step into the studio with a blank canvas and share what comes out with fans across the world.
On one of my many trips to visit friends and family in LA, I was scrolling through the 10,000 or so songs in my iPod, and as different songs would come on - for reasons I can't explain - I would rearrange them and change the melodies around in my head. I began noting the songs that changed the most profoundly, and a list began to form. Over time, it became clear that what I had on my hands could be the project I was yearning for.
Now he's told SOAD Mexico that he plans to finally release the album within the next four months, and it will feature a myriad of guests including System vocalist Serj Tankian, Avenged Sevenfold's M. Shadows and Tom Morello:
“I’m still working on it. It will be released within the next four months. All the songs are finished, but we’re in the process of adding strings… And then, we’re actually starting to mix some of the songs that have already been done. And there’s some cool artists on it. Serj sang two songs, and the Avenged Sevenfold singer, Matt, he sang a song. And then I have a bunch of other friends that came. Tom Morello played guitar on a song.
For those hoping for a heavy album, you might want to stay a little apprehensive as he's also said the record will span a whole bunch of genres:
“As for what it’s going to sound like, it’ll definitely have a rock feel, but not limited by any genre restrictions,” he said. “Listeners are going to hear a plethora of sounds and styles.”
Either way, it'll be an interesting project and we can't wait to see what he's been working on.
Listen to System Of A Down now.
