System of a down is an Armenian-American band formed in Glendale, California in 1994. Originally Serj Tankian(vocalist and keyboards),Daron Malakian(vocalist and guitar), and Shavo Odadjian(bassist and occassional backing vocalist) where part of another band named 'Soil',but after only one live show at the Roxy and one jam session recording the band split up. After soil split up, Tankian, Odadjian, and Malakian formed anothar band named'System of a Down', taking its name from the poem written by Malakian titled 'Victims of a down' replacing the wors'victims' by 'system' because Odadjian wanted the name to be more appealing to a wider audience and also because the group wanted their records to be alphabetically shelved closer to their musical heroes, Slayer.
System of a Down made what is known as Untitled 1995 Demo Tape, which was not commercially released, but eventually appeared on file-sharing networks around the time of the band's success with Toxicity about six years later. Demo Tape 2 was released in 1996. At the beginning of 1997, System of a Down recorded their final publicly released demo tape, Demo Tape 3. In mid-1997.
During 1994 to 1997 the band's drummer was Andy Kachaturian ,who left the band after breaking his hand during an argument, shortly after being replaced by John Dolmayan in the drums, the band has stayed with the same members since.
In 2006 the band went into hiatus,reuniting again in 2010 only to tour ocassionally.

Their style of music is a unique blend of Alternative metal, Nu metal, and Hard rock. but they often incorporate traditional Armenian folk influences. They are known for the politically charged lyrics often covering topics such as War, Corruption, and the Armenian genocide.

Their top five most popular albums are:

Their most popular album is "Toxicity"(2001). which features hits like "Toxicity" and "Chop Suey!"

On second place is "Mezmerize"(2005), which ranked #1 in multiple countries and features hits like "B.Y.O.B." and "Question!"

On third place goes "System Of a Down"(1998). This album was the one that established their nu-metal sound ,with songs like "Sugar" and "Spiders".

Fourth place is for "Hypnotize"(2005), which is the second half of their double album going along with Mezmerize. Featuring songs like "Lonely Day"

On last place is "Steal This Album!"(2002), This album was made up mostly of unreleased songs from the "Toxicity" sessions, featuring songs like "Cick 'n' Stu" and "Highway Song".