BURBANK (Marketwire)–Serj Tankian, the visionary frontman for multi-platinum rock band System Of A Down, released his debut solo album — "Elect the Dead" — Tuesday on Serjical Strike/Reprise Records.
The album’s first single, "Empty Walls," was the Number One most-added track out of the box at both Alternative and Active Rock radio stations across the country and has been lodged in the Top Ten since its release in September. The single is about to crack the Top 10 at Rock radio, while the song’s video, directed by Tony Petrossian (Taking Back Sunday, Avenged Sevenfold) is part of the Elite 8 on MTV2.
Serj will be hosting the "Rock The Deuce Countdown" on MTV2 on October 27 at 10 p.m. The "Empty Walls" video is also in heavy rotation on FUSE.
"Elect the Dead" has already received glowing reviews from various media outlets including The Los Angeles Times, which called it "brutally engaging guitar-rock" with "steely lyricism and throttling textures," while Rolling Stone noted that it "delivers amped, intricate, and political hard rock." Tankian produced the album himself and played most of the instrumen’s, though he was joined by guest drummers John Dolmayan (SOAD) and Brian "Brain" Mantia (Guns n’ Roses, Primus).
Earlier this year, Tankian asked a collection of video and film directors, painters, and digital artists to each create a video for one of the 12 tracks on "Elect the Dead." On Tuesday, Warner Bros. Records, in conjunction with D&E Entertainment, held special screenings of all 12 visual interpretations of Tankian’s songs, which were shown back-to-back at movie theaters nationwide to celebrate the album’s release.
Tankian is currently winding down a mini promotional tour of the U.S. with his friend and Axis of Justice partner, guitarist Tom Morello, and Saul Williams and Fair To Midland (on select dates). He will join Foo Fighters — with whom he appeared last month at MTV’s Video Music Awards — overseas for a series of European dates beginning with the MTV European Music Awards on November 1.
