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Toxicity
by System Of A Down

System Of A Down reviews
Critic Score
Metascore: 73 Metascore out of 100
User Score  
9.4 out of 10
based on 9 reviews
Read critic reviews
How did we calculate this?
based on 230 votes
Read user comments
Rate this album

This is the alternative metal band's follow-up to their hit 1998 self-titled debut. Rick Rubin produced the 14-track effort.

LABEL: American Recordings
RELEASE DATE: 04 September 2001
DISCS: 1 disc
GENRE(S): Alternative, Rock, Metal

NOTES: Available in clean and explicit versions. Also available on vinyl. Also available in a limited edition with a bonus CD-ROM that contains behind-the-scenes footage and concert clips.


What The Critics Said

All critic scores are converted to a 100-point scale. If a critic does not indicate a score, we assign a score based on the general impression given by the text of the review. Learn more...

91
E! Online
Where the debut sometimes resembled a psycho-ward jam session, System serve up some surprising melodies on "Chop Suey!" "Forest" and the haunting "Aerials."
Read Full Review
90
Alternative Press
The fast parts are faster, the hard parts are harder, and the melodic sections are more memorable. [Oct 2001, p.102]
90
L.A. Weekly
Cast in layers upon layers of aural intricacy, Toxicity charters new frontiers, yet it’s still grinding rock at its most deafening.
Read Full Review
80
Q Magazine
Matches Slipknot for manic intensity while employing a freeform approach to songcraft which invites comparison to the lunatic-fringe rock of the late '60s. [Sep 2001, p.122]
70
Rolling Stone
System of a Down's sophomore album thrives on this sort of urgency, the adrenal rush that insists there's no time for ambiguity.
Read Full Review
70
Revolver
45 minutes of jagged, uneven music that includes sparks of urgent genius, and perhaps five or six seconds that border on legitimate transcendence. [Nov/Dec 2001, p.117]
67
Entertainment Weekly
They have a sense of dynamics, tempering their heaviness with unexpected touches of acoustic folksiness and prog-rock flourishes.
Read Full Review
60
Sonicnet
When System's at their best, the Los Angeles four-piece evokes most vividly punk politicos the Dead Kennedys.... Yet the band sputters out when the lyrics are awash in vagueness.
Read Full Review
30
Uncut
Toxicity is virtually unlistenable: thrash metal splintered into a million pieces by unnecessary time changes, topped off with excruciatingly theatrical vocals. [Dec 2001, p.118]

What Our Users Said

Vote Now! The average user rating for this album is 9.4 (out of 10) based on 230 User Votes
Note: User votes are NOT included in the Metascore calculation.

Joel C gave it a10:
This album gets 10 on Chop Suey and Forest alone, no joke. Add in 12 bonus tracks that are nearly equally as good and voila.

Jiri V. gave it a10:
The essential album by SOAD. One of best albums of this century so far regardless the musical style. The mirror facing our era. Hard, funny, creative, melodical.

Declan A. gave it a10:
This has to be one of my favourite albums of all time. It's exhilarating from start to finish, and Serj's voice is amazing. You can listen to it again and again and get the same rush you did first time listening to it. Out of this world

Joshua S. gave it a10:
The guy who wrote the article for Uncut: Just shut up, just fucking shut up! it's quite clear some of the reviewers don't like metal bands from the new millennium at all so they might as well not bother reviewing if they already have a pessimistic preconception

Ron gave it a9:
A step down from the debut, while brilliant nonetheless. The hits were great (Toxicity, Aerials), and it had a few more gems (Deer Dance, Forest, Prison Song), but the other half, especially the first few tracks are a disappointment. The aforementioned strong points pull it up to a 9. And FYI, this isn't the "debut", Mithyus. 2nd Best System CD.

Frank H. gave it a10:
This band rocks my sox and floats my boat. I can Play the whole album on my Fender Strat 100th Anniversary.

Mithyus gave it a10:
As a debut, Toxicity transmitted System of a Down perfectly; powerful, moving, and deep. This is definitely not a band for everyone, but the ones who let the sound take over won't ever let go of it. Chop Suey!, ATWA, Toxicity and Aerials shine here.

Read more user comments...

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