7:30 p.m. — It was all the buzz online and even in the Register offices when we realized that former System of a Down frontman Serj Tankian and former System guitarist and drummer, Daron Malakian and John Dolmayan and their new band, Scars on Broadway would both be performing at Coachella.Could this mean a System of a Down reunion? People seemed to hope so. There was no reunion last night during Tankian’s solo performance, so a small crowd of hopefuls packed in front of stage in the Mohave tent in hopes of seeing a glimpse of a reunited System of a Down.
Well, it didn’t happen. Malakian and Dolmayan performed with two new bandmates and came out 15-minutes late, but the crowd of about 300 didn’t seem to care. The band came out just crushing the audience with music that was dark and heavy, very reminecent of Black Sabbath. The set included such cheery tunes as “I like Suicide” and “Kill Each Other.”
The heavier rock tracks made the bands new radio single “They Say” sound like “Hit Me Baby One More Time.” We’re talking slamming guitars and this was also the first major moshpit I’ve seen all festival.
The Mohave tent was only about a quarter of the way full. I’d hate to have to be the one to tell them that there were way more people rockin’ out to Serj last night.
Other late day news:
Highlight: Cafe Tacvba was so much fun. The group has such universal appeal and even if you don’t speak Spanish - you can certainly groove to this. The singer is vibrant, funky, full of energy, and there’s not a spot on the stage he doesn’t touch.
Lowlight: Junkie XL had a lot of people groovin’ and movin’ in the Sahara tent, just not me (I was searching for my ear plugs).
