Genocidal Humanoidz

System Of A Down isn't subtle on this one (are they ever?). The "genocidal humanoidz" are the Azerbaijani and Turkish forces waging war in a disputed area of their homeland, Armenia. They released the song in response the conflict, which arose on September 27, 2020. "We never run from the devil," they sing.

The group released this song to rally support for Armenia and to aid civilians ravaged by the war; proceeds go to the Armenia Fund, which supplies aid. "Our people have lived there for millennia, and for most families there, it's the only home they and their forefathers and mothers have ever known," System Of A Down wrote in a statement. "They just want to live in peace as they have for centuries." They added: "The current corrupt regimes of Aliyev in Azerbaijan and Erdogan in Turkey now want to not only claim these lands as their own, but are committing genocidal acts with impunity on humanity and wildlife to achieve their mission."

System Of A Down had a number of false starts since releasing their 2005 album Hypnotize. They managed to tour, but recording proved harder, partly because they had beef over who would write the songs. The conflict in Armenia united them to action. Drummer John Dolmayan proposed the get together in early October. The band recorded the song "Protect The Land," but their manager convinced them they needed a heavier song to go with it. Years earlier, they came up with "Genocidal Humanoidz" during sessions for an album that never materialized, so they revived the song, reworked it a bit, and released it along with "Protect The Land" on November 6, 2020. The song had a more generic meaning when they wrote it years earlier - it's a story about doing battle with the Devil. They felt it made the political statement they were looking for in 2020; the biggest change to the lyrics was swapping the line "Terrorists are coming" for "Terrorists we're fighting."