Hypnotize (album)

Hypnotize
Studio album by System of a Down
Released	November 22, 2005 (2005-11-22)
Studio	The Mansion and Akademie Mathematique of Philosophical Sound Research (Los Angeles)
Genre	Nu metal alternative metal art rock [1]
Length	39:40
Label	American Columbia
Producer	Rick Rubin Daron Malakian
System of a Down chronology
Mezmerize (2005) Hypnotize (2005)
Singles from Hypnotize
"Hypnotize" Released: October 11, 2005 "Lonely Day" Released: April 17, 2006 "Vicinity of Obscenity" Released: May 29, 2006

Hypnotize is the fifth studio album by the American heavy metal band System of a Down. It was released on November 22, 2005, six months after the release of its companion album Mezmerize . Both Mezmerize and Hypnotize debuted at number one on the Billboard 200 chart. As of August 2025, Hypnotize remains their most recent studio album.

Reception

Professional ratings

Aggregate scores
Source	Rating
Metacritic	78/100 [2]
Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[3]
Entertainment Weekly	B+ [4]
The Guardian	[5]
Pitchfork	7.9/10 [6]
Playlouder	[7]
PopMatters	6/10 [8]
Rolling Stone	[9]
Stylus Magazine	C [10]
Sputnikmusic	[11]
USA Today	[12]

Hypnotize received generally positive reviews. It opened at number one on the Billboard 200, with 320,000 copies sold in its first week. The album also debuted at number one on the Canadian Albums Chart, selling 47,000 copies in its first week. The album was certified gold and platinum by the RIAA on December 13, 2005. ^[13] Since its release, Hypnotize has sold 8 million copies worldwide. ^[14]

• Entertainment Weekly (No. 851, p. 100) - "[T]hey're flaunting a heretofore underexplored sensitive side, offsetting their trademark stampeding riffology with flashes of delicate lyricism." - Grade: B+

• Rolling Stone (No. 988, p. 117) - 3.5 out of 5 stars - "Hell immediately runneth over in Malakian's scoured-staccato guitars and Dolmayan's furious hammering."

• Spin (p. 62) - Ranked #20 in Spin's "40 Best Albums of 2005".

• Uncut (p. 109) - 3 stars out of 5 - "System succeed through their skill at wielding complex, progressive heaviness in a pop context."

Track listing

All lyrics written by Daron Malakian and Serj Tankian, except where noted. All music written by Malakian, except where noted.

No.	Title	Lyrics	Music	Length
1.	"Attack"			3:06
2.	"Dreaming"		Malakian, Shavo Odadjian	3:59
3.	"Kill Rock 'n Roll"	Malakian		2:27
4.	"Hypnotize"			3:09
5.	"Stealing Society"			2:58
6.	"Tentative"			3:36
7.	"U-Fig"		Malakian, Odadjian	2:55
8.	"Holy Mountains"			5:28
9.	"Vicinity of Obscenity"	Tankian	Tankian, Malakian	2:51
10.	"She's Like Heroin"	Malakian		2:44
11.	"Lonely Day"	Malakian		2:47
12.	"Soldier Side"	Malakian		3:40
Total length:				39:40

DualDisc edition – DVD side

• Entire album in enhanced stereo
• The Recording of Mezmerize / Hypnotize
• "B.Y.O.B." and "Question!" videos

Personnel

System of a Down

• Serj Tankian – vocals, keyboards
• Daron Malakian – vocals, guitars, bass (uncredited), ^{[15] [16]} keyboards (uncredited) ^[15]
• Shavo Odadjian – bass
• John Dolmayan – drums

Vocals

• "Attack": Serj Tankian (main), Daron Malakian (second voice)
• "Dreaming": Tankian (main - verses) Malakian (main - bridge)
• "Kill Rock 'n Roll": Tankian and Malakian (both main)
• "Hypnotize": Tankian and Malakian (both main)
• "Stealing Society": Tankian (main - verses) Malakian (main - bridge)
• "Tentative": Tankian (main), Malakian (second voice)
• "U-Fig": Tankian (main - verses & chorus) Malakian (main - chorus)
• "Holy Mountains": Tankian (main), Malakian (second voice)
• "Vicinity of Obscenity": Tankian
• "She's Like Heroin": Malakian (main), Tankian (second voice)
• "Lonely Day": Malakian (main), Tankian (second voice)
• "Soldier Side": Tankian and Malakian (both main)

Production

• Produced by Rick Rubin and Daron Malakian
• Mixed by Andy Wallace
• Engineered by David Schiffman
• Editing by Jason Lader and Dana Nielsen
• Assistant engineer: Phillip Broussard
• Design: System of a Down and Brandy Flower
• String arrangement: Serj Tankian and Marc Mann
• Mix Pro Tools engineer: John O'Mahony
• Mix assistant engineers: Steve Sisco (Soundtrack) and Joe Peluso (Enterprise)
• Album production coordination: Lindsay Chase and Braden Asher
• Recording location: The Mansion in Laurel Canyon, Los Angeles and Akademie Mathematique of Philosophical Sound Research, Los Angeles
• Mixed at Soundtrack Studios, New York City and Enterprise Studios, Los Angeles
• Mastered by Vlado Meller at Sony Music Studios, New York City

Charts

Weekly charts Chart (2005) Peak position Australian Albums (ARIA) [17] 3 Austrian Albums (Ö3 Austria) [18] 3 Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders) [19] 17 Belgian Albums (Ultratop Wallonia) [20] 13 Canadian Albums (Billboard) [21] 1 Danish Albums (Hitlisten) [22] 11 Dutch Albums (Album Top 100) [23] 15 Finnish Albums (Suomen virallinen lista) [24] 1 French Albums (SNEP) [25] 4 German Albums (Offizielle Top 100) [26] 4 Hungarian Albums (MAHASZ) [27] 35 Irish Albums (IRMA) [28] 10 Italian Albums (FIMI) [29] 10 Italian Albums ( Musica e dischi ) [30] 11 New Zealand Albums (RMNZ) [31] 1 Norwegian Albums (VG-lista) [32] 4 Polish Albums (ZPAV) [33] 16 Portuguese Albums (AFP) [34] 15 Scottish Albums (OCC) [35] 12 Spanish Albums (PROMUSICAE) [36] 26 Swedish Albums (Sverigetopplistan) [37] 3 Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade) [38] 4 UK Albums (OCC) [39] 11 US Billboard 200 [40] 1

Year-end charts Chart (2005) Position Australian Albums (ARIA) [41] 89 Austrian Albums (Ö3 Austria) [42] 58 French Albums (SNEP) [43] 124 Italian Albums (FIMI) [44] 100 New Zealand Albums (RMNZ) [45] 38 UK Albums (OCC) [46] 172 Worldwide Albums (IFPI) [47] 42 Chart (2006) Position Austrian Albums (Ö3 Austria) [48] 64 French Albums (SNEP) [49] 156 US Billboard 200 [50] 41

Certifications

Region	Certification	Certified units/sales
Australia (ARIA) [51]	Gold	35,000^
Austria (IFPI Austria) [52]	Gold	15,000*
Denmark (IFPI Danmark) [53]	Platinum	20,000‡
Finland (Musiikkituottajat) [54]	Platinum	31,990 [54]
Germany (BVMI) [55]	Platinum	200,000‡
Ireland (IRMA) [56]	Platinum	15,000^
Italy (FIMI) [57] sales since 2009	Gold	25,000‡
New Zealand (RMNZ) [58]	Platinum	15,000^
Poland (ZPAV) [59]	Platinum	20,000‡
Russia (NFPF) [60]	Gold	10,000*
Switzerland (IFPI Switzerland) [61]	Gold	20,000^
United Kingdom (BPI) [62]	Gold	100,000^
United States (RIAA) [13]	Platinum	1,000,000^
* Sales figures based on certification alone. ^ Shipments figures based on certification alone. ‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

References

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