SYSTEM OF A DOWN And DEFTONES Draw 50,000 Fans To …

Around 50,000 fans attended the inaugural event of what the promoter has named the Golden Gate Park Concerts on Saturday, August 17 at Golden Gate Park in San Francisco, California.

The outdoor concert included a rare appearance by SYSTEM OF A DOWN and Northern California legends DEFTONES, joined by reunited progressive-punk band THE MARS VOLTA, Swedish punk band VIAGRA BOYS and opening Australian “death pop” duo VOWWS. The performance marked SYSTEM OF A DOWN‘s only live appearance this year outside of the band’s sold-out concert at Sick New World festival in Las Vegas in April.

Event organizers said that all 50,000 tickets for this weekend’s show sold out within minutes of going on sale.

90 percent of the audience for Saturday’s concert was from outside San Francisco, according to the organizers.

Golden Gate Park has been hosting daytime concerts since 1967.

SYSTEM OF A DOWN has toured intermittently since ending its hiatus in 2011, but has only managed to record two songs in the last 19 years, “Protect The Land” and “Genocidal Humanoidz”. Released in November 2020, the tracks were motivated by the conflict between Artsakh and Azerbaijan, with all proceeds supporting humanitarian efforts in SYSTEM OF A DOWN‘s ancestral homeland of Armenia. Along with other donations from fans on their social pages, they raised over $600,000.

DEFTONES have spent the last couple of years working on the follow-up to 2020’s “Ohms” album. The new LP is being helmed by producer Nick Raskulinecz (RUSH, MASTODON, ALICE IN CHAINS). This marks DEFTONES‘ third collaboration with Nick, having previously worked with him on 2010’s “Diamond Eyes” and 2012’s “Koi No Yokan” albums.

In 2022, DEFTONES recruited Fred Sablan as their new touring bassist following the departure of Sergio Vega. They were also joined by second guitarist Lance Jackman.

Sablan made his live debut with the DEFTONES in April 2022 at the opening concert of the band’s spring 2022 U.S. tour at the Moda Center at the Rose Quarter in Portland, Oregon.

Sablan is best known as the former bassist for MARILYN MANSON, having toured and recorded with the shock rocker between 2010 and 2014. He has also played bass for CHELSEA WOLFE and PETER HOOK AND THE LIGHT, and is a member of the punk-rock supergroup HEAVENS BLADE alongside YOUTH CODE singer Sara Taylor, former ROB ZOMBIE bassist Piggy D. (on guitar) and SUICIDE SILENCE drummer Alex Lopez.

Vega, who officially joined DEFTONES in 2009, confirmed his exit in March 2022, just days after a new photo of the band without him emerged online on various digital service providers. At the time, he took to social media to share a video explaining his perspective on the split. In the Instagram video, Vega detailed the contractual issues that created a rift between himself and the group’s core members.

Jackman is known for his work in Sacramento bands EIGHTFOURSEVEN, HORSENECK and WILL HAVEN.