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I don't want to spend all my time working as an activist. I don't get satisfaction out of it. I'd rather be doing something else. I'm a musician.

Serj Tankian

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Serj Tankian
Age: 57
Born: 1967
Born: August 21
Bassist
Environmentalist
Essayist
Guitarist
Keyboardist
Lyricist
Peace Activist
Pianist
Poet
Record Producer
Singer
Singer-Songwriter
Working
Rather
Else
Something
Time
Activist
Satisfaction
Musician
Spend

More quotes by Serj Tankian

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We're addicted to this concept of civilization - we can't imagine living outside of it because we've had it for 10,000 years, all of what we call history. But according to archaeologists, humanity has been on this planet for millions of years in indigenous form.
Serj Tankian
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I think music has the ability to inspire people and to change hearts, and the heart has the power to change the mind, and the mind has the power to change the world.
Serj Tankian
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The next song I wrote in Paris years ago in a dream. So I didn't really write it, the universe wrote it. And that's what I believe about music, I believe it belongs to the universe, it comes from there and it's this beautiful energy that we share that transcends normal flash existence and that we inspire each other through.
Serj Tankian
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Day is just a collection of hours.
Serj Tankian
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I don't find most people to be as politically engaged as I am. I do find people that appreciate eye-opening events and words, and who want to learn more about what's going on. I do find people with a lot of opinions. And I get a lot of people who come up to me and give us props for what we do.
Serj Tankian
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My two interests are spirituality and politics. I would mesh them in some way maybe try to figure out the politics of spirituality, or the spirituality of politics. Or maybe come up with this really crazy naive solution for the end of civilization.
Serj Tankian
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Touring and putting out records is fun and cool, but I've been doing it for a long time.
Serj Tankian
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I'm a huge Beatles fan, but I've only really gotten into them as an adult.
Serj Tankian
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I believe very firmly that indigenous populations had a really good, intuitive understanding of why we're here. And we're trying to gain that same understanding through psychology and intellect in modern civilization.
Serj Tankian
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What does civilization mean to you, and what would its ending bring to the world?
Serj Tankian
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The living ideas of the dead are more powerful and effective than the dead ideas of the living.
Serj Tankian
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People get so attached to a position which they identify themselves with that they just spurt it out, but they can't really give you a viable reason why they feel that way.
Serj Tankian
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People always ask me 'do you think there should be more bands doing political music?' and I say 'absolutely not.'
Serj Tankian
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As long as people are living their truth or their vision, whether they're activists or not, that's the important thing.
Serj Tankian
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A lot of pop music is based on trying to make people remember it so that they'll buy it. To me, it was not about that.
Serj Tankian
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With 'Elect the Dead,' I learned how to make a rock record without a rock band and make the rock record I've always wanted to make.
Serj Tankian
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I think as consumers Europeans are a lot more artist loyal irrespective of the genre of music or the type of project or the collaborative effort, and Americans are more media-loyal, because they need to be fed that media to know what's going on, because we're so inundated with promotion and marketing and everything that's going on - advertising.
Serj Tankian
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'Elect the Dead' is a rock record that takes you on a journey with different types of genres integrated, different lyrical themes digested, and many fun and colorful moments to enjoy.
Serj Tankian
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If you're using live bass versus orchestral bass, you've got to make sure that you're not stepping on the toes of the other elements, so you've got to balance it out.
Serj Tankian
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I like African music, and I'm a huge Ravi Shankar fan.
Serj Tankian