Question!

"Question!" is a song by Armenian American metal band System of a Down. It was released in July 2005 as the second single of their fourth album Mezmerize.

"Question!"
Single by System of a Down
from the album Mezmerize
ReleasedJuly 12, 2005
Recorded
Length3:20
Label
Songwriter(s)Serj Tankian
Producer(s)
System of a Down singles chronology
"B.Y.O.B."
(2005)		 "Question!"
(2005)		 "Hypnotize"
(2005)
Maxi single
Cover of the maxi single of "Question!".
DVD single
Cover of the DVD single of "Question!".
Music video
"Question!" on YouTube

Music video

Shavo Odadjian produced the video (and co-directed it alongside Howard Greenhalgh) after allegedly having an image of the video in a nightmare. It is claimed that before the dream he had no intentions of producing the video. In fact he didn't want any special treatment over other possible producers for being in the band so he submitted his idea anonymously.[1]

The video was shot in the now-closed Los Angeles Theater, which opened in 1931. "It's an amazing old theater that is due for renovation," Tankian said of the place. "I'm glad they haven't renovated it yet, because it has the right character for what we were looking for. It has a fairy tale vibe."[1]

The opening scene is of a boy with gray hair, clothes, and skin shooting a red bird with a slingshot, which coincides with the start of the song. At this point the video switches to a scene of the band members on a theater stage, performing music for a play; similar to an orchestra playing under the pit. The play is based on a theme of life, death, and reincarnation, revolving around two lovers, a man in a dark suit and a woman in a red dress, who are shown both as children and adults. As the music reaches its climax, the woman collapses after eating a red berry and the man screams in grief. The video closes with an intense scene of a woman giving birth followed by a shot of a newborn baby wrapped in red cloth. The color red is central to the video, tying together the bird, the girl, the woman, and the baby in a cycle of rebirth.

Composition

"Question!" is written in the key of E minor — a somewhat unusual key for System of a Down, which normally relies heavily on Cm, C#m, and F#m. The song uses four different time signatures (5/4, 9/8, 3/4, and 4/4). The acoustic guitar intro and part of the verse is in 9/8, expressed as 3+2+2+2 (This phrasing suggests a hemiola, and is essentially 4/4 with an extra eighth note on beat 1). The verse briefly switches to 3/4 when Tankian sings "Are you dreaming?". The guitar motif after the acoustic intro is in 5/4. This same section appears throughout the song as well. Choruses one and two are in 3/4. The third chorus and the heavy tremolo-picked section towards the end underneath the vocals is in 4/4. Serj Tankian plays acoustic guitar in the intro and deeper in the background behind lead guitarist Daron Malakian.

Track listing
CD single
No.TitleLyricsMusicLength
1."Question!" (album version)S. TankianS. Tankian3:21
2."Sugar" (explicit live version)S. Tankian
  • D. Malakian
  • S. Odadjian
3:54
Maxi CD single
No.TitleLyricsMusicLength
1."Question!" (album version)S. TankianS. Tankian3:21
2."Forest" (explicit live version)S. TankianD. Malakian5:11
3."Prison Song" (explicit live version)
  • S. Tankian
  • D. Malakian
D. Malakian3:27
4."Question!" (live video)S. TankianS. Tankian3:25
DVD single
No.TitleLyricsMusicLength
1."Question!" (concept video)S. Tankian
  • S. Tankian
  • D. Malakian
3:48
2."B.Y.O.B." (concept video)
  • S. Tankian
  • D. Malakian
D. Malakian4:17
3."Sugar" (explicit live version)S. Tankian
  • D. Malakian
  • S. Odadjian
3:54
4."B.Y.O.B." (explicit live from Astoria)
  • D. Malakian
  • S. Tankian
D. Malakian4:19

Personnel

Chart positions
Chart (2005) Peak
position
Canada Rock Top 30 (Radio & Records)[2] 29
Ireland (IRMA)[3] 47
UK Singles (OCC)[4] 41
US Billboard Bubbling Under Hot 100 2
US Alternative Airplay (Billboard)[5] 9
US Mainstream Rock (Billboard)[6] 7

References
  1. System of a Down Pose "Question!" Rolling Stone
  2. "RR Canada Rock Top 30" (PDF). p. 63. Retrieved October 14, 2019.
  3. "Chart Track: Week 40, 2002". Irish Singles Chart.
  4. "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company.
  5. "System of a Down Chart History (Alternative Airplay)". Billboard. Retrieved April 9, 2015.
  6. "System of a Down Chart History (Mainstream Rock)". Billboard. Retrieved April 3, 2015.
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