SYSTEM OF A DOWN GOING FOR OZZFEST MASTERS DEGREE

System of a Down are set to headline Ozzfest once again this summer and this will be the bands fourth time on the ground breaking metal tour. System of a Down has had quite a hand in building perhaps the most successful traveling festival. We caught up with bassist Shavo Odadjian to talk about his memories playing Ozzfest with System of a Down and the fact the band is graduating Ozzfest with a masters degree in 2006.

2006 Ozzfest has begun and joining System of a Down on the main stage will be Disturbed, Hatebreed and Lacuna Coil and Avenged Sevenfold, who was announced as the surprise headlining band. Bands set for the second stage include Black Label Society, Atreyu, Bleeding Through, Unearth and Norman Jean and at certain stops a very special second stage headliner, Ozzy Osbourne. The Ozzfest kicked off July 1st at Shoreline Amphitheater in Northern California and will extend until August 13th in West Palm Beach, Florida. OZZY also recently announced his only headlining solo concert of 2006, and it’s set for July 14 at the Verizon Wireless Amphitheater in Kansas City, KS with Black Label Society and two OZZfest supporting acts soon to be named. OZZY has recently been writing songs for an upcoming solo album with his longtime guitarist ZAKK WYLDE, who also fronts Black Label Society. The album’s release date is TBA.rn

“Well this is our fourth Ozzfest, to be honest with you. In ’98 we played the second stage. We were just some random band on the second stage, with Snot and stuff like that and Motorhead was headlining the second stage and Tool was headlining the first stage. There was bands like Megadeth, it was kind of a cool tour. And then the next year, 1999, we were the first band on the main stage. So we played at 1pm everyday. So i’d wake up and drink two red bulls, get on stage and play to a bunch of blue seats. And then get back and pass out, you know. Well the third time we headlined, but there was still Ozzy. Ozzy was playing after us. Except for about three dates were you know Sharon was diagnosed with cancer. We all know that and Ozzy had to leave so we kind of closed off three or four of the shows. And this year, Ozzy is only doing like seven or eight dates and we’re closing off all the shows. It’s kind of like graduation,