Imperfect Harmonies
Studio album by
Serj Tankian
ReleasedSeptember 21, 2010 (2010-09-21)
Genre
Length44:09
LabelReprise, Serjical Strike
ProducerSerj Tankian
Serj Tankian chronology
Elect the Dead Symphony
(2010)		 Imperfect Harmonies
(2010)		 Imperfect Remixes
(2011)
Serj Tankian studio album chronology
Elect the Dead
(2007)		 Imperfect Harmonies
(2010)		 Harakiri
(2012)
Singles from Imperfect Harmonies
  1. "Left of Center"
    Released: June 29, 2010
  2. "Reconstructive Demonstrations"
    Released: November 12, 2010

Imperfect Harmonies is the second studio album by Armenian-American singer Serj Tankian. The album was released on September 21, 2010 through Reprise Records and Serjical Strike Records.

Release and promotion

Imperfect Harmonies was originally scheduled to be released on September 7, 2010,[1] but was later pushed back two weeks to September 21.[2] The paper manufacturing plant that Tankian selected to print the album's booklet ran out of tree-free paper and needed more time to obtain more of the material. Tankian is environmentally conscious and researched this type of paper on his own. Other releases by Tankian that use tree-free paper include his first solo effort Elect the Dead, and Hypnotize and Mezmerize, the last two releases by his band System of a Down.[3]

The first song released off of Imperfect Harmonies was "Borders Are...". The song was released in June 2010 as a free download and also as an online lyric video.[4] Serj Tankian had no involvement with the video. It was created by George Tonikian as a promotional tool while Tankian was on tour.[5] This was followed by the album's first official single, "Left of Center". The song was released as a single in July 2010[6] and was later released as a music video in August 2010.[2] These first two songs released from Imperfect Harmonies were described by Tankian as being "the most blatantly political songs on the record. Everything is a bit more philosophical and... more abstract.".[1] Later he released "Disowned Inc." on his web page, and also created a game to discover pieces of the song.

The album opened at No. 35 on the Billboard 200 with 10,200 copies.[7]

Musical direction

In 2009, Tankian collaborated with New Zealand's Auckland Philharmonia Orchestra to perform a symphonic version of Elect the Dead. This pairing resulted in the live album Elect the Dead Symphony released in 2010.[8] The experimentation of mixing orchestra music with rock music inspired Tankian to explore this blend further. In addition to orchestral music, Imperfect Harmonies takes influences from jazz and electronica.[8]

Touring

A world tour in support of the album began August 7 in Pori.[9] Most shows featured the Flying Cunts of Chaos backed by eight classical players chosen from the city the performance took place in. The Lowlands Festival performance was a notable exception to this rule, where the band was backed by the Metropole Orchestra.[10] As with previous tours, only material from Tankian's solo career was played. Beatus, Reconstructive Demonstrations and Wings of Summer were the only songs from the new album that were never performed.[11]

On September 7 the Imperfect Harmonies tour was postponed until after the release of the album,[12] although the tour never resumed.

Reception

Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
Metacritic(67%)[13]
Review scores
SourceRating
Allmusic[14]
Alternative Press[15]
The A.V. Club(B)[16]
NME[17]
PopMatters[18]
Q
Revolver
Rock Sound[19]
Spin[20]
Sputnikmusic[21]

The album divided critics, some of which praised Tankian's new direction,[14][15] while others criticised it for being too much of a departure.[19][20] Overall, the album received generally favourable reviews,[13] although first week sales figures were notably lower than Elect the Dead.[7][22]

Track listing

All lyrics are written by Serj Tankian; all music is composed by Serj Tankian

UK release
No.TitleLength
1."Disowned Inc."4:07
2."Borders Are..."4:38
3."Deserving?"4:05
4."Beatus"4:41
5."Reconstructive Demonstrations"5:04
6."Electron"3:46
7."Gate 21"2:43
8."Yes, It's Genocide"3:15
9."Peace Be Revenged"3:59
10."Left of Center"3:06
11."Wings of Summer" (featuring Shana Halligan from Bitter:Sweet)4:45
Total length:44:09
Japanese version[23] and Promotional CD2 (Instrumentals)[24]
No.TitleLength
12."Goddamn Trigger"3:20
Total length:47:29
Amazon MP3 (Deluxe version)[25]
No.TitleLength
12."Deserving?" (orchestral)4:07
13."Peace Be Revenged" (orchestral)3:56
Total length:52:12
iTunes (Deluxe version)[26]
No.TitleLength
12."Goddamn Trigger"3:21
13."Deserving?" (orchestral)4:08
14."Peace Be Revenged" (orchestral)3:56
Total length:55:34
Limited edition (Bonus disc)[27]
No.TitleLength
1."Disowned Inc." (orchestral)4:11
2."Borders Are..." (orchestral)4:40
3."Deserving?" (orchestral)4:09
4."Beatus" (orchestral)4:44
5."Reconstructive Demonstrations" (orchestral)5:06
6."Peace Be Revenged" (orchestral)3:56
Total length:26:46
Best Buy (Bonus DVD)[28]
No.TitleLength
1."Empty Walls" (live)6:19
2."Feed Us" (live)4:37
3."Unthinking Majority" (live)3:46
4."Lie Lie Lie" (live)3:18
5."Sky Is Over" (live)2:44
6."Beethoven's Cunt" (live)8:49
Total length:29:33
Promotional CD3 (Orchestral Mixes & Orchestral Instrumentals)[24]
No.TitleLength
1."Disowned Inc." (orchestral)4:07
2."Borders Are" (orchestral)4:38
3."Deserving?" (orchestral)4:05
4."Beatus" (orchestral)4:41
5."Reconstructive Demonstrations" (orchestral)5:04
6."Peace Be Revenged" (orchestral)3:59
7."Goddamn Trigger" (orchestral)3:21
8."Disowned Inc." (orchestral and instrumental)4:07
9."Borders Are" (orchestral and instrumental)4:38
10."Deserving?" (orchestral and instrumental)4:05
11."Beatus" (orchestral and instrumental)4:41
12."Reconstructive Demonstrations" (orchestral and instrumental)5:04
13."Wings of Summer" (orchestral and instrumental)3:59
14."Goddamn Trigger" (orchestral and instrumental)3:21
Total length:59:50

Personnel

All songs written, performed, produced, engineered and orchestrated by Serj Tankian.

  • Vincent Pedulla – additional orchestrations
  • Dan Monti – additional guitars on tracks 2, 6 & 11 and drum and bass engineering on tracks 1–6, 9 & 11
  • Troy Zeigler – live drumming on tracks 1–6, 9 & 11
  • Brain – live drumming on track 10
  • Mario Pagliarulo – live bass on tracks 1–6, 9 & 11
  • Shana Halligan – additional vocals on tracks 4 & 11
  • Ani Maldjian – additional operatic vocals on various songs
  • David Alpay – solo violin on track 11

Charts

Chart performance for Imperfect Harmonies
Chart (2010) Peak
position
Australian Albums (ARIA)[29] 56
Austrian Albums (Ö3 Austria)[30] 13
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders)[31] 80
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Wallonia)[32] 46
Canadian Albums (Billboard)[33] 21
Czech Republic's Top 50 17
Dutch Albums (Album Top 100)[34] 94
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[35] 18
European Top 100 Albums 35
Finnish Albums (Suomen virallinen lista)[36] 14
French Albums (SNEP)[37] 29
Italian Albums (FIMI)[38] 23
Japanese Album Charts (Oricon)[39] 155
New Zealand Albums (RMNZ)[40] 26
Polish Albums (ZPAV)[41] 24
Russian Albums 23
Scottish Albums (OCC)[42] 99
Spanish Albums (PROMUSICAE)[43] 96
Swedish Albums (Sverigetopplistan)[44] 44
Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade)[45] 12
UK Albums (OCC)[46] 86
US Billboard 200[47] 35

References

  1. 1 2 Graff, Gary (July 19, 2010). "Serj Tankian Mixes It Up on 'Imperfect Harmonies' Album". Billboard. Retrieved September 9, 2010.
  2. 1 2 "Serj Tankian: 'Left Of Center' Video Released". Blabbermouth.net. Roadrunner. August 23, 2010. Archived from the original on August 27, 2010. Retrieved September 8, 2010.
  3. ↑ Sciarretto, Amy (September 9, 2010). "Serj Tankian Uses Tree-Free Paper for 'Imperfect Harmonies' Booklet". Noisecreep. AOL Music. Retrieved September 9, 2010.
  4. ↑ Blackout, Cody (July 30, 2010). "New Music: Serj Tankian 'Borders Are'". KROQ-FM. CBS Radio. Archived from the original on March 1, 2012. Retrieved September 9, 2010.
  5. ↑ Neilstein, Vince (July 21, 2010). "Serj Tankian: The MetalSucks Interview". MetalSucks. Retrieved September 9, 2010.
  6. ↑ Toor, Amar (July 1, 2010). "Serj Tankian, 'Left of Center' -- New Song". AOL Radio. AOL. Archived from the original on November 9, 2010. Retrieved September 9, 2010.
  7. 1 2 "BLABBERMOUTH.NET - SERJ TANKIAN's 'Imperfect Harmonies' Cracks U.S. Top 40". Roadrunnerrecords.com. Archived from the original on September 10, 2012. Retrieved February 24, 2012.
  8. 1 2 Peters, Mitchell (August 20, 2010). "System of a Down's Serj Tankian Stays Busy With 'Harmonies'". Billboard. Retrieved September 9, 2010.
  9. ↑ Medrano, Eira (July 4, 2010). "Imperfect Harmonies World Tour Kicks Off August 7 At The Sonisphere Festival | Serj Tankian's Official Website. Get up to date news, tour dates, merchandise and more". Serjtankian.com. Archived from the original on August 15, 2012. Retrieved August 9, 2012.
  10. ↑ "Interview with Solo Artist and System of a Down frontman Serj Tankian « Interviews «". Puregrainaudio.com. September 24, 2010. Archived from the original on December 19, 2013. Retrieved August 9, 2012.
  11. ↑ "Serj Tankian Album Statistics: 2010". setlist.fm. Retrieved August 9, 2012.
  12. ↑ "Imperfect Harmonies Tour Postponed | Serj Tankian's Official Website. Get up to date news, tour dates, merchandise and more". Serjtankian.com. Archived from the original on August 6, 2012. Retrieved August 9, 2012.
  13. 1 2 "Imperfect Harmonies". Metacritic. Retrieved August 9, 2012.
  14. 1 2 Jurek, Thom (September 20, 2010). "Imperfect Harmonies - Serj Tankian : Songs, Reviews, Credits, Awards". AllMusic. Retrieved August 9, 2012.
  15. 1 2 "Serj Tankian - Imperfect Harmonies". Alternative Press. Retrieved August 9, 2012.
  16. ↑ "Serj Tankian: Imperfect Harmonies". The A.V. Club. Retrieved August 9, 2012.
  17. ↑ "Album Reviews - Album Review: Serj Tankian - Imperfect Harmonies (Serjical Strike)". NME. Retrieved August 9, 2012.
  18. ↑ Colgan, Chris (October 7, 2010). "Serj Tankian: Imperfect Harmonies". PopMatters. Retrieved July 10, 2012.
  19. 1 2 "Serj Tankian - Imperfect Harmonies". Rock Sound. Archived from the original on September 10, 2012. Retrieved August 9, 2012.
  20. 1 2 "Serj Tankian, 'Imperfect Harmonies' (Serjical Strike/Reprise)". Spin.
  21. ↑ "Serj Tankian - Imperfect harmonies (staff review)". Sputnikmusic. Retrieved August 9, 2012.
  22. ↑ "Blabbermouth.Net - Serj Tankian, Rob Zombie, Soilwork, Exodus, Skindred First-Week Sales Revealed". Roadrunnerrecords.com. Archived from the original on November 2, 2007. Retrieved February 14, 2012.
  23. ↑ "Imperfect Harmonies Serj Tankian [CD]". Cdjapan.co.jp. Retrieved August 9, 2012.
  24. 1 2 "Serj Tankian Imperfect Harmonies USA Promo TRIPLE CD (520844)". Eil.com. Retrieved February 24, 2012.
  25. ↑ "Imperfect Harmonies (Deluxe): Serj Tankian: MP3 Downloads". Retrieved February 24, 2012.
  26. ↑ iTunes. "Imperfect Harmonies (Deluxe Version)". Retrieved September 12, 2010.
  27. ↑ "Serj Tankian - Serj Tankian Home page". Serj Tankian. Archived from the original on October 24, 2010. Retrieved August 9, 2012.
  28. ↑ "Imperfect Harmonies (Best Buy Exclusive) - CD - Tankian,Serj". Bestbuy.com. September 21, 2010. Retrieved February 24, 2012.
  29. ↑ Ryan, Gavin (2011). Australia's Music Charts 1988–2010 (PDF ed.). Mt Martha, Victoria, Australia: Moonlight Publishing. p. 275.
  30. ↑ "Serj Tankian - Imperfect Harmony" (in German). Hung Medien. Retrieved October 31, 2021.
  31. ↑ "Serj Tankian - Imperfect Harmony" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved October 31, 2021.
  32. ↑ "Serj Tankian - Imperfect Harmony" (in French). Hung Medien. Retrieved October 31, 2021.
  33. ↑ "Serj Tankian Chart History (Canadian Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved October 31, 2021.
  34. ↑ "Serj Tankian - Imperfect Harmonies" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved October 31, 2021.
  35. ↑ "Offizielle Deutsche Charts" (in German). offiziellecharts.de. Retrieved October 31, 2021.
  36. ↑ "Serj Tankian - Imperfect Harmonies". Hung Medien. Retrieved October 31, 2021.
  37. ↑ "Serj Tankian - Imperfect Harmonies" (in French). Hung Medien. Retrieved October 31, 2021.
  38. ↑ "Serj Tankian - Imperfect Harmonies". Hung Medien. Retrieved October 31, 2021.
  39. ↑ "インパーフェクト・ハーモニーズ | サージ タンキアン" (in Japanese). Oricon. Retrieved October 31, 2021.
  40. ↑ "Serj Tankian - Imperfect Harmonies". Hung Medien. Retrieved October 31, 2021.
  41. ↑ "OLiS: sales for the period 27.09.2010 - 03.10.2010". OLiS. Retrieved August 9, 2012.
  42. ↑ "Official Scottish Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved October 31, 2021.
  43. ↑ "Serj Tankian - Imperfect Harmonies". Hung Medien. Retrieved October 31, 2021.
  44. ↑ "Serj Tankian - Imperfect Harmonies". Hung Medien. Retrieved October 31, 2021.
  45. ↑ "Serj Tankian - Imperfect Harmonies". Hung Medien. Retrieved October 31, 2021.
  46. ↑ "Serj Tankian | full Chart History". Official Charts Company. Retrieved October 31, 2021.
  47. ↑ "Serj Tankian Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved October 31, 2021.
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