I-E-A-I-A-I-O
Encyclopedia
"I-E-A-I-A-I-O" is a song by the band System of a Down
from the Steal This Album!
record.
/Steal This Album!
recording sessions, the song made its first studio appearance. It was leaked onto the internet, labelled "Why?", along with several other songs under the unofficial name Toxicity II. The most notable difference between this mix and the final is that the song contains the other band members' vocals. The first make of the song was played during their Las Vegas show in 2000 and was named K.I.T.T.
, being based on the Knight Rider theme.
The song is characterized by exceptionally fast-spoken verses, akin to Tongue-twister
s, including, "Peter's pecker picked another pickle-bearing pussy pepper", "Meeting John Dale Jr., winked an eye and point a finger", "A former cop, undercover, just got shot, now recovered" and "Fighting crime with a partner, Lois Lane
, Jimmy Carter
." The chorus is an abstract chanting of the title.
In addition, the song contains a brief excursion into a stylized version of the theme from the television show Knight Rider.
This is also the only song that drummer John Dolmayan
sings in. He sings the chorus of I-E-A-I-A-I-O along with Shavo, Serj, and Daron. This is also the only System song that John has a writing credit.
I-E-A-I-A-I-O is a chant used by the Ku Klux Klan. As the song includes the lines 'As we light up the sky', this could be in reference to the KKK's ritual of setting fire to crosses at night.
Another interpretation is that the song sprung from a horrible Scrabble
rack.
In an unreleased version of the song, titled "Why" or "4th of July", at the end, the lyrics state
"I E A I A I O,
I E A I A I O, Why,
And we light up the sky,
I E A I A I O,
I E A I A I O, Why,
On the fourth of July."
This version was released in an unofficial album called Toxicity II, a collection of medium-quality MP3s of unfinished System Of A Down songs, that found its way onto the Internet.
System of a Down
System of a Down, also known by the acronym SOAD and often shortened to System, is a rock band from Southern California. The band was formed in 1994. It consists of Serj Tankian , Daron Malakian , Shavo Odadjian and John Dolmayan...
from the Steal This Album!
Steal This Album!
Steal This Album! is the third studio album by American heavy metal band System of a Down, released on November 26, 2002, on American Recordings...
record.
General information
During the ToxicityToxicity (album)
Toxicity is the second album by American heavy metal band System of a Down. Produced by Rick Rubin, Toxicity was released on September 4, 2001 by American Recordings, debuting at #1 on both the United States, with 220,000 copies, and #1 on the Canadian charts...
/Steal This Album!
Steal This Album!
Steal This Album! is the third studio album by American heavy metal band System of a Down, released on November 26, 2002, on American Recordings...
recording sessions, the song made its first studio appearance. It was leaked onto the internet, labelled "Why?", along with several other songs under the unofficial name Toxicity II. The most notable difference between this mix and the final is that the song contains the other band members' vocals. The first make of the song was played during their Las Vegas show in 2000 and was named K.I.T.T.
KITT
KITT is the short name of two fictional characters from the adventure TV series Knight Rider. While having the same acronym, the KITTs are two different entities: one known as the Knight Industries Two Thousand, which appeared in the original TV series Knight Rider, and the other as the Knight...
, being based on the Knight Rider theme.
The song is characterized by exceptionally fast-spoken verses, akin to Tongue-twister
Tongue-twister
A tongue-twister is a phrase that is designed to be difficult to articulate properly, and can be used as a type of spoken word game. Some tongue-twisters produce results which are humorous when they are mispronounced, while others simply rely on the confusion and mistakes of the speaker for their...
s, including, "Peter's pecker picked another pickle-bearing pussy pepper", "Meeting John Dale Jr., winked an eye and point a finger", "A former cop, undercover, just got shot, now recovered" and "Fighting crime with a partner, Lois Lane
Lois Lane
Lois Lane is a fictional character, the primary love interest of Superman in the comic books of DC Comics. Created by writer Jerry Siegel and artist Joe Shuster, she first appeared in Action Comics #1 ....
, Jimmy Carter
Jimmy Carter
James Earl "Jimmy" Carter, Jr. is an American politician who served as the 39th President of the United States and was the recipient of the 2002 Nobel Peace Prize, the only U.S. President to have received the Prize after leaving office...
." The chorus is an abstract chanting of the title.
In addition, the song contains a brief excursion into a stylized version of the theme from the television show Knight Rider.
This is also the only song that drummer John Dolmayan
John Dolmayan
John William Dolmayan is a Lebanese-born Armenian-American songwriter and drummer. He is best known as the drummer of System of a Down. Dolmayan is also the drummer for the band Scars on Broadway and Indicator....
sings in. He sings the chorus of I-E-A-I-A-I-O along with Shavo, Serj, and Daron. This is also the only System song that John has a writing credit.
Interpretation
Many believe that the vowels IEAIAIO are the word IDEALIZATION without the consonants. It could also have to do with Aristotelean logic, in which a sentence can be labeled an A, E, I or an O sentence (depending on the quality and quantity of the sentence). AH, A, E, O, and OO are also known as the "singing vowels".I-E-A-I-A-I-O is a chant used by the Ku Klux Klan. As the song includes the lines 'As we light up the sky', this could be in reference to the KKK's ritual of setting fire to crosses at night.
Another interpretation is that the song sprung from a horrible Scrabble
Scrabble
Scrabble is a word game in which two to four players score points by forming words from individual lettered tiles on a game board marked with a 15-by-15 grid. The words are formed across and down in crossword fashion and must appear in a standard dictionary. Official reference works provide a list...
rack.
In an unreleased version of the song, titled "Why" or "4th of July", at the end, the lyrics state
"I E A I A I O,
I E A I A I O, Why,
And we light up the sky,
I E A I A I O,
I E A I A I O, Why,
On the fourth of July."
This version was released in an unofficial album called Toxicity II, a collection of medium-quality MP3s of unfinished System Of A Down songs, that found its way onto the Internet.