System of a Down: Chop Suey Meaning

Song Released: 2001

Chop Suey Lyrics

(Mumbles)
We're Rolling Suicide

Wake up(wake up)
Grab a brush and put a little makeup
Hide the scars to fade away the shakeup
Why’d you leave the keys upon the table?
Here you go create another fable
You wanted to
Grab a brush...

1. anonymous

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   Sep 25th 2007 !⃝

   Firstly, this is obviously NOT about some girl being abused by a husband/boyfriend/father... geez, just cause its says "makeup" doesn't instantly classify it as being about females....
   
   This song could easily be about the dudes brother being abused, and it probably has 2 meanings, 1 about his personal issue, and at the same time, about worldwide issues, and historical issues. Quite a few of their songs are like that.
   And that Armenian Genocide? They had a whole song about that, "P.L.U.C.K"
2. anonymous

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   Sep 17th 2007 !⃝

   The basis of this song is dedicated to Civilians being caught in the crossfire of wars and confrentations. At the beginning of the song, if you listen close, you can hear, "Rolling suicide." Then the music starts. This is in reference to suicide bombers and their attack on the civilians.
   A lot of the people on here put, "When angels deserve to die," as a basis for their interpritation. While respecting their thoughts on the matter, you have to take the verse as a whole, not just a piece at a time for interpritation. It is like the Bible. You have to use the context that it is given in. The verse says, "I cry, when angels deserve to die." Thus backing up the helpless civilians being caught in the crossfire.
   At another part of the song, SOAD sings, "Father into your hands I commend my sprit, father into you hand [...] Why have you forsaken me [..]" This is the main part of the song that backs up my interpritation. If you think actually look at it most of the people who do suicide bombings are extreamist wanting to go to heaven or where ever they believe. They believe, in giving your life up for Allah you will be rewarded with eternal life, heaven, ladies, and what not.
3. anonymous

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   Sep 5th 2007 !⃝

   I think the whole song is comparing "martyrdom" to "suicide" such as suicide pilots, people like joan of arc, or most famously, Jesus Christ. Using biblical references to reflect that, the song challenges dying for your religious beleifs, thus being an "angel" who deserves to die. In the bible "father into your..." goes AFTER "why have you.." the song reverses the order of those two phrases to suggest that perhaps you may be giving your spirit at first, but in the end, you are forsaken after all.
4. anonymous

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   Sep 5th 2007 !⃝

   This song is about a mixture of things as Serj has a very poetic and complicated soul. He is relating the Armenian genocide to Jesus dying on the cross and kind of tying them togather.
   
   I think "Why'd you leave the keys up on the table." is a question to Jesus, wondering why he gave himself up so suddenly. Leaving the keys on the table is a dramatic way of showing how unfinished his mortal life was.
   
   "Father into your hads I commend my spirit. Why have you forsaken me." are the words that Jesus called to the heavens as he was on the cross.
   
   "I cry when angels deserve to die." is the best tyiing line which is why they put it in the chorus. Both in Jesus's sacrifice and in the Armenian Genocide many innocents were killed, and Serj is saddened by this greatly. When he says "Trust in my self righteous suicide" he is voicing Jesus's hopes that his followers will believe that he is doing the right thing in offering himself to the Romans that our sins are forgiven and to trust that he will come back. In the plural use of angel "When ANGELS deserve to die." is him portraying his feelings about all those lost in the genocide.
5. anonymous

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   Sep 1st 2007 !⃝

   I think that most songs can have more than one interpretation- this is the purpose of poetry, to let everyone find their meanings.
   
   To me I just heard the song yesterday for the first time and it somehow attracted me, reflecting my own feelings.
   
   I really love the interpretation of Submitted by: anonymous
   Added: 2006-12-31 21:36:07, that it reflects the feelings of a desperate hurt person, whether over physical abuse, or injustice in the world.
   
   This person is on the verge of suicide and is reaching out in despair to God "Into your hands I commend my spirit", maybe finding parallels with Jesus, if the person feels he/she does not deserve to die, but is driven to it.
   
   I know confusing, but still wanted to thank Submitted by: anonymous Added: 2006-12-31 21:36:07 for interpretation.
6. anonymous

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   Aug 17th 2007 !⃝

   ATTENTION I FOUND THIS ON ANOTHER FORUM THIS IS NOT MINE
   
   The meaning of Chop Suey!...
   Hi! I've finally got round to reading an
   article that a magazine published on SOAD a
   while ago, in which there is a quote from
   Daron explaining the meaning behind
   "Chop Suey!". I find this
   pretty interesting, because while I've
   always loved the lyrics for their sheer
   eeriness, I've never really been able to
   interpret or understand them.
   
   Daron says: "(Chop Suey) is about how
   people view death. For example, if I died of
   a drug overdose everyone would say I deserved
   to die because I took drugs. Hence the line
   '...angels deserve to die'. It's not
   a song that's anti or for anything, but
   more of an observation or an attempt to
   capture these strange feelings people
   have."
   
   And suddenly it all makes sense!
7. YourFan

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   Aug 2nd 2007 !⃝

   I'm pretty sure it's a song about suicide but Daron Malakian said this in an interview.
   
   "The song is about how when people die, they will be regarded differently depending on the way they pass. Like, if I were to die from a drug overdose, everyone would say I deserved it because I abused drugs, hence the line 'Angels deserve to die'."

   This interpretation has been marked as poor. view anyway
8. anonymous

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   Jul 13th 2007 !⃝

   The beginning of the song depicts morning with someone who has been abused, battered by her husband or boyfriend
   "Grab a brush and put a little make up
   Hide the scars to fade away the shakeup"
   Put on some make up so you can hide the fact that she's been abused
   "Oh here we go create another fable, You wanted to"
   Create a story to cover up the event
   "I cry when angels deserve to die"
   She's an angel, but she deserves to die for allowing this to happen to her, striking an emotional key in the musician and any other moral human being with self control.
   
   I Don't think jesus was an angel.. So his self righteous suicide might not fit the description, I'm not sure though.
9. anonymous

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   Jul 11th 2007 !⃝

   It's amazing how much religion you can find in SOAD's lyrics. Even though I wouldn't classify them as 'good christians' its pretty cool that they put their views out there about everything they personally believe in.

   This interpretation has been marked as poor. view anyway
10. anonymous

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    Jul 2nd 2007 !⃝

    The subject of this song is not "God".
    
    This song is about the feelings of a religious woman in an abusive relationship.
    
    "Wake up,Grab a brush and put a little makeup... Hide the scars to fade away the shakeup, why'd you leave the keys upon the table, here you go create another fable."
    
    This is the antagonist (abusive boyfriend/husband). Quite obviously, this is set in modern times. The man is bluntly telling his girlfriend to get dressed, hide her scars given to her. He even gets mad at her for doing simple things like leaving keys on the table. Then he says she makes up some BS (fable).
    
    She's a person who can think for herself.
    Why did she do all of that? Because she 'Wanted to".
    "Why'd you leave the keys upon the table,
    You wanted to"
    
    In the excerpt below, it's spoken in the womans perspective.
    "I don't think you trust,
    In, my, self righteous suicide,
    I, cry, when angels deserve to die, Die,
    
    Interpretation: Plainly, she feels as though the conditions she lives in and her life is crap, and this is grounds for a 'self righteous suicide'. She is sad when innocent (angels) people, like herself, are abused (deserve to die).
    
    Finally...
    "Father, Father, Father, Father,
    Father/ Into your hands/I/commend my spirit"
    
    Interpretation: She is pleading to God "Father..." and is letting God do His bidding with her spirit, most likely because she has given up.
    
    "Why have you forsaken me..."
    Interpretation: Don't think this is Jesus saying this just because Jesus probably did say it way back. The abused woman in this song is simply questioning God why He has forsaken her to live in such an abusive relationship with no hope.
    
    Also, you will notice the music change and tone of voice change between the two personas speaking.
    "WHYD U PUT THE KEYS UPON THE TABLE!" Angry boyfriend
    "I don't think you trust...." Innocent girl
    
    Long entry, but worth the enlightenment. Thank you.

    This interpretation has been marked as poor. view anyway
11. anonymous

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    Jul 1st 2007 !⃝

    Chop Suey is about life. Since it means chopped meat it can be metaphor for that all life is a chaos and were just pieces of meat in a stew. The lines with the wake up, make up, key, fable thing is about a man/woman tired of life and will find pace in a suicide. And he/she have lost the faith in god, and maybe even hating god.

    This interpretation has been marked as poor. view anyway
12. anonymous

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    Jun 15th 2007 !⃝

    I think the song on a whole is talking on how SOAD thought Jesus was a good man,a role model, maybe even the Son of God, but along with that they believe that many Bible stories are just stories "...there you go creating another fable".
    SOAD could be telling how Jesus was preparing himself to go the cross in,"Wake up, grab a brush and put on a little make up, hide the scars....". "Why'd you leave the keys up on the table,(you wanted to)" is Jesus's decision to except the cross. Then "Why have you forsaken me" and "Father, into your hands I commend my spirit" are direct words from the Jesus pleading to God to use another way to save the world, but then excepting his fate with a good heart.
    I also think they're leaving it up to you to decide if Jesus was the Son of God or not in the chorus "...SELF-RIGHTEOUS SUICIDE...when angels DESERVE to die". Whichever SOAD really believes, I think they are sad that such an influential man was killed(for which I believe there is no reason other than it was the only way to save the world from sin) from the words,"I cry when angels deserve to die...". That's what I think the words mean.
13. anonymous

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    May 24th 2007 !⃝

    I think this song is about child suicide bombings......"wake up""grab a brush and put a little makeup". How they would disguise the kid to look like someone else and strap the bomb to their body....... and send them off to kill how ever many people

    This interpretation has been marked as poor. view anyway
14. borbas001

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    May 21st 2007 !⃝

    I agree this song talks about suicide. I actually think this song goes to his father. He thinks of committing suicide because his father never helped him or did anything that's why he cries when angels deserve to die

    This interpretation has been marked as poor. view anyway
15. anonymous

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    May 16th 2007 !⃝

    Chop Suey technically means "Bits of shit."

    This interpretation has been marked as poor. view anyway

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