Rage Against the Machine

Zack de la Rocha

Vocals

Tom Morello

Guitar

Tim Commerford

Bass

Brad Wilk

Drums

Formed: 1991
Location: Los Angeles, California, USA
Genre: Metal, Rap Metal
Years Active: 1991 - 2000; 2007 - 2011; 2019 - 2024
Meaning of the Name: Be angry at the government.
Way of Working: Collaborative
Related: Audioslave, Prophets of Rage
Labels: Epic (Sony)

Essential Releases

Rage Against the Machine (1992)

Anthemic and deeply emotional guitar music.

Evil Empire (1996)

A sonic exploration of anxiety and technology.

The Battle of
Los Angeles (1999)

The leading band of indie rock unexpectedly transitioned into icy electronica.

Rage Against the Machine (RATM) was a shotgun of a band, devastating in short bursts. Indeed, their macho aggression manifested in their personal interactions as well as on stage; the group nearly split before releasing their second album due to alleged infighting in the band. If cooler heads wouldn't have prevailed, then their time together would have lasted barely a few years.

As idealistic, angry young men who wanted to make the world a better place, they championed the spirited rap metal as a genre in its own right, using it as a tool to burn down the old political system without knowing what to build in its place.

Some sort of socialist utopia, I'm sure. Alas, amidst the imagery of self-immolating Buddhist monks, as seen on the cover of their self-titled debut (1992), and raids on the New York stock exchange, from the music video for 'Sleep Now In the Fire' (1999), was a worldview that was behind the times. An unsurprising state of affairs given that their beloved Karl Marx published Das Kapital in 1867.

The group's second album, Evil Empire (1996), takes its name from a speech given by Ronald Reagan... in 1983. Of course Reagan was talking about the Soviets, and RATM inverted the phrase to refer to the United States. A modern equivalent would be to title a record made today based on events during the Obama administration of 2012 — protest music as historical record. Which is a form of hindsight-beneficient analysis that can masquerade as prescient commentary.

Most certainly, all but the most deluded of listeners are aware that RATM only advocate for political violence as a symbolic way to express their ideas with music, despite the noisy rhetoric of tracks like 'Down Rodeo': 'I'm rollin' down Rodeo with a shotgun. These people ain't seen a brown skin man since their grandparents bought one.' As a matter of legal record, Zack de la Rocha hasn't to date harmed another person with a shotgun.

Although RATM expressed disgust when a mob of ordinary citizens stormed Capitol Hill in 2021, they have used images of the revolutionary Che Guevara in their promotional materials, a man who used political violence to overthrow the government of Bolivia.

Cover art for the single 'Bombtrack' featuring the image of Che Guevara.

Furthermore, regarding the band's anti-capitalist stance, the public can buy an official RATM on their website for the low, low price of £75! Get them while you can! It's easy to scoff at a revolutionary communist band who profit from expensive merch sold on their website. It's also, however, important to remember that their Faustian plot allowed them to connect with global audiences and pose valid questions about governmental spending priorities in an accessible way: "weapons not food, not homes, not shoes." (from 'Bulls on Parade')

However, after the former Soviet Union collapsed in 1991, the US positioned itself as a unipolar force dominating international politics with a universally acknowledged moral right. George Bush referred to the resulting balance of power as the New World Order. Rage Against the Machine unleashed their riposte as an incendiary debut album in 1992.

A sure-fire way to elicit an emotional response from a generation of young people is to tell them that they can't challenge the status quo. Such a statement invites opposition, and Rage Against the Machine were all too happy to oblige, resurrecting the established language of the enemy to continue the fight. Only this time, music masqueraded as political philosophy; lyrics took the place of bullets.

An interesting wrinkle in the cultural context of RATM is in the extent that their protest music differed from that of previous generations. They raised the intensity threshold several hundred notches. In the '60s, for example, during the Vietnam War, the gentle protest music was about peace. RATM were active at a time of peace and made music that sounded like war. On their 10-track debut album, half the songs use words with violent connotations: 'Bombtrack'; 'Killing in the Name'; 'Bullet in the Head'; 'Fistful of Steel'; 'Township Rebellion'.

It's ironic that the band used their music as a delivery system for their revolutionary political beliefs when in reality the truly revolutionary thing about them was their music. As a hybrid of metal, hip hop, and hardcore punk they produced a relentless barrage of hard drums and innovative guitar work that could easily be mistaken for a DJ scratching.

When Zack de la Rocha prowled the stage with menacing intent at the Pinkpop Festival in 1993, it's clear at a glance that he believed every word he said. The driving, abrasive sounds of metal combined with his anarchic vocals to hammer (and sickle) home a message of urgent action. It's primal ferocity made it almost impossible to ignore, and, deep down, this was the truly revolutionary act: not the ideology they chanted, but the unmatched power of a sound that forced the world to pay attention.

Skills

*This is a work in progress. Values are subjective.

Emotional Impact

i Does it connect with the heart? What does it make you feel and how much of it?

100

Mental Impact

i Does it connect with the head? Social issues, interesting observations, clever lyrics, similies etc.

60

Originality

i Are they unique? Did they break new ground, use new techniques or create new genres.

95

Artistry

i Using creativity and imagination to present themselves in a unique way. Example, Wu-Tang Clan as Shaolin and Marvel characters etc.

90

Authenticity

i Do they really mean what they say? Is it autobiographical, personal?

60

Live

i Stage presence, working the crowd, performance. Miming, forgetting lyrics reduce this.

95

Production

i Studio techniques. More important for electronic music including hip hop.

70

Musicianship

i Their ability to play individually and as a group. Technical skills. DJing. Freestyling for hip hop.

90

Rapping

i Technical attributes.

70

Songwriting

i Storytelling. Cohesive themes. Is the song about something? Stan by Eminem is an example of excellent songwriting.

85

Danceability

i Does it make you move? Do you tap your foot, nod your head or move your whole body?

85

Fun

i Is listening to it a good time? Are the lyrics funny? Depressing themes lowers value.

60

Consistency

i Have they put out good music across their careers. Two good albums and 5 band ones will reduce this value.

85

Range

i Fast, slow, ballads, party jams. Do they go beyond their own genre?

40

Cool

i Laid-back, icy detachment, unflustered.

40

Charisma

i Factors include appearance, force of personality. Elvis making people faint etc.

85

Commercial & Critical Success

Awards >>>

• Grammy Award WINNER! x2
• Grammy Award Nomininee x5

Certifications >>>

• Rage Against the Machine - Platinum in the USA, Australia, Germany, Canada, France & the UK; Gold in Germany
• Evil Empire - Platinum in the USA & Canada; Gold in the UK, France & Australia
• The Battle of Los Angeles - Platinum in the USA, Canada & Australia; Gold in the UK & Japan
• Renegades - Platinum in the USA & Australia; Gold in the UK

Charts >>>

• Evil Empire - Number 1 in the USA; Number 2 in Australia & Germany; Number 4 in Canada & the UK
• The Battle of Los Angeles - Number 1 in the USA & Canada; Number 2 in Australia

Critics >>>

• Rolling Stone - Rage Against the Machine - The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time (2020): 221st
• Rolling Stone - Rage Against the Machine - The 100 Greatest Metal Albums of All Time: 24th
• Rolling Stone - The Battle of Los Angeles - The Best Albums of 1999: 1st
• Time - The Battle of Los Angeles - The Best Albums of 1999: 1st

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