Published on Sep 30, 2002
This 1992 debut must be some kind of watershed in rock history,
giving the world its first glimpse of this positively powerful
musical force. Armed with incendiary left-wing political vitriol,
funky rhythms, and groundbreaking guitar pyrotechnics, Rage Against
The Machine set out not just as a rock band, but also as the
embodiment of a message with an ambitious mission to change the
world. Yes, singer Zach de la Rocha, guitarist Tom Morello, drummer
Brad Wilk, and bassist Tim Commerford are mad as hell, and they’re
not going to take it anymore (as if you didn’t already guess that
by the band’s name!).
Seems like they came crashing onto the scene at the right time,
during a period in the early 90’s when anger and pessimism became
the dominant themes in rock music. They are intensely left-wing, if
not communist, and all of their songs deal with political issues
such as the evils of racism, capitalism, imperialism of the west,
environmental causes, media propaganda, and just about anything
that they feel is worth protesting. Just look at that burning
Buddhist monk!
The music is very impressive all the way through…they’re one
of those rare bands that has an unmistakably unique sound, and
that’s pretty hard to achieve these days. Rap metal may have been
born via Aerosmith and Run DMC’s collaboration or with the early
hit singles of the Beastie Boys, but as far as I know, Rage Against
The Machine was the first band to make that exclusively their
style, and I think most people would agree that nobody has done it
better. Just imagine a really solid rhythm section that shows more
than a slight nod to funk, screamed rapped vocals, and a wildly
inventive guitar slinger (often singled out as the only guitarist
to come out of the 90’s that’s worth mentioning as having been
innovative) who plays pseudo 70’s hard rock/metal riffs, and solos
that sound more like computer generated effects than like an actual
guitar!
The wildly unorthodox solos/effects (if you could even call them
that) are completely fascinating little beeping noises and squeaky
scales that even manage to be melodic. And Morello continuously
pumps them out effortlessly, each surprisingly distinct from one
another. You have to hear it to believe it, and I think most people
have, because Rage is a pretty popular band. Seems like nobody
seems to know how he does his trick, and wisely nobody has even
attempted to copy him yet.
I just can’t stop gushing over guitar players with a unique
style that actually does something interesting. Even his more
conventional sounding clangy 70’s Led Zep/Sabbath inspired
thunderous riffs are amazingly catchy…I basically think that Tom
Morello’s brilliant guitar playing is the one indispensible feature
of this band…without him the music would be decidedly average.
The bassist and drummer are definitely no slouches however, doing a
lot of different things on their own and blending in superbly with
the guitar parts.
There’s very little I could complain about with the music. As
great as the album is (destined to be a hard rock classic) with its
rousing anthems of protest against all things cruel and unjust,
there simply isn’t enough diversity to reach that upper echelon.
Their style is well developed, but they stick to the same formula
on each song. As a result, there are a few parts here and there
where the riffs are too similar to other ones, and some of the
choruses are a bit bland. Zach’s yelled raps rarely show even a
hint of melodicism, or even volume change, but I guess that’s why
it’s called rapping and not singing, eh?
I’ve never liked rap, but when the band’s music is this good I
can make an exception. But, just like the vocals, the band as a
whole seems to only know one gear, and that’s in your face, full
out. I don’t mean that the music is fast, because it’s all
mid-tempo with a heavy groove. I guess they think that the only way
to convince teenagers to rise up and revolt against the established
system is to play explosive, hard hitting music that never lets up,
whipping susceptible minds into an adrenalized frenzy to unite
against the right! Whatever. That’s all fine and dandy when trying
to convey a sense of urgency and danger, especially when done as
well as these guys do it, but it means that the music isn’t
particularly layered and becomes a bit too predictable.
Don’t let that dissuade you though…it’s still a marvelous
album that has had a huge impact on rock in the decade since its
release. How can you go wrong with the marvelous tracks
“Bombtrack”, “Know Your Enemy”, and particularly the hit club
favourite “Killing In The Name Of” with its infectious chorus of
“Fuck you, I won’t do what you tell me!” repeated ad nauseam ever
louder until it explodes! Hmmm, I wonder how many of those drunk
frat boys and airhead bitches that go crazy dancing to any of these
songs even realize what the lyrics are about…
Regardless of whether or not you agree with their stance on
various issues, they deliver their message with a conviction and
ferocity that’s impossible to ignore…their intensity and passion
for what they believe in should impress just about anyone. I
personally don’t agree with just about everything they stand for,
but I certainly acknowledge that they consistently write highly
intelligent lyrics that at least make people think about some of
the more serious things going on in the world, and not just cars,
beer, and pussy. There are very few bands that do that, and they
seem to genuinely promote activism to make the world a better place
from their point of view. Although they are now known as Audioslave
(with ex-Soundgarden frontman Chris Cornell as their new vocalist),
the message promoted by
Rage Against The Machine is still as relevant today as it
was at the time of its release, and that’s a quality that you
simply have to respect, if nothing else.
Or, is it all a calculated ploy to gain a large following
through their controversial media attention-friendly image in order
to exploit the huge number of naturally rebellious youth that will
gravitate towards them by cashing in on the resulting record sales?
Despite their feigned disgust of corporate greed, they were on a
major label ya know…