Rage Against the Machine contributed to the profits of an exploitative, billion dollar industry. While their lyrics might be inspiring, I'm all too suspicious of their actual motives. I prefer Tom Gabel's and Gil Scott-Heron's poetic styles than de la Rocha's, anyway.

People's "political" bands these days are so crappy, I mean Green Day aren't exactly the first place you look for grand world opinions and System of a Down are pretty nuts.

I really think that because most music is just rehashed or commercial pap, we've lost some of the spirit we once had as a progressive race. Music has influenced many a generation, and has been a driving force behind many a movement in the background.

Rage Against the Machine were one of the most outspoken and provocative bands of their time.

You'll probably have heard this song in the Matrix(Wake Up):

Come on, although ya try to discredit
Ya still never read it
The needle, I'll thread it
Radically poetic
Standin' with the fury that they had in '66
And like E-Double I'm mad
Still knee-deep in the system's spit
Hoover, he was a body remover
I'll give ya a dose
But it can never come close
To the rage built up inside of me
Fist in the air, in the land of hypocrisy

Movements come and movements go
Leaders speak, movements cease
When their heads are flown
'Cause all these punks
Got bullets in their heads
Departments of police, the judges, the feds
Networks at work, keepin' people calm
You know they went after King
When he spoke out on Vietnam
He turned the power to the have-nots
And then came the shot

Yeah!
Yeah, back in this...
Wit' poetry, my mind I flex
Flip like Wilson, vocals never lackin' dat finesse
Whadda I got to, whadda I got to do to wake ya up
To shake ya up, to break the structure up
'Cause blood still flows in the gutter
I'm like takin' photos
Mad boy kicks open the shutter
Set the groove
Then stick and move like I was Cassius
Rep the stutter step
Then bomb a left upon the fascists
Yea, the several federal men
Who pulled schemes on the dream
And put it to an end
Ya better beware
Of retribution with mind war
20/20 visions and murals with metaphors
Networks at work, keepin' people calm
Ya know they murdered X
And tried to blame it on Islam
He turned the power to the have-nots
And then came the shot

Uggh!
What was the price on his head?
What was the price on his head!


I think I heard a shot
I think I heard a shot
I think I heard a shot
I think I heard a shot
I think I heard a shot
I think I heard, I think I heard a shot

'He may be a real contender for this position should he
abandon his supposed obediance to white liberal doctrine
of non-violence...and embrace black nationalism'
'Through counter-intelligence it should be possible to
pinpoint potential trouble-makers... and neutralize them.
Through counter-intelligence it should be possible to
pinpoint potential trouble-makers... and neutralize them
and neutralize them, and neutralize them, and neutralize them'

Wake up! Wake up! Wake up! Wake up!
Wake up! Wake up! Wake up! Wake up!

How long? Not long, cause what you reap is what you sow


They were pretty great. I'd love to see their reaction to some of the ridiculous Ad Hominem style attack the people not the message rubbish that "Political" music gets these days.

I think this is an unfair judgement, how else were they going to spread their message through music? They had to be a relatively big band, and they were never *That* big until Tony Hawk's 2 was released and everyone heard Guerilla Radio.

It's called "playing the system". Would it have been better if they did nothing at all? Back when they were still going, they used to have an "activism" list of all the things they were involved in. They were a band that really did follow up on their message.

Uh, Evil Empire debuted at number one on the charts when it came out in '96, and won a couple Grammies too. They were definitely well-marketed long before THPS 1 hit the drawing boards.

They didn't play the system, because in the end, Sony wins. They maintain a giant profit off these Maoist clowns, and RATM has very little to gain from it. Bands signed to major labels don't make all that much physical money anyway!

It would be better if they could do more than speak about their ideals. Y'know, actually live them. Regardless of whatever message they broadcasted, through their business actions, they supported globalist corporate culture in the most.

There are many independent record labels who receive international distrubution. Fugazi, one of the most popular groups to come out 90s alternative rock, self-produced and directly controlled their record distrobution and did all of their own work.

There was no need for Rage Against the Machine to make money for Sony Corporation. None at all. Rage Against the Machine is nothing more than grossly marketed rebellion in my book, and there's little to do that could change my opinion.

Zach de la Rocha also writes his own lyrics. In my book that's worth a lot in these days. Most rappers/R&B singers now-a-days have somebody else write lyrics for them and they just take the credit.

Even if you guys don't like Rage you've got to admit they were talented.

I'm listening to Bulls on Parade right now

I think that the lyrics are based on the singers experiences in life, though.

And so once again
My dear Johnny my dear friend
And so once again you are fightin' us all
And when I ask you why
You raise your sticks and cry, and I fall
Oh, my friend
How did you come
To trade the fiddle for the drum

You say I have turned
Like the enemies you've earned
But I can remember
All the good things you are
And so I ask you please
Can I help you find the peace and the star
Oh, my friend
What time is this
To trade the handshake for the fist

And so once again
Oh, America my friend
And so once again
You are fighting us all
And when we ask you why
You raise your sticks and cry and we fall
Oh, my friend
How did you come
To trade the fiddle for the drum

You say we have turned
Like the enemies you've earned
But we can remember
All the good things you are
And so we ask you please
Can we help you find the peace and the star
Oh my friend
We have all come
To fear the beating of your drum

Superstition taking all of us for a ride
Mines overtaken by the signs of the Right
The bombs are falling overhead with no sight
While you are talking all detached, so tell us

Where you going
To the bottom
Do you hear us
We are rotting

We're going down in a spiral to the ground

No one, no one's gonna save us now
Ceremonies have killed religions for they provide
The masked comforts to delusionals, they're all in fright
The true believer's head was bathed in sunlight
While you are walking all detached, so tell us

Where you going
To the bottom
Do you hear us
We are rotting

We're going down in a spiral to the ground
No one, no one's gonna save us now
Not even God, no one saved us
No one's gonna save us

Where do you expect us to go when the bombs fall?

Rage against the Machine is pretty good, but I dont see how you can't like System of a Down's protest songs.



300th Post, yo. w00t.

Rage against the Machine is pretty good, but I dont see how you can't like System of a Down's protest songs.



300th Post, yo. w00t.

System of a Down are pretty nuts.