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Rage Against the Machine

Rage Against the Machine

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Rage Against the Machine

Album Description

Digipak reissue of 1992 album. 2001.

Amazon.com

Not since the days of the Clash and the MC5 has rock seen such political force as in the uncompromising debut from this L.A. quartet. Expanding the hip-hop/metal style of bands such as the Red Hot Chili Peppers, Rage tap the spirits of vintage Black Sabbath and Led Zeppelin, coupled with hardcore punk intensity and Public Enemy-style grooves. "Bombtrack" opens the LP with a shot of adrenaline and singer Zack de la Rocha's infuriated chorus of "Burn, burn, yes, you're gonna burn!" The intensity doesn't let up an inch on the militant "Killing in the Name" (with the inspiring chant, "Fuck you, I won't do what you tell me!"), the ultrafunky "Bullet in the Head," and the engrossing "Fistful of Steel." Tom Morello combines time-honored metal guitar riffs with sounds that suggest a hip-hop scratcher over a rhythm section that simply takes no prisoners. Intelligent and aggressive, this is unimpeachably one of the best hard-rock records ever made. --James Rotondi

Rage Against the Machine Reviews

183 of 192 people found the following review helpful:

Anger is a gift, April 27, 2002

By

Mike Stone - See all my reviews

This review is from: Rage Against the Machine (Audio CD)

Someone once confessed their envy of Jimmy Page because he'd written *all* the good guitar riffs, leaving nothing for the rest of us. Well, Rage Against The Machine appears to have stumbled on Jimmy's secret stash of leftovers. But calling these riffs leftovers is doing them an injustice. Each is a behemoth of intensity and groove, while being surprisingly simple and eminently catchy. They form a solid foundation for each song, easily allowing the rest of the band to fall into lock-step formation when needed, but also allowing ample room for variation. And each song is made up of at least four or five of them, all as strong as the first, to create epic five-minute-plus "agit-pop" tunes.

When he's not anchoring the band with those regal riffs, Tom Morello is coaxing previously unheard of sounds from his Frankenstein guitar. "No samples, keyboards or synthesizers used in the making of this recording," claims the liner notes, and it's for Morello's offbeat work that this claim... Read more

44 of 48 people found the following review helpful:

An Early 90s classic, April 11, 2005

By

Daniel Maltzman (Arlington, MA, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Rage Against the Machine (Audio CD)

Rage Against the Machine were definitely one of the best bands from the 1990s, and their debut remains their strongest effort. When RATM made it big in the early 90s, they were a breath of fresh air. They borrowed sounds and styles from other bands, like the MC5 and Led Zeppelin, but were also distinctly groundbreaking and original.

First and foremost, they were just such a killer band. Drummer Brad Wilk and bass player Timmy G were an exciting and dynamic rhythm section. Guitarist Tom Morello came up with some of rock's best riffs and solos in years. Singer Zack De La Rocha singing/rapping was intense and urgent, and his lyrics were intelligent and insightful, yet never simplistic or pretentious. The lyrics will make you think, will make you question your life and your values, and societal values and norms. The band sounds raw and intense, yet the production is clean and crisp, so it's easily assessable.

Rage Against the Machine is band that should appeal to all... Read more

23 of 24 people found the following review helpful:

Rage's most essential album, July 8, 2002

By

F. McAlpine (San Francisco, CA USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Rage Against the Machine (Audio CD)

This is, and always will be, considered Rage Against the Machine's most important work. Rage's signature sound, featuring Tom Morello's belligerent, aggressive guitar riffs and turntable-esque noise, Tim Bob's funky bass, and Zack de la Rocha's vitriolic raps, is fully defined on this album. Their two subsequent albums, although excellent in their own right, do little to improve upon their debut's formula. Unlike most great bands, Rage was fully grown even in its infancy, and was signed after doing only 10 power-packed shows in Los Angeles. Although they presented fresh, worthy material, there was little room for improvement to the band's style, and very little experimentation would have been possible without fundamentally altering the band's sound. This album, therefore, not only has the advantage of being their first album, but it also has the most start to finish quality. Every tune is a highly explosive ball of energy, none of which is clearly superior to any of the others... Read more

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Rage Against the Machine