No.54 - ‘Rage Against The Machine’ by Rage Against The Machine (1992)

“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…”

Let me take you back to no.78 and the box of scratched up CDs. Amongst them was Evil Empire by Rage. Although not too fond of it at the time (and it’s still my least favourite Rage album), this one gets a good few spins…when the kids aren't around anyway!

Not for the faint-hearted, and the most political album on this list. This is funk rock rap metal with a message. The songs are strong, the lyrics are both brilliant and overly explicit. Look past the passionate shouting and we see incredible musicians, fantastic rhythms and very well crafted songs. 

The bass lines compliment the guitar riffs very well, and get to shine with the funk/slap here and there. Tom Morello is one of the greatest guitarists in the world, and has plenty of space to share his talent on this album. There is no space for slow ballads; the whole album is a hectic, head bopping, fist punching extravaganza.

A big thing that draws me to Rage (certainly as a Christian) is lyrical themes. They stand up for the little man, the working man, for justice, against sleaze, against government corruption, against war and greed. They recognise the follies of blanket nationalised religion, the wrongs of racism and police brutality; all things that we still deal with, and many people still accept, all over the world. The language is that of passionate human beings who can no longer stand the filth in this world.  I also respect the album note stating "no samples, keyboards or synthesisers used in the making of this record", a statement to highlight the lack of live musicianship within the industry. 

Rage formed in 1991 and their self-titled debut album hit no.45 in the US and no.17 in the UK. Killing in The Name famously made it to UK Christmas No.1 in 2009 after a campaign from a DJ, wanting it to beat the X-Factor winner to the top spot. Rage gave the profits to charity and performed a free gig at Finsbury Park the following year to thank the UK young generation. The album has been released on vinyl and I own the limited edition picture disc.

Favourite songs - Wake Up, Fistful of Steel, Killing In The Name, Bullet In The Head

Other great albums - The Battle of Los Angeles (1999), Renegades (2000)


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