Rage Against The Machine: Zack De La Rocha (vocals); Tom Morello (guitar); Y.tim.K (bass); Brad Wilk (drums).
Recorded at A&M Studios, Hollywood, California; Royaltone Studios, North Hollywood, California; Silent Sound Studios and Southern Tracks, Atlanta, Georgia; Sunset Sound and Westlake Audio, Los Angeles, California.
"Guerrilla Radio" won the 2001 Grammy Award for Best Hard Rock Performance. THE BATTLE OF LOS ANGELES was nominated for the 2001 Grammy Award for Best Rock Album.
This Australian edition includes a bonus track.
Rage Against the Machine doesn't release rushed albums for the sake of exposure. Each of the band's deftly crafted full-length albums has defined a progression in the group's sound and musical vision.
Here, Rage has taken the dynamics of its unique style to a deeper level, as evidenced on "Mic Check," which features gentle, unsettling guitar work by Tom Morello, who is deservedly hailed as an innovator of the instrument. The mid-tempo funk of "Maria" finds vocalist Zach De La Rocha telling the poetic story of an immigrant factory worker whose dream of freedom leads her unknowingly into modern-day slavery. Taking up the cause of death row inmate Mumia Abu-Jabal, De La Rocha questions the validity of his trial in "Guerilla Radio" and fleshes out his argument in "Voice of the Voiceless." "Sleep Now in the Fire" finds De La Rocha making historical references to government greed and the darker side of human nature. Though other rap/metal acts may have seemingly copped some of its musical traits, Rage Against the Machine has a conviction and passion that cannot be matched by any other band in the genre.
What the critics say...
Rolling Stone (11/11/99, pp.129-30) - 4 stars out of 5 - "...[BATTLE] is to rap metal what Public Enemy's IT TAKES A NATION OF MILLIONS...was to hip-hop; It brings the noise..."
Spin (5/01, p.112) - Ranked #47 in Spin's "50 Most Essential Punk Records".
Spin (12/99, pp.213-4) - 9 out of 10 - "...a record that perfectly articulates the rap-rock youth rally they themselves spearheaded....They've become a great band that cuts through irony at the same time it piles up contradictions..."
Entertainment Weekly (11/5/99, pp.79-80) - "...This is music made to agitate, not seduce, and at that it succeeds triumphantly....[RATM] make a case that there are still some things worth fighting for." - Rating: A
CMJ (1/10/00, p.3) - Ranked #5 in CMJ's "Top 30 Editorial Picks [for 1999]."
CMJ (11/1/99, p.3) - "...displays [Tom Morello's] virtuosic guitar talents, stomping on effects pedals and churning out resonant, body-slamming riffs that will leave you shuddering....Anger is a gift, and RATM effectively shapes the emotion into compact, blustery songs..."
Vibe (12/99, p.248) - "...a faster cleaner, and far more diverse than anything [they] ever recorded....Rage's music moves confidently forward....BATTLE won't disappoint..."
Urban Latino (1/00, p.82) - 3 out of 4 - "...another justice driven steamroller....their conscientious use of talent and wrath for the forces of good is surely applaudable..."
Kerrang (Magazine) (p.52) - "[T]his was arguably their finest hour. Tight, focused, relentlessly heavy..."
NME (Magazine) (11/6/99, p.46) - 7 out of 10 - "...This record rocks...another album of ranting, churning, slamming heavy funk-metal....Wicked!....Keep raging, mad Yank commies, your planet needs you."
