August 04, 2008 05:00 PM
Rage Against the Machine to play during RNC convention
Political rap-rock giants Rage Against the Machine will give a rare performance at Target Center in Minneapolis on Sept. 3, which not so coincidentally is the same week as the Republican National Convention in St. Paul. Tickets go on sale Saturday at 10 a.m. for $60.
Rage guitarist Tom Morello has already committed to perform with country-rocker Steve Earle at a union rally Sept. 1 at St. Paul's Harriet Island, the first day of the convention. The band has lashed out at the Bush administration at other shows this year, including last weekend's Lollapalooza festival in Chicago. Morello expressed interest this summer in performing during both party conventions.
Rage on!!!!
Lovely. Do they have an Impeachment Rag? Funny that lies don't mean impeachment if you;re a winger. http://cabdrollery.blogspot.com/2008/08/more-than-hot-air.html
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1JSBhI_0at0
NO way!
They're having a reunion concert???
I'm in Chicago right now and saw them at Lollapalooza, great show. I wish I could be at the St. Paul one though...
some of those at work forces........
Hmmm, this could either be really good or really bad. Depends on how "live" their mics are.
When I first loaded the page I thought it said "Rage Against the Machine to play *at* RNC convention" and thought - that's it. I'm moving to a small Greek island and raising olives. Phew. That was scary.
Need to contact Alec Empire and the remaining members of Atari Teenage Riot
See if they have any plans...
There was all that talk earlier this year about the democratic convention turning out like 1968.
Oh, yeah... $60/ticket shows their support for the masses. Posers.
Damn, I read it that way too and went WTF.
I wish I could go there, hack into the live feeds at the GOP convention and pipe those brain dead idiot Rethugs in some Rage.
They would be looking down at the convention schedule and saying, "I don't see this on here Bill, do you?"
YEAH but will they have FREE BLOWJOBS in stall NUMBER 5 at the MN Airport ???
Craig will be handling the GOP Meat-and-Greet, where he'll be going down faster than a MN bridge.
Kai @ 10:
They're posers because our dollar is worthless? Hahahaha! Nice try. You must mean the posers that work for the Federal Reserve Bank.
Their politics are correct, but their music is unoriginal bile. Their rap-rock thing was done so much better when Urban Dance Squad and Body Count were doing it. I am utterly annoyed by this band. More often than not, they sound like Limp Bizkit but with less enthusiasm, and that's sad.
Union rally on Harriet Island? I wonder if Jim Hightower is invited this year?
Kai @ 10:
How can you feel ripped off by $60? I'm a student and thats acceptable to me.
To clarify--I wish more rockers would be political. And I love bands like the Dead Kennedys who were. But de la Rocha rhymes with "de la Joke-a."
theWalrus @ 8:
That's exactly the way I first read it to. I was just sitting here staring at my screen for the longest time.
Awesome.
WE ALL LOVE A LITTLE BUSH @ 13:
Then, unbeknown to the GROPERs, they will adopt "Killing in the Name of," as the Republican theme song. "Gee, George, great song. Yeah, that's what we do alright...killing in the name of...everything. But I don't get that last part, "fuck you, I won't do what you told me?" Does that mean what we tell the people? Yuk, yuk, yuk (as the fat wriggles for room above the belt on Karl Rove's chin)."
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fkuOAY-S6OY
theWalrus @ 8:
Same here!
LOL.
sell-outs
Lone Rogue @ 17:
Some people think that Rodies should live on tips.
dw @ 23:
They're not saying they like Obama they're saying McCain sucks.
I wanna be there. I wanna be there. I wanna be there. I wanna be there. Up until now I didn't even want to acknowledge that there was a there there. In fact, I don't know if I'll be able to watch Comedy Central or even Stephanie Miller reporting from the convention.
I wish RAtM and other groups like CSNY,Pink Floyd, etc., would get a bit involved and push the unions to get going ,to get out of oil:
In my opinion, Barak Obama's speech in Lansing, Michigan, this week requieres that the Unions develop an specific plan to retool factories of all car makers for :
a) electric plug-in hybrids with ethanol-biodiesel motors,
b) new cheap composite materials and glass
c) hydrogen and methanol fuel-cell cars
d) solar panels plug-ins on every surface
e) gas stations retooling with plug-ins,new pipes , new pumps and compressors, etc., etc.,
and the necessary services ,parts, repairs, training,etc.,
THE UNIONS MUST BE THERE WITH A PLAN, THE UNIONS CANNOT WAIT FOR MANAGEMENT TO DO IT,THEY WIL MESS UP EVERYTHING, UNIONS MUST GET ACTIVE WITH A PLAN and GO TO OBAMA ( AND MCCAIN) AND SEE WHAT THEY DO, IF IT'S JUST TALK OR ACTION....after all, most of the advisers in the 2 campaigns are neocons with the Hedge-Funds that are interested only in the benefit of their masters : Saudi Arabia-UAE-Kuwait-OPEC and their Hedge-Funds managers from the israeli-neocon Lobby, the usual manipulators, this time the Unions must act.
the Unions must understand that Saudi Arabia and Israel are the most interested in keeping America addicted to Oil and only from the Middle East,so that "they" and only they are totally important and necessary...that's why the neocons have a constant conflict with Russia, Venezuela,Libya and Iran,so only the Milddle East is left to provide the USA with 40 % of its Oil needs ( the rest comes from Canada and Mexico) , a fabricated monopoly but very profitable...enough ! time to break free!....UNIONS : GIVE A PLAN TOTHE CANDIDATES !
2) the plan to develop cellulosic plants for ethanol from wood chips is a very bad idea: WE ARE HUMAN AND WE WOULD END-UP CUTTING DOWN ALL THE TREES IN AMERICA FOR ETHANOL, WE ARE HUMANS AND SO WE ARE STUPID,GREEDY AND IGNORANT, WOOD CHIPS IS A VERY BAD IDEA, when we have jathropa,castor, seaweeds -algae,pengamia, etc.,all non-edible crops that won't affect our wonderful trees, so we need to be vigialnt or they will cut down all the trees in the Americas !!!
so the Unions must prepare a plan ,a total one, and go to Obama and McCain and let's do it !
3) another issue is religion: i would like all the christian denominations to get together and talk, and eventually fusion in a new flexible new christian faith, but in the meantime , America gives us the freedom to talk,and so i expect the 2 candidates to choose christian V-P's ,and already McCain is considering an israeli - american ,Cantor,as V-P, and this great man is a big supporter of AIPAC and the State of Israel , and even when i hope the best for the good israelis, the American Voter has a right to know the real inclinations of our elected leaders, if they can talk for weeks on end about Obama's religious inclinations and his churches and pastors, and the neocon media making millions if dollars from it , shurely we can talk about any other candidates religious affiliations,right ? any one that says that we can't talk about Cantor's religion and Congregations in Israel is a racist and a fascist, is un-american, let's respect and defend the USA Constitution , the right to Free Speech and equal rights for all.
another issue is mobile phones, and the http://www.limofoundation.org/ is vital to keep music and the Internet neutral, fair, open,free and easy, but so far most mobile devices, including Google ( !!! ) are using Qualcomm propietary technology,so we pay royalties to them forever,not good ! they decide what we see,where we go and how we do it, not good ! it's like Comcast, another nightmare !
Rage is gonna have some pretty dog gone stiff competition that week from the RNC. I hear they're getting Up With People.
ahhh, the RNC...
with rage in town, nonetheless.
it was in my city--philly--in 00... and, holy snap, it was like a three-ring circus balancing on a bucking mustang on acid. the conventioneers, the protestors, the phalanxes of bike cops, the arrests, intrigue, the violence, the confrontations, the taunts, the insults...
it was crazy. and although we didn't have rage playing, i did stop in for a jello biafra spoken word thingy...
have fun minneapolis, be safe. and watch out for agent provocateurs... seriously, be careful.
Yep. Me too. Until I read theWalrus's comment and took a second look at the title. Talk about cognitive dissonance. Whew!
theWalrus @ 8:
bwhahahahaa!
The Pentagons heat ray gun just had a tune up. Should be ready by to try out by then.
I doubt many gop will attend but "poket full of shells" may get them excited.
Lone Rogue @ 17:
To some oldsters, $60 might seem a little stiff. I've got a framed Rolling Stones poster in my office from a show they did in June 1976 at the Cow Palace in SF. Reserved seating went for $4.00 and $4.75. And the Doobie Brothers were their opening act!
Perfect, Bulls on Parade.
Yeah!! RAGE AGAINST THAT MACHINE, while you charge insane amounts for tickets through a national distribution and get corporate sponsors like Pepsi and play at places like the TARGET CENTER! YEAH!!! DUDE I THINK THEY WROTE A SONG ONCE THAT WAS ALL ANTI-BUSH.
Yellow Elephant Safari @ 33:
I paid $3.90 to see (not hear) the Beatles. Atlantic City Convention Hall, Sunday August 30, 1964.
anon @ 35:
Yeah man they should play in the park for free since electricity doesn't cost anything.
theWalrus @ 36:
My wife saw them at Comiskey Park in Chicago around the same time. She still has her ticket stub somewhere. I'll have to check it for the price.
Kai @ 10:
It's spelled "poseurs". Just to let you know. If you're going to be a tired old a-hole, at least be one the spells retarded labels correctly. God I hate that word.
Let me guess, not punk enough for you? Should they play for free? Who's going to pay the venue? The roadies? The teamsters?
Let's put it in perspective:
Madonna: $184
The Rolling Stones: $137
Elton John: $125
Those are average for their tour. It gets worse. Streisand? $300. I'm guessing you haven't been to a show in a while. Sixty bucks is pretty standard, like it or not.
By the way, your anger is a gift.
orangehairboy @ 15:
um body count can't hold sh*t to rage.... lol.
LOL, Rage rocks!!!!
There's talk that cheney may not attend the repub convention. I think he should go. I want the spotlight on him while McCain is speaking. I want every reminder possible there so no one forgets for one second what this party and it's pols have done to our country.
i've heard bruce springsteen will perform before obama speaks in denver, anyone else hear this?
jesus zimmerman @ 43:
I heard it too, but I don't remember where.
Nice windfall gig so they can keep their swimming pools heated and pay off their vacation homes.
pissed off patricia @ 45:
I may have heard this.
If so he had better play born in the USA and Bring 'em Home. 8)
Lone Rogue @ 17:
I'm showing my age by agreeing that $60 for a ticket is pretty steep.
F*ckinA ! I guess Audioslave showing up is too much to ask...it's like the other woman.
I heard Gallagher will be doing his magic and this lady will be jamming at the RNC.
Does anybody represent "rally around the family with a pocket full of shells" better than the Republican party?
Gus @ 48: I'm showing my age by agreeing that $60 for a ticket is pretty steep.
Isn't Capitalism Grand? $60 to stand outside the fence. $150 for a nosebleed seat.
Hmmm. I paid $4.00 to see Led Zeppelin in Oct. '69. 5th row seats. $2.50 to see Alice Cooper in '70. $5.00 to see Pink Floyd in a gymnasium in '71.
Killing in the Name , is by far the best 1 that explains todays torment USA has put down on us.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vlIJxihYdTs&feature=related
There are so many other songs that they have made that could dangerously energize a "GOP Ripped-off" audience.
orangehairboy @ 15:
BWAHAAAA HAAAA!! oh SHIT young man you are FUNNY. RATM fries the aptly named Limp Bizkit to a CRISP are you KIDDING ME? Sweet Jeebus that has to be the most ignorant thing I've read in a loooooooong time and I've read some pretty ignorant shit lately. No disrespect to Ice-T (love him) but shit GET OUTTA HERE! Body Count wasn't nearly as lethal as Rage and even T would tell you that. You obviously weren't in your twenties the first time you heard 'f**k you I won't do whatcha tell me!!!' That MF ripped then and still does now, my veins are standing up just thinking about it. Limp Bizkit??? BWAAAAA..........
.
Mick Piobr @ 52:
That was when the dollar wasn't worthless.
L.A. Confidential @ 46:
Actually Zack (RATM's frontman) has a VERY modest house by Hollywood standards, and I'm sure especially by rock band standards. Tom, on the other hand, does have a pool. Tho, I'm okay with that, he does a lot of good with his money and his music too.
Rage is and always had been a corporate rock machine. Thy have limousine liberal poseur lyrics. Sorry, people. That lead singer always reminds me of Curly from the Three Stooges going gnuck-gnuck-gnuck the way he prattles on with his pseudo revolutionary lyrics. Yeah, sure, these guys are going to change the world even less than U2 and Bono. Hell, I think I put more stock in what Creed sings that these poseurs. If you're looking for a band that is the real thing, that charges reasonable prices for tickets, you'd have to hope Fugazi tours again.
L.A. Confidential @ 46:
LAC - never one to miss an opportunity to douse the audience with cynicism and vitriol
This has actually all been done before, for real, by the MC5. This is actually going to be just a publicity even and promotion for Rage. Their major label record company probably gave them the idea. Man, I hate the way that lead singer rap-rocks. Whub, whub, whub, gnuck-gnuck-gnuck -- just like Curley from the Three Stooges.
These guys ride the coat-tails of punk bands that came before them, and pretend to be some actual counter-culture force, but $60 tickets only proves they're corporate fluff. Punk shows are still $5 to get into.
Yeah when that pseudo dreadlocked singer bolted for a while, the remaining three formed a corporate rock supergroup with that Jim Morrison wanna-be from Soundtemplepearlgarden and called it Audioslave. One of the most bland corporate offerings ever. That's how much real soul and fire these money grubbing self-marketers have.
I dunno, I like RATM. There's a tune on the Crow soundtrack called something like Responsible for Genocide that would be a fitting tribute for the current "administration."
orangehairboy @ 15:
Some Big Country songs, 'We're not in Kansas Anymore' , 'Republican Party Reptile' , 'The Hostage Speaks'
Surging Blue Lensman @ 58:
The sooner you see through the veil the better off everyone will be.
new word otter @ 54:
I was going to respond to the Jonas brother, but your response is right on.
And Limp Bizkit? "My Way or the Highway".....it sounds like something McCain would say.
Biggus Diggus @ 57:
man, who pissed in your post toasties? you're right about Fugazi's ass-kicking ability but 'corporate rock machine'? because they were so effing good they got a major label deal? and 'ripping off punk bands'? WTF? if anyone they ripped off the peppers but i guess you think they're 'poseurs' also. these guys played show after show, night after night for a LONG time and there's nothing remotely CREEDish about them. EWWW! Damn! Yes Audioslave sucks but when RATMs first album came out in 1990 it SMACKED HARD. I'm riled up because I know these guys care, they work in their communities, give lots of that 'huge' money to charity, etc. etc. Damn.
.
Biggus Diggus @ 59:
Nobody is original. MC5 was a ripoff of Blue Cheer. Blue Cheer was a ripoff of Lawrence Welk.
I found another, political video. The new world order some new pics like rove being arrested.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5LvwzanCLCo&feature=related
You guys have got to stop downing these guys, they have a great message. Take the Power BACK!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5LvwzanCLCo&feature=related
And somehow the police here in St. Paul think there will only be 50,000 protesting the RNC convention.
I'm just wondering by what factor they'll be off... 5x? 10x?
Mick Piobr @ 52:
Pink Floyd tickets now go for $1000 at the special VIP concerts.
Explains why the RIAA desperately wants to get control of the live music scene,
and their cut of the money, which would soon become the lion's share, if they had their way.
eyesoars @ 70:
We could go all the way and be modern Romans, bring 5000 sacks and give the GOP a watery tour of America down the Mississippi.
I love Rage, and I'm glad that they're going to protest the RNC. We "liberals" can learn a thing or two about direct action, and being more critical of, not just certain administrations, but of the underlying foundations of our capitalist economy as well. It's good to see a band with the guts to openly challenge the system.
Viva Rage Against the Machine!!
Ron Paul is holding his Rally for the Republic in that same building the day before.
Mick Piobr @ 67:
Ripoff of Blue Cheer?!!!?!?111?1
You are so far off...the only thing that the MC5 had in common with Blue Cheer was decibel level! Okay, maybe some of the same roots (surf music, Chuck Berry) as 1000 other '60's bands that started off in the garage...But a ripoff of Blue Cheer? Sorry, but I'm kind of offended.
Have you ever heard the original recording of MC5's Looking At You (this live version from '70 captures the spirit of the original recording...not a fan of the version from Back In The USA) , the single on A-Square records from '66 or '67? Have you ever listened to the free jazz artists that MC5 were paying tribute to on Kick Out The Jams?
StirFry @ 65:
Colbert Green Screen Challenge? :)
Andy K Jong Il @ 75:
I was aware that MC5 payed tribute to Sun Ra on "Rocket Reducer."
I'm just sayin' that there is not much originality anywhere; doesn't mean that it's bad. MC5 definitely learned from Clear Light; nothing wrong with that.
JoeSixPack @ 40:
Oh, dear, a typo flame. How will I ever cope?
Guess again.
Sure, why not? It's not like they're not rich fucks. Clearly they put profit$ before their supposed politics.
Why, they can! After all, their "Eat the Rich" attitude now applies to THEM.
But you're right, perhaps poseurs was not the right word. How about "Frauds"?
Smashing Pumpkins did a free concert, downtown Minneapolis, back in '98 or so. There were about 160,000 people downtown. And these 160,000 people were mostly happy. A free RATM concert would start the Revolution, again....
Didn't the cops shoot up the crowd with rubber bullets at the Rage Against the Machine show in Los Angeles during the Democratic Convention? I think it was back in 2000 but not sure. I met a girl who got hit though and it looked like someone had burned into her stomach with a big cigar. Not pretty.
I hope things don't get nasty in the streets!
Kai @ 10:
At least they're doing something.....as opposed to the "poseur left" that sits at their computer and signs MoveOn email chain letters.
I've been to many a RATM benefit for worthwhile causes....they played at the DNC here in California in 2000. My favorite quote from the stage "Apparently theres another show taking place next door.... but its ALL SOLD OUT"
While many like to bash rage.....truth is they've gotten more young people interested in the political process than any pundit or lefty intellectual and their influence is global.
Some comments here made me laugh. Rage was a really amazing band and I've had the pleasure of seeing them twice, once on tour with Wu-Tang Clan and then later at the Chicago/Wisconsin Tibetan Freedom Fest.
I loved the person who said they like Limp Bizkit (sp? wtf?) better. It's people like that who made Ratm break apart for a few years. The people looking for angry pop music just don't get Rage. And I'm fine with that, just don't bring the fake music snobbery. Jokers trying to make Ratm something they never tried to be.
There's nothing wrong with getting paid for what you do. They're not stupid and their not free love dfh's either. They're realists. And they use their money as well as their spare time in some pretty charitable ways.
orangehairboy @ 15:
you need a music history lesson. but this isn't the correct place. Rage precedes body count and limp bizkit.
its clear you don't dig them, which is cool. different strokes i suppose. but you must not tell lies and you clearly are.... i still think its a towering achievement that on 9/12 only one band had their entire catalog banned from the clear channel air waves. that band was Rage...
Urban dance squad? my god you have bad taste in music..... also body count didnt have any great songs other than the one that drew attention to them.
Talk about 'selling out'.
is zack still with the band? the article doesnt state so
cuz if he was, he would throw a free concert
cuz zack is fucking radical
Michael @ 74:
yeah and his tickets only cost $17.76.
60 bucks is expensive. i wish i could see them play though maybe someone will tape the concert and youtube it.
Yay! Commie/capitalists are going to play to one half of the traitors in this country. When are they going to do the DNC to cover the other half?
Want to be a real rebel kids? Be a White Nationalist. Oh wait! That only includes White kids.
Heh heh heh, yeah it does.
Stan Sikorski @ 87:
Huh?
Phantom @ 88:
I think he's pointing out how trendy it is to be a RATM style rebel.
I also think the white nationalist types are often that way because of their upbrining not because of thought n their part.
They wrote this in 1999, way before our second march to Baghdad , but but this ring so true almost 10 years later...
The movie ran through me
The glamour subdue me
The tabloid untie me
I'm empty please fill me
Mister anchor assure me
That Baghdad is burning
Your voice it is so soothing
That cunning mantra of killing
I need you my witness
To dress this up so bloodless
To numb me and purge me now
Of thoughts of blaming you
Yes the car is our wheelchair
My witness your coughing
Oily silence mocks the legless
Now traveling in coffins
But on the corner
The jury's sleepless
We found your weakness
And it's right outside our door
Now testify
With precision you feed me
My witness I'm hungry
Your temple it calms me
So I can carry on
My slaving sweating the skin right off my bones
On a bed of fire I'm choking on the smoke that fills my home
The wrecking ball rushing
My witness your blushing
The pipeline is gushing
While here we lie in tombs
While on the corner
The jury's sleepless
We found your weakness
And it's right outside your door
Now testify
Mass graves for the pump and the price is set
Who controls the past now controls the future
Who controls the present now controls the past
Who controls the past now controls the future
Who controls the present now?
Now testify
JoeSixPack @ 40:
or you can go the other way beside bs crap bands....
Radiohead $30
Tool $50
NIN $30
John Butler Trio $30
Umphreys Mcgee $25 (you've probably never heard of)
these are all recent tour prices, so screw $60 b/c last time I checked all the above mentioned bands used/had...electricity, venues, roadies......
We've needed Rage these past 8 years. I'm glad they decided to come together to lend their voice to a new leader.
The land of the free? Whoever told you that is your enemy. -- RATM
Charles @ 92:
I don't know who your are Yappymo!
It would be great if an un-hip mccain aid booked them at the RNC because they thought the band was "rage against the liberal attacks machine."
L3ster @ 91:
NIN tickets are not 30 bucks... especially at the TARGET center..
I was there this past weekend for their canceled show and the tickets were 60 bucks too.
It is the Target center... and its not in a cheap area of the Twin Cities.. (which is starting to look like early 80's Queens.. -- Seriously MN clean up your goddamn city--it used to be beautiful)
I was also saw RAGE at Alpine Valley and those tickets were 40 bucks..
It was one of the best concerts I have ever seen..
new word otter @ 66:
It's not a matter of they were "so effing good they got a major label deal," it's a matter of them having chosen to make Sony massive amounts of money rather than signing with a smaller label that more accurately represents their purported political ideals. Do you really think Fugazi hasn't been offered obscene amounts of money by A&R guys that were too dumb to realize it was not going to happen?
And as for being on a major label, it's not about being a sellout or what have you (at least to me). It's about your ideals. If Rage Against The Machine is as populist as they seem to claim, $60 for a concert ticket in a large-ish venue is indeed gouging. $16.99 or so for a CD that cost about $0.75 to make is indeed gouging. And if they're going to contribute that much money to the corporate machine while wearing embroidered baseball caps reading "commie," well, either they're subverting the entire political dialog (which, while perhaps a bit insulting, I can appreciate) or they are just money-grubbing hypocrites. I don't think Zack & Co. have the kind of imagination for the former, so I'm going to have to go with the latter.
$60? Really? I see bands in fairly intimate venues, like 600 seats or so, for $15. Good bands, on a consistent basis. These bands live off the resulting profits. It's a somewhat spartan existence for some, better for others, but they make it work because they don't like the major label machinery. (To be fair, prices are going up a bit due to fuel costs, but still.) Many of them sell CDs at gigs for $12, maybe with a 2-for-$20 deal, and again, they make a decent amount because they aren't forcing fans to pay an extra $4-$6 for marketing, mechanicals, and a label that wants double what the artist gets.
It's okay to sign to a major label. Just don't insult me by implying you're raging against the machine you feed when you do. It just looks pathetic, and kind of sad.
(For the record, I saw RATM play a teensy club in San Jose, CA, sometime in the early 1990s. They were signed to Sony, but hadn't taken off yet. They threw a tantrum onstage about beer signs outside the club and proceeded to wreck the venue's monitors. Major label band screwing with a small business trying to survive in a crappy town, fucking up the venue for other, poorer touring bands...nice.)
Good for the boy's with some of the hardest hittin riffs n raps!
#96...
Liked your post. I liked the line about wearing the baseball cap saying "commie". It reminds me of when I see people wearing Che Gueverra (sp) T-shirts. It used to be subversive, but now the "rebellion" of Che T-shirts and "commie" caps is mass marketed. Rebellion can pay pretty well, you know. Being on a major corporate label and rallying against corporations is a bit hypocritical. A lot of bands do it (and activist actors/comics as well, who will rally against the evil corporations, but do films and TV shows put out by the same corporations).
I do think sixty bucks is a lot of dough, especially in this economy. Rage Against the Machine should do a free concert. They can afford to. Rage isn't going to the food banks. It will let people see the show that want to but can't afford to, and it would really be a good PR move. It's a bit cynical, but true.
Ironically, I'm writing this as I'm listening to a Merle Haggard song called Hungry Eyes. Merle's song (and many others of his) are poignant, quite moving, and filled with great depth. The song Hungry Eyes says a lot about poverty and sadness, but it's beautiful and tender. Rage's music is all anger, and yes, there's a lot to be angry about, but I never hear any depth or beauty from them. It's always the same angry rap/metal message. There are other ways to get through to people, you know.
Mick Piobr @ 52:
and what did it cost you back then, for gasoline to go the concert? oh, and how much did it cost you to put food on your family back then?
just askin'
L3ster @ 91:
these are recent ticket prices? go check ticketmaster...
similar venues...
not just the lawn admission to amphitheaters
why such hatred to rage?
Tom Morello said, "A lot of labels contacted us, and lots of them just didn't seem to
understand what we wanted to do. They kept talking about the
message of the music as a gimmick. They were interested in us just
because there was a buzz... They saw us as the latest local rock
band to be hyped. But Epic agreed to everything we asked--and
they've followed through... we never saw a conflict as long as we
maintained creative control. When you live in a capitalistic
society, the currency of the dissemination of information goes
through capitalistic channels. Would Noam Chomsky object to his
works being sold at Barnes & Noble? No, because that's where people
buy their books. We're not interested in preaching to just the
converted. It's great to play abandoned squats run by anarchists,
but it's also great to be able to reach people with a revolutionary
message, people from Granada Hills to Stuttgart."
Im sure you are using a corporate internet provider on your corporate computer sitting at your corporate made desk in your corporate chair, stuffing your face with corporate food products under your corporate shingles... continued to infinity....
geoffrey @ 100:
Wow. You fake ass music snobs are worse than the feebs over at NoQuarter. So Rage sold out because they signed with a major label and made some money. Do you look into what they do with that money? Or how they trade on their "celebrity" to raise funds for hundreds of different social programs? Oh. Well. STFU then. How about looking at the giant number of people they are able to get their message out to, vs. some "authentic" (meaning fanless and poor) band who no one ever hears (outside a drunken bar night). I don't know what Rage fan was mean to you, but grow up. It's not about what shirts they wear, or Morello's hat choices (this one says Unity, never seen the commie one), because if you take the time to LISTEN, you will see that the politically charged lyrics (mostly written by Zach) are nothing short of the greatness of Public Enemy and the like. Oh, and Tom Morello is the greatest living guitar player. Period.
I wonder if they're do a cover of the Kaiser Chief's "I Predict A Riot"?
Rage Against the Machine?
It's not 1992 anymore.
too bad they aren't joining forces with Ron Paul at the Rally for the Republic.
Although Ron Paul is an American free market capitalist and RagE is apparently global socialist/communists.
And both sides are raging against the corruption and injustice in modern day amerika.
It should be "Splinter Groups Against the Machine"
Ronin Tetsuro @ 103:
Not unless they want to spend the rest of their life in jail.
And possibly change history.
look ... RATM its over, Dubya won, by getting everything he wanted for his cronies. he is not going to spend a day in jail, his friends got off scott free, your music really doesn't have much of an audience, also people see the movie "american hardcore" if you want music about lefty ideas in music. the truth is they can make all the noise they want only MTV will cover the concert and no one less.
TownshipRebellion @ 102:
I'm not disputing that they make worthy contributions with their share of the money made. I'm saying that since they're on Epic, for every dollar they make their label makes between two and four, and that money goes to Sony BMGs current fight to squelch Fair Use among other worthy causes. Read what I wrote, thanks. (I will cop to being a music snob, but I'm a real one. I've listened to lot of music to sculpt the bad attitude I have, and I'd appreciate that being considered.)
And again, I'm not talking about any message they have getting to fans reaching a particular number of people. I'm talking about the very big difference between the message they purport to spread and the means by which they chose to spread it. As for "fanless and poor," I concede some bands I listen to aren't wealthy like RATM. But to cite an example given by others earlier in the thread, Fugazi has a ton of fans, own their own modest homes, own the copyrights to their work, and haven't as yet advocated a political, economic or intellectual concept they don't practice themselves. And they've sold tons of albums and turned down multiple major label contracts.
No Rage fan has, to my knowledge, been mean to me. The band themselves were bullies to a small club I frequented once upon a time, but that's the band being spoiled assholes and powermongers, not the fans.
Morello the best? Ridiculous. Anyone being the best, period, is ridiculous. A musician can only be the best version of themselves within their chosen setting. Is Morello the best possible guitarist for RATM? Sure. Put him onstage with Gang Of Four and he'll sound out of place and pretty lousy next to Andy Gill, who is certainly not as technical a player. Comparing Morello's guitar playing to Gill's, or to Jimmy Page's, or Bob Mould's is no more useful than comparing Zack's lyrics to Bob Dylan's or Gift Of Gab's and getting on his case for being overly reductive. Dylan wouldn't fit in RATM. If we were to set the lyrics on paper next to each other it's likely Dylan's work would come across as superior, but again, such comparisons are specious.
You said they are playing at the Target Center. That is where Ron Paul is having his "Rally for the Republic" through his Campaign for Liberty.
I think the title of your need to check the title of your article. I doubt Rage Against the Machine would play at the regular RNC convention.
geoffrey @ 100:
To answer Morello's straw man defense, it's not as if Chomsky's books were for sale at Barnes & Noble. It's more akin to Chomsky publishing through HarperCollins. There's a big difference, and no doubt Morello knows it. It's an awfully disingenuous argument for him to make.
Corporations aren't defacto evil. Major labels? Pretty much defacto evil. The assault on Fair Use and other freedoms mounted by the RIAA and SonyBMG is, point black, funded by profits on RATM albums. As soon as my ISP began lobbying against Net Neutrality I left them for a competitor. It takes some work, but being aware of one's choices is important.
And really, my attitude about RATM was solidified the day they fucked up the monitors at a small club to "protest" a beer sign outside. When major label bullies screw with small businesses they have no business whatsoever telling anyone about ethics. They are the people they serve.
JaneaneTheAcerbicGoblin @ 98:
Thanks. The hat's a minor thing, but emblematic of a systemic problem.
$60 ought to get me into at least two shows, if not four. As for emotions other than anger, I get the same thing from some of Richard Thompson's work. (And I don't doubt Morello's familiar with Merle. Might be nice if he borrowed some, eh?)
Pete S...
Richard Thompson is awesome, and has great depth, despair, and sadness to his work too. I Want to See the Bright Lights Tonight is one of my all time faves.
As for the person up thread that said Morello is the greatest living guitarist, please. Like you said, he's good in RATM, but he's no Page or Clapton, etc., etc.. I actually prefer Bob Mould/Husker Du to RATM, as he/they have a better sense of melody and pop than Morello/RATM do.
And Derek Trucks can run circles around Morello anyday.
Anyone here attend the RATM show (Rock the Bells) in San Francisco last year? If you ever doubted the bands true intentions and abilities, you would've been all set after being witness to one of the sickest live shows ever to take place. There was even a parade of sorts after where the all the concert attendees took to the streets for a little impromptu protest. I'll be at the Minneapolis show, and I hope we take our combined energy from the show and shove it right up the GOP's ass in St. Paul. We love our country, we love our Rage, and we'd love to take the power back from these greedy, godless bastards who have held our nation and the world hostage for far too long. God bless you all.
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