REVIEW: Rage Against the Machine, The Battle of Los Angeles (Epic)
- Paul Hanson
Before even opening the new Rage CD, The Batle of Los Angeles, there is a certain urgency to hear where this band is going to go next. Following up the multi-dimensional CD Evil Empire, RATM are at the breaking point already in their young career. With as fast as the music industry changes, the unspoken question is: Will the band continue the tradition of Evil Empire and release a stellar CD?
Without question, they have once again pooled their talents together to create yet another outstanding CD. Leading off with the straight-ahead stomp of "Testify," the band quickly follows it up with the current radio single "Guerrilla Radio" with the bass pop rhythms of Y.tim.K. Guitarist Tom Morello jams out on this track as well. Other stellar tracks include "Sleep Now in the Fire" and the possible second single, "Born of a Broken Man." With a lazy guitar riff intro, the band jumps into a mid-tempo stomp before vocalist Zack DeLa Rocha softly intones the song's verse. Morello leads the band back into a stomp for the chorus and the pattern repeats.
As always, DeLa Rocha's lyrics are politically charged slabs of controversy. "New Millenium Homes" includes the lyrics "Hungry people don't stay hungry for long/ They get hope from fire and smoke as they reach for tha dawn/ . . . Violence is in all hands/ Embrace it if need be/ Livin' be warfare/ I press it to CD." His cockiness comes out in "Calm Like a Bomb" with the lyrics "I be walkin' god like a dog/ My narrative fearless/ My word war returns to burn/ Like Baldwin home from Paris." His lyrical style teeters between a straight rap and alternative rock singing.
The music behind him packs a wallop as well. Morello's riffs encourage bassist Y.tim.K to be more inventive, more adventuresome, with his bass parts to supplement the riff. Drummer Brad Wilk bashes his cymbals with a fierce intensity. "Born as Ghosts" features some exotic tones from the guitar before being shattered by Wilk's snare fill.
The hype you may read about The Battle of Los Angeles is warranted. Evil Empire is a tough act to follow, but the band does an admirable job combining the strengths of that CD and adding new dimensions. These songs are sure to get concert audiences excited when the band launches a tour in the near future.
