Word: rocha
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Dates: during 1990-1999
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...RAGE AGAINST THE MACHINE The Battle of Los Angeles (Epic). Because Tom Morello--who can make his guitar sound like a harmonica, a pair of turntables or a street uprising--is the most thrilling guitarist in rock today. Because rapper-singer Zack de la Rocha mixes poetry and polemics into song lyrics that would do Chuck D or Bob Dylan proud. Because in a year in which a riot of rockers copped beats from hip-hop, no other band made the rap-rock union resonate with such ferocity and intelligence...
...Rocha, now 29, draws inspiration for his lyrics from bands like Public Enemy and writers like James Baldwin and Eduardo Galeano. Songs on the new CD take on the media coverage of the Gulf War and the plight of Mumia Abu-Jamal, a black journalist on death row whom many people (De la Rocha included) feel was unjustly convicted...
Unlike many other hard-rock bands, Rage, as guitarist Tom Morello puts it, has "social and political" concerns. Indeed, in an interview, De la Rocha sounds off on a wide range of topics. He ridicules New York City mayor Rudolph Giuliani: "There's nothing more dangerous than a fascist with aspiration for higher office." He's also critical of Sean ("Puffy") Combs: "If Reagan were a rapper, he'd be in Puff Daddy's crew. It's the same set of politics. Get yours. F___ everyone else. Just get paid. Don't think about community...
...roots of De la Rocha's rage are in his hometown of Irvine, Calif. He went to a mostly white high school where, as a Chicano, he seethed at racist comments about "wetbacks" made by students and teachers alike. At age 17, he saw a show by the black punk group Bad Brains, and it was "a personal revolution." De la Rocha, Morello, drummer Brad Wilk and bassist Tim Commerford formed Rage...
...Rocha has a lofty goal as a lyricist: "I try to write songs that engage people in a critical dialogue about fighting for and among dispossessed peoples around the world." Still, even Bob Marley wrote ballads. Could De la Rocha ever see himself writing a love song? "Every revolutionary act is an act of love," he says. "[So] every song I've ever written has been a love song." From that perspective, The Battle of Los Angeles, with its scathing guitars and whiplash lyrics, is the most romantic CD of the year...