Rage Against the Machine formed in Los Angeles in 1991 — Zack de la Rocha, Tom Morello, Tim Commerford, Brad Wilk — and effectively invented rap rock as a genre. The 1992 self-titled debut sold over 3 million US copies and The Battle of Los Angeles (1999) hit number one; both still hit hard. Find Rage Against the Machine vinyl, CDs, and reissues at Wax Trax Records.
Rage Against the Machine formed in Los Angeles in 1991 around Zack de la Rocha (born January 12, 1970, Long Beach, California), Tom Morello (born May 30, 1964, New York City, raised in Libertyville, Illinois), Tim Commerford (born February 26, 1968, Irvine, California), and Brad Wilk (born September 5, 1968, Portland, Oregon). They are widely cited as the foundational act of rap rock as a recognized genre - combining hip hop vocal delivery with hard rock and heavy metal instrumentation. They are also widely cited as one of the most politically committed mainstream rock bands in popular music history, with anti-capitalist, anti-imperialist, anti-racist, and Indigenous rights lyrical content. Their 1992 self-titled debut album sold over 3 million copies in the US alone. Their 1999 album The Battle of Los Angeles debuted at number one on the Billboard 200. The band dissolved in October 2000 amid creative tensions, with Morello / Commerford / Wilk forming Audioslave with Soundgarden's Chris Cornell. The band reformed in 2007 for occasional touring activity. Tom Morello has parallel work as The Nightwatchman (his solo folk project), Audioslave, and Prophets of Rage. They were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2023. Their planned 2022-2023 reunion tour was curtailed when Zack de la Rocha tore his Achilles tendon onstage in July 2022, with the band announcing dissolution in January 2024. Their foundational influence on rap rock, political rock, and broader contemporary rock is widely cited.
Rage Against the Machine's sound is foundational to rap rock as a recognized genre - combining rap rock, alternative metal, funk metal, nu metal precursor, hardcore punk, hip hop, and political rock with Zack de la Rocha's distinctive vocal delivery (use of rapped and screamed political content), Tom Morello's foundational virtuosic guitar work (use of innovative effects pedal techniques, scratch-like sounds, and unconventional approaches to guitar as instrument), and lyrical content addressing political, economic, racial, and broader contemporary themes drawing on leftist political philosophy traditions.
Original Epic Records pressings of the Rage Against the Machine catalog are foundational items in rock collecting.
Listeners new to Rage Against the Machine typically start with Rage Against the Machine (1992) or The Battle of Los Angeles (1999).
