Top Ten Songs by Rage Against the Machine

Top Ten Songs by Rage Against the Machine

There has never been a band like Rage Against the Machine, period. At least no band I have ever heard of. Mixing Hip Hop vocals and rhythms with heavy rock sensibilities, Rage created a potent, in-your-face style of music that sounded amazing, and also had a message. It is the type of music that makes you angry and pumps you up at the same time. Zach de la Rocha's politically and socially conscious lyrics are laid down so smoothly over the innovative and ingenious guitar riffs of Tom Morello.  Rage Against the Machine is one of the few overwhelmingly successful bands of the last decade to make real, powerful, and lasting music.

Upon the release of Rage Against the Machine's eponymous first album, a critic for Billboard magazine said the following: "On the strength of the album, they must be viewed as one of the most original and virtuosic new rock bands in the nation..."

10) Bombtrack: This song, from Rage Against the Machine's self-titled first album, Zach comes out swinging against big business and other bands that he finds too commercial. With the line "Land lords and power whores on my people they took turns," Zach sets himself up as a speaker against exploitation, and the name of the band is given credence. This militant song is one of the most energetic and angry as Zach sings to those in his crosshairs: "Burn, burn, yes you're gonna burn."