Rage Against the Machine
Rage Against the Machine was a band, formed in 1991. The band's founder members were vocalist Zack de la Rocha and guitarist Tom Morello. De la Rocha came up with the name while in a hardcore band named Inside Out, and that band recorded a song under the name. The full line-up of Rage was:
- Zack de la Rocha - vocals
- Tom Morello - guitars
- Brad Wilk - drums
- Tim Commerford - bass
One of the most important rock bands of the 1990s, Rage are generally credited with inventing the nu metal genre. Fans admired them for articulate and outspoken hard left politics, de la Rocha's distinctive, rap-influenced vocal style, Morello's experimentation with guitar sounds, and powerful live performances. They toured with many other significant bands, including U2 and the Wu-Tang Clan. Some, however, accused them of "selling out" because they signed with a major record label, or felt that their politics were mostly bluster with no real conviction.
The band released three studio albums of original material, Rage Against the Machine (1992), Evil Empire (1996) and The Battle of Los Angeles (1999). There was also a covers album, Renegades (2000), an album of live and rare material Live and Rare (1997), several singles, and two videos, Rage Against the Machine (1997) and The Battle of Mexico City (2001).
Zack de la Rocha left the band between the release of The Battle of Los Angeles and the release of Renegades, though the latter features his vocals. The band officially split up not long afterwards.