10 Greatest Final Albums In Rock

Given how volatile Rage Against the Machine were, we’re lucky that we got as much material as we did. The band were always working off of a harsh temperature, and the more chaotic the political climate, the more they had material to talk about, moving from pure rage on Killing in the Name to direct commentary on Bulls on Parade. Before we got the one record of cover songs though, it was election season, and Zack de la Rocha was ready to spew venom on The Battle of Los Angeles.

Almost a decade removed from their debut album, Rage’s third release is where they really started to settle into a groove, as every band member worked in their own separate lane. Going through every single song, you can hear everyone playing their own hook, from Zack’s gnashed teeth on Testify to the volcanic bass on Calm Like a Bomb to Tom Morello just being Tom Morello across every one of these tracks.

Rage are nothing without their lyrics though, and this is probably the most scathing that Zack has ever been on record, speaking about the atrocities that are happening half a world away or the ones that we see walking down the street, imagining America finally settling into its dystopian values on Sleep Now in the Fire and Guerrilla Radio. The big wigs may have just seen a bunch of kids wanting to watch money burn, but Rage were always more than that. These were some disenfranchised people using rage as their only form of resistance.