10 Greatest Nu Metal Albums Of All Time
2. Rage Against the Machine - Rage Against the Machine
No genre is birthed in a vacuum. Despite thousands of people who claim to start a genre of music, the only way music evolves is by naturally unfolding before your ears. Rage Against the Machine may not have planned to become the most important nu metal band in the world, but their debut record put them in the upper echelons of rock gods without even knowing it.
While nu metal may not have been much of a thought during the era of grunge, no one could deny that Rage's approach was different than their peers, with Zack de la Rocha's hip hop influenced vocal flow meshing perfectly with the DJ scratch noises coming from Tom Morello's guitar.
It also didn't hurt that these songs had pertinent messages behind them, from the racial injustices depicted in Killing in the Name to the internal protections you need to keep in mind on Know Your Enemy.
Instead of the traditional blends of hip hop and rock, Rage was the first of their kind to not compromise on either front, with songs that gave metalheads the jaw dropping solos, and hip hop fans quotable bars with every other song.
Rage Against the Machine's debut might not necessarily fit in the nu metal category all the time, but when looking through the beginnings of hip hop and rock, they end up fitting like a glove.