Day 0715 - Rage Against the Machine

Rage Against the Machine "Rage Against the Machine" (1992) - got it

Many bands are described as "exploding onto the music scene", but I'd say that RATM are actually deserving of that phrase.   Of all the bands branded with the often maligned label 'rap-metal', RATM managed to tap into the anger and aggression of both genres without really de-clawing either of them.

Rhythm section Brad Wilk and Tim Commerford lay down a funky and hardhitting base for vocalist Zack de la Rocha (once described, not inaccurately, by Tom Morello as the "punk-rock James Brown") to belt his raw-throated screams, raps and political protests over.  But the band-member name-checked most frequently is guitarist Tom Morello.  His guitar spits out thrash riffs, fiddly solos rhythmic grooves, and riffs... oh so many riffs.  Beyond that though, he engages in musical experimentation that sees him all but make his guitar moo like a cow.  His collection of squeals, stutters and scratches borrows from both metal and rap and elevates the band, giving them that point of difference.

The first song "Bombtrack" starts with a tantalising build-up before exploding all in your ears.  Single "Killing in the name" (whose riff Morello came up with while giving guitar lessons) is barely contained rock rage.   A little variety is provided by a guest spot by TOOL's Maynard James Keenan on "Know your enemy" and a moodier, more subdued approach to "Settle for Nothing" (though that also turns into a rager too on the choruses).

The band couldn't maintain this level of fire and originality, with their following two albums being a case of diminishing returns.  They rounded out their recorded career with the brilliant covers album "Renegades".  The band, freed from the requirement to come up with material, were able to just 'rage-ify' some existing songs.

Day 0696 - Apocalypse 91... the Enemy Strikes Black

Public Enemy "Apocalypse 91... the Enemy Strikes Black" (1991)

Increasing concerns from record companies around copyright laws were not conducive to Public Enemy's 'wall of noise' approach, building tracks from large quantities of samples.  To add to their woes, the data discs containing all the samples and bits and pieces for their fourth album were stolen, forcing them to go back to the drawing board.  The PE production group the Bomb Squad took a back-seat as 'Executive Producers' leaving the Imperial Grandmasters of Funk to handle the bulk of the production duties.

The arrangements are less dense, more conventional hip-hop production, but still a bit more interesting than just 'beat-n-bass'.

As usual, the mixture of MCs' styles adds a nice bit of variety to things.  Not really up to the standard of "It takes a nation of millions" or "Fear of a black planet" but it holds its own.

Day 0680 - Fear of a Black Planet

Public Enemy "Fear of a Black Planet" (1990)

Production team the Bomb Squad were clearly on a roll with this, and Ice Cube's album a couple of entries earlier on the list.

Here Public Enemy revisit the 'wall of noise', and layered samples that seem more like sound collages to a beat, than just straight backing tracks.  The MCs lay abrasive in-your-face rhymes over this... it's essentially a continuation of the sound of their brilliant sophomore album "It takes a nation of millions to hold us back".

If it aint broke, don't fix it.

As the title suggests, race relations, African American empowerment and the issue of white supremacy are addressed.
A great time for hip hop, and an intense listening experience.  I can only guess at what it would be like to see these guys do their thing live.

Day 0635 - It Takes a Nation of Millions To Hold Us Back

Public Enemy "It Takes a Nation of Millions To Hold Us Back" (1988)

I love so many of these early rap records.   Intelligent, socially conscious lyrics, and a magpie-like approach to assembling their sounds.  The tracks feature everything from James Brown to Slayer.  As well as the music, spoken word and 'found-sound' samples are used.   There's an odd high-pitched noise that runs throughout the different tracks that would have seemed odd at the time, but came to be used by a few 90s rap artists.  Chuck D proclaimed that if Phil Spector invented the 'wall of sound' production approach, Public Enemy's Hank Shockley invented the 'Wall of Noise'.

It's a sign of how influential the album has been that other artists have likewise pilfered sounds and lines from this record, with artists ranging from Jurassic 5 to Weezer taking bits and pieces from them. The track "Prophets of Rage" would go on to give the name to the group that Chuck D would form with ex-members of Rage Against the Machine.  That collaboration also prompted by the influence this group had on that band.

There's hardcore rap, rock/metal-rap and the brilliant subversion of the Beastie Boys hit with "Party for your right to fight".   The mix of MCs works too, with Flava Flav adding a touch of levity to the otherwise intense verbal onslaught.