Guerrilla Radio
Encyclopedia
"Guerrilla Radio" is the second track from the 1999 album The Battle of Los Angeles
by the band Rage Against the Machine
. The band won the Grammy Award for Best Hard Rock Performance
for this song. It has remained one of their signature tracks. "Guerrilla Radio" was also featured on the soundtracks for video games such as Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 2
and Madden NFL 10
, as well as being a downloadable track for the Rock Band
series.
"Guerrilla Radio" was performed live on The Late Show With David Letterman in 1999. During the commercial break, "Bulls on Parade
" was played and was re-joined in progress while the credits were playing. Letterman joked that "he hoped they (Rage Against the Machine) weren't neglecting their school work". The performance was controversial due to Zack de la Rocha
giving the middle finger on live TV and wearing a "Free Mumia Abu-Jamal
" t-shirt.
On January 28, 2000, documentary film maker Michael Moore
convinced campaigning politician Alan Keyes
to mosh in a truck with young teenagers listening to "Guerrilla Radio". Keyes, who was campaigning for the Republican nomination at the Iowa caucuses, agreed to join in the mosh for the endorsement of Moore's satirical
television show, The Awful Truth
.
The song was covered by lounge/comedy group Richard Cheese and Lounge Against the Machine
, whose band name also spoofs Rage. In April 2007, Alanis Morissette
covered it live. It is worth noting that Rage Against The Machine's Evil Empire
bumped her album Jagged Little Pill
from the number one spot on the Billboard 200
back in 1996.
On July 2007, the song's video for "Guerrilla Radio" was ranked #45 on MuchMusic
's 50 Most Controversial Videos for extreme amounts of profanity. Though, it appeared in RTPN
adverts in the summer of 2006, as an instrumental song.
This song is featured on the album Body of War: Songs that Inspired an Iraq War Veteran
.
"Guerrilla Radio" made its live debut on September 11, 1999, at the Oxford Zodiac in England.
The song is one of 31 music files in RIAA v. Tenenbaum
case, which resulted in finding the individual file-sharer guilty of copyright infringement in July 2009, demanding an award of $22,500 a song.
In December 2009, Guerilla Radio was placed #54 on Channel V's Top 1000 Noughties Music Videos of the decade, Countdown.
in October 1999 and directed by Honey, i.e., the husband-and-wife directorial team of Laura Kelly and Nicholas Brooks. The video which, among others, touches upon the exploitation of garment workers, parodies the popular late '90s Gap commercials directed by Pedro Romhanyi. These ads featured attractive young people singing songs while against a white backdrop, wearing Gap clothing. The phrase "everybody in denial" (the 'denial' being Gap brand leather, vests, etc) then flashes loudly across the screen.
The video begins with bland, generic, elevator music
music being played. There are shots of sweatshop workers (UNITE! union members playing themselves) at their tables, against a white backdrop. Shortly, the phrase "everybody in denial" is flashed on screen. The band is then seen standing against a white background, calmly playing their instruments. As the song picks up, pictures are seen of a man putting money from the workers in his pockets, taking a girl away from her mother, and the band playing live in a dark, strobe-lit room.
produced a remix of the song, featuring rearranged instrumentals and new verses by Zack de la Rocha along with the original version's chorus and outro.
As part of his solo project, The Nightwatchman
, Tom Morello plays an acoustic version of this song at live shows.
Parody lounge music
singer Richard Cheese performed a version on his album Lounge Against the Machine
.
The song also appeared in the intro of the video game of Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 2
.
The Battle of Los Angeles (album)
-Track listing:All songs written and arranged by Rage Against the Machine and all lyrics by Zack de la Rocha.#"Testify" – 3:30#"Guerrilla Radio" – 3:26#"Calm Like a Bomb" – 4:58#"Mic Check" – 3:33#"Sleep Now in the Fire" – 3:25#"Born of a Broken Man" – 4:41...
by the band Rage Against the Machine
Rage Against the Machine
Rage Against the Machine is an American rock band from Los Angeles, California. Formed in 1991, the group's line-up consists of vocalist Zack de la Rocha, bassist and backing vocalist Tim Commerford, guitarist Tom Morello and drummer Brad Wilk...
. The band won the Grammy Award for Best Hard Rock Performance
Grammy Award for Best Hard Rock Performance
The Grammy Award for Best Hard Rock Performance was an award presented to recording artists at the Grammy Awards, a ceremony that was established in 1958 and originally called the Gramophone Awards, for works containing quality performances in the hard rock music genre...
for this song. It has remained one of their signature tracks. "Guerrilla Radio" was also featured on the soundtracks for video games such as Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 2
Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 2
Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 2, often abbreviated as THPS2, is the second game in the Tony Hawk's series. It was developed by Neversoft and published by Activision in 2000...
and Madden NFL 10
Madden NFL 10
For the tenth installment in the Madden series, see Madden 64Madden NFL 10 is an American football video game based on the National Football League that was published by EA Sports and developed by EA Tiburon. It is the 21st annual installment in the Madden NFL video game franchise...
, as well as being a downloadable track for the Rock Band
Rock Band
Rock Band is a music video game developed by Harmonix Music Systems, published by MTV Games and Electronic Arts. It is the first title in the Rock Band series. The PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 versions were released in the United States on November 20, 2007, while the PlayStation 2 version was...
series.
"Guerrilla Radio" was performed live on The Late Show With David Letterman in 1999. During the commercial break, "Bulls on Parade
Bulls on Parade
"Bulls on Parade" is a song released by Rage Against the Machine in 1996, and can be found on their second album Evil Empire.-Context:"Bulls on Parade" addresses the American military-industrial complex, a situation in which industry urges government to take military action, with the intent of...
" was played and was re-joined in progress while the credits were playing. Letterman joked that "he hoped they (Rage Against the Machine) weren't neglecting their school work". The performance was controversial due to Zack de la Rocha
Zack de la Rocha
Zacarías Manuel "Zack" de la Rocha is an American rapper, musician, poet, and activist best known as the vocalist and lyricist of Rage Against the Machine.-Early life and childhood:...
giving the middle finger on live TV and wearing a "Free Mumia Abu-Jamal
Mumia Abu-Jamal
Mumia Abu-Jamal was convicted of the 1981 murder of Philadelphia police officer Daniel Faulkner and sentenced to death. He has been described as "perhaps the world's best known death-row inmate", and his sentence is one of the most debated today...
" t-shirt.
On January 28, 2000, documentary film maker Michael Moore
Michael Moore
Michael Francis Moore is an American filmmaker, author, social critic and activist. He is the director and producer of Fahrenheit 9/11, which is the highest-grossing documentary of all time. His films Bowling for Columbine and Sicko also place in the top ten highest-grossing documentaries...
convinced campaigning politician Alan Keyes
Alan Keyes
Alan Lee Keyes is an American conservative political activist, author, former diplomat, and perennial candidate for public office. A doctoral graduate of Harvard University, Keyes began his diplomatic career in the U.S...
to mosh in a truck with young teenagers listening to "Guerrilla Radio". Keyes, who was campaigning for the Republican nomination at the Iowa caucuses, agreed to join in the mosh for the endorsement of Moore's satirical
Satire
Satire is primarily a literary genre or form, although in practice it can also be found in the graphic and performing arts. In satire, vices, follies, abuses, and shortcomings are held up to ridicule, ideally with the intent of shaming individuals, and society itself, into improvement...
television show, The Awful Truth
The Awful Truth (TV series)
The Awful Truth was a satirical television show that was directed, written, and hosted by filmmaker Michael Moore, and funded by the British broadcaster Channel 4.-Format:...
.
The song was covered by lounge/comedy group Richard Cheese and Lounge Against the Machine
Richard Cheese and Lounge Against the Machine
Mark Jonathan Davis , known by his stage name Richard Cheese, is an American musician and comedian. He was born in New York...
, whose band name also spoofs Rage. In April 2007, Alanis Morissette
Alanis Morissette
Alanis Nadine Morissette is a Canadian-American singer-songwriter, guitarist, record producer, and actress. She has won 16 Juno Awards and seven Grammy Awards, was nominated for two Golden Globe Awards and also shortlisted for an Academy Award nomination...
covered it live. It is worth noting that Rage Against The Machine's Evil Empire
Evil empire
The phrase evil empire was applied to the Soviet Union especially by U.S. President Ronald Reagan, who took an aggressive, hard-line stance that favored matching and exceeding the Soviet Union's strategic and global military capabilities, in calling for a rollback strategy that would, in his words,...
bumped her album Jagged Little Pill
Jagged Little Pill
Jagged Little Pill is the third studio album by Canadian recording artist and songwriter Alanis Morissette. It was Morissette's first internationally released album, and her first studio album after the three year hiatus following her break with MCA Records. The album marked a shift from her style...
from the number one spot on the Billboard 200
Billboard 200
The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling music albums and EPs in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists...
back in 1996.
On July 2007, the song's video for "Guerrilla Radio" was ranked #45 on MuchMusic
MuchMusic
MuchMusic is a Canadian English language Category A specialty channel owned by Bell Media. MuchMusic is dedicated to music-related programs, pop and youth culture.-History:...
's 50 Most Controversial Videos for extreme amounts of profanity. Though, it appeared in RTPN
RTPN
RTP Informação is a Portuguese 24-hour news channel operated by Rádio e Televisão de Portugal available on cable and satellite. The channel was launched in 2001 as NTV, a cable news channel headquartered in Porto. It was originally a joint-venture between PT Multimédia, Lusomundo and the...
adverts in the summer of 2006, as an instrumental song.
This song is featured on the album Body of War: Songs that Inspired an Iraq War Veteran
Body of War: Songs that Inspired an Iraq War Veteran
"Body of War: Songs that Inspired an Iraq War Veteran" is an album produced for the documentary Body of War. It was created to help make profits towards Young's organization, aside from complementing the film...
.
"Guerrilla Radio" made its live debut on September 11, 1999, at the Oxford Zodiac in England.
The song is one of 31 music files in RIAA v. Tenenbaum
RIAA v. Tenenbaum
Sony BMG Music Entertainment et al. v. Tenenbaum is a court case wherein record label Sony BMG, along with Warner Bros. Records, Atlantic Records, Arista Records, and UMG Recordings accused Joel Tenenbaum of illegally downloading and sharing files, thus violating U.S. copyright law...
case, which resulted in finding the individual file-sharer guilty of copyright infringement in July 2009, demanding an award of $22,500 a song.
In December 2009, Guerilla Radio was placed #54 on Channel V's Top 1000 Noughties Music Videos of the decade, Countdown.
Music video
The promo was shot by production company Squeak Pictures in Los AngelesLos Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
in October 1999 and directed by Honey, i.e., the husband-and-wife directorial team of Laura Kelly and Nicholas Brooks. The video which, among others, touches upon the exploitation of garment workers, parodies the popular late '90s Gap commercials directed by Pedro Romhanyi. These ads featured attractive young people singing songs while against a white backdrop, wearing Gap clothing. The phrase "everybody in denial" (the 'denial' being Gap brand leather, vests, etc) then flashes loudly across the screen.
The video begins with bland, generic, elevator music
Elevator music
Elevator music refers to instrumental arrangements of popular music designed for playing in shopping malls, grocery stores, department stores, telephone systems , cruise ships, airports, doctors' and dentists' offices, and elevators...
music being played. There are shots of sweatshop workers (UNITE! union members playing themselves) at their tables, against a white backdrop. Shortly, the phrase "everybody in denial" is flashed on screen. The band is then seen standing against a white background, calmly playing their instruments. As the song picks up, pictures are seen of a man putting money from the workers in his pockets, taking a girl away from her mother, and the band playing live in a dark, strobe-lit room.
Limited edition versions (UK)
In the United Kingdom, two Limited Edition versions of the single were released. Most notably, Part 2's alternative album artwork is red where as the standard is white.Part 1
- "Guerrilla Radio"
- "No ShelterNo Shelter"No Shelter" is a politically charged song released by Rage Against the Machine in 1998 that was featured on the Godzilla soundtrack. It can also be found as a bonus track on the Australian and Japanese release of The Battle of Los Angeles in 1999...
" - "The Ghost of Tom Joad"
Part 2
- "Guerrilla Radio" (Radio Edit)
- "Fuck tha PoliceFuck tha Police"Fuck tha Police" is a protest song by the gangsta rap group N.W.A that appears on the album Straight Outta Compton. Despite not being a single, it ranked #425 on Rolling Stone's list of the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time....
" (Live) (N.W.A cover) - "FreedomFreedom (Rage Against the Machine song)"Freedom" was a single released by Rage Against the Machine from their self-titled album in 1994.The song is played in Drop D tuning on the guitars and has a distinctive riff in the intro and chorus...
" (Live)
Other versions
DJ QuikDJ Quik
David Martin Blake , better known by his stage name DJ Quik, is an MC and record producer. According to Quik himself, his stage name reflects his ability to produce records in short time....
produced a remix of the song, featuring rearranged instrumentals and new verses by Zack de la Rocha along with the original version's chorus and outro.
As part of his solo project, The Nightwatchman
The Nightwatchman
The Nightwatchman is the alter-ego and solo act of Rage Against the Machine, Street Sweeper Social Club and former Audioslave guitarist Tom Morello...
, Tom Morello plays an acoustic version of this song at live shows.
Parody lounge music
Lounge music
Lounge music is a retrospective description of music popular in the 1950s and 1960s. It is a type of mood music meant to evoke in the listeners the feeling of being in a place — a jungle, an island paradise, outer space, et cetera — other than where they are listening to it...
singer Richard Cheese performed a version on his album Lounge Against the Machine
Lounge Against the Machine
Lounge Against the Machine is the first album of Richard Cheese, released October 17, 2000. The album title is a play on the name of the band Rage Against the Machine....
.
The song also appeared in the intro of the video game of Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 2
Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 2
Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 2, often abbreviated as THPS2, is the second game in the Tony Hawk's series. It was developed by Neversoft and published by Activision in 2000...
.
External links
- Axis of Justice Tom Morello and Serj TankianSerj TankianSerj Tankian is a Lebanese-born Armenian-American singer–songwriter, composer, multi-instrumentalist, playwright, record producer, poet, and political activist...
's Activist Website "Axis Of JusticeAxis of JusticeAxis of Justice is a non-profit organization co-founded by Serj Tankian and Tom Morello. Its purpose is to bring together musicians, fans of music, and grassroots progressivism to fight for social justice together.-Formation:...
" - Vietnow.org Rage Against The Machine news resource and forum