No Shelter
Encyclopedia
"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 song is about how the mass media
distract the public from more important issues in the world and manipulate people's minds.
The song discusses consumerism and criticizes the feigned rebelliousness of teenaged consumerism, mentioning Nike
and Coca-Cola
particularly. Its central theme, however, is media control over public sentiment. In particular it attacks the historical accuracy of Steven Spielberg
’s film Amistad
.
Despite appearing on the Godzilla soundtrack, the song contains the following line attacking the film series
:
The intro guitar riff bears similarity to The Rolling Stones
' "Fingerprint File".
"No Shelter" made its live debut on January 28th, 1999, at the Continental Arena in East Rutherford, NJ. That show was a benefit show for the convicted murderer Mumia Abu-Jamal
.
with scenes of workers in assembly lines, while company owners oversee the operations. The band plays throughout the video in a room that seems to be part of an abandoned building or factory. In the "board room", executives and developers plot out a sort of "helmet" with a video screen that covers the face. They experiment by putting the helmet on a teenager who is perturbed and upset. The video screen displays a mouth smiling. The executives declare the helmet a success, and shake hands. They take the teenager away in a van, and kill him in a remote area. Because the song was released for the 1998 film Godzilla
, satirical "spoofs" of the movie's phrase "Size does matter" appear on billboards in the city scenes. They are:
Interspersed throughout is a montage depicting the executed Scottsboro Boys
and the impending execution and death by electric chair
of Sacco and Vanzetti
, both historical examples of unfair trials.
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...
in 1998 that was featured on the Godzilla
Godzilla (1998 film)
Godzilla is a 1998 science fiction monster disaster film film co-written and directed by Roland Emmerich. It is a loose remake of the 1954 giant monster classic Godzilla. The storyline was conceived from a screenplay written by Emmerich and Dean Devlin. The film relates a tale of a nuclear incident...
soundtrack. It can also be found as a bonus track on the Australian and Japanese release of The Battle of Los Angeles
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...
in 1999. The song is about how the mass media
Mass media
Mass media refers collectively to all media technologies which are intended to reach a large audience via mass communication. Broadcast media transmit their information electronically and comprise of television, film and radio, movies, CDs, DVDs and some other gadgets like cameras or video consoles...
distract the public from more important issues in the world and manipulate people's minds.
The song discusses consumerism and criticizes the feigned rebelliousness of teenaged consumerism, mentioning Nike
Nike, Inc.
Nike, Inc. is a major publicly traded sportswear and equipment supplier based in the United States. The company is headquartered near Beaverton, Oregon, which is part of the Portland metropolitan area...
and Coca-Cola
Coca-Cola
Coca-Cola is a carbonated soft drink sold in stores, restaurants, and vending machines in more than 200 countries. It is produced by The Coca-Cola Company of Atlanta, Georgia, and is often referred to simply as Coke...
particularly. Its central theme, however, is media control over public sentiment. In particular it attacks the historical accuracy of Steven Spielberg
Steven Spielberg
Steven Allan Spielberg KBE is an American film director, screenwriter, producer, video game designer, and studio entrepreneur. In a career of more than four decades, Spielberg's films have covered many themes and genres. Spielberg's early science-fiction and adventure films were seen as an...
’s film Amistad
Amistad (1997 film)
Amistad is a 1997 historical drama film directed by Steven Spielberg based on the true story of a mutiny in 1839 by newly captured African slaves that took place aboard the ship La Amistad off the coast of Cuba, the subsequent voyage to the Northeastern United States and the legal battle that...
.
Despite appearing on the Godzilla soundtrack, the song contains the following line attacking the film series
Film series
A film series is a collection of related films in succession. Their relationship is not fixed, but generally share a common diegetic world. Sometimes the work is conceived as a multiple-film work, for example the Three Colours series, but in most cases the success of the original film inspires...
:
The intro guitar riff bears similarity to The Rolling Stones
The Rolling Stones
The Rolling Stones are an English rock band, formed in London in April 1962 by Brian Jones , Ian Stewart , Mick Jagger , and Keith Richards . Bassist Bill Wyman and drummer Charlie Watts completed the early line-up...
' "Fingerprint File".
"No Shelter" made its live debut on January 28th, 1999, at the Continental Arena in East Rutherford, NJ. That show was a benefit show for the convicted murderer 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...
.
Music video
This video has a retro, 1920s "Golden Age" theme. It resembles the Industrial RevolutionIndustrial Revolution
The Industrial Revolution was a period from the 18th to the 19th century where major changes in agriculture, manufacturing, mining, transportation, and technology had a profound effect on the social, economic and cultural conditions of the times...
with scenes of workers in assembly lines, while company owners oversee the operations. The band plays throughout the video in a room that seems to be part of an abandoned building or factory. In the "board room", executives and developers plot out a sort of "helmet" with a video screen that covers the face. They experiment by putting the helmet on a teenager who is perturbed and upset. The video screen displays a mouth smiling. The executives declare the helmet a success, and shake hands. They take the teenager away in a van, and kill him in a remote area. Because the song was released for the 1998 film Godzilla
Godzilla (1998 film)
Godzilla is a 1998 science fiction monster disaster film film co-written and directed by Roland Emmerich. It is a loose remake of the 1954 giant monster classic Godzilla. The storyline was conceived from a screenplay written by Emmerich and Dean Devlin. The film relates a tale of a nuclear incident...
, satirical "spoofs" of the movie's phrase "Size does matter" appear on billboards in the city scenes. They are:
- "Mumia Abu-JamalMumia Abu-JamalMumia 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...
's cell is this big" (a tiny cell) -- "Justice does matter!" - "The crater at HiroshimaHiroshimais the capital of Hiroshima Prefecture, and the largest city in the Chūgoku region of western Honshu, the largest island of Japan. It became best known as the first city in history to be destroyed by a nuclear weapon when the United States Army Air Forces dropped an atomic bomb on it at 8:15 A.M...
would stretch from here"... (zooms out to other end of city)... "to here." -- "History does matter!" - "Babies born into poverty in the U.S. each year would fill this building" (large building) -- "Inequality does matter!"
- "Land stolen from Mexico equals five states" (darken area of US map, covering from California to Texas) -- "ImperialismImperialismImperialism, as defined by Dictionary of Human Geography, is "the creation and/or maintenance of an unequal economic, cultural, and territorial relationships, usually between states and often in the form of an empire, based on domination and subordination." The imperialism of the last 500 years,...
matters!"
Interspersed throughout is a montage depicting the executed Scottsboro Boys
Scottsboro Boys
The Scottsboro Boys were nine black teenage boys accused of rape in Alabama in 1931. The landmark set of legal cases from this incident dealt with racism and the right to a fair trial...
and the impending execution and death by electric chair
Electric chair
Execution by electrocution, usually performed using an electric chair, is an execution method originating in the United States in which the condemned person is strapped to a specially built wooden chair and electrocuted through electrodes placed on the body...
of Sacco and Vanzetti
Sacco and Vanzetti
Ferdinando Nicola Sacco and Bartolomeo Vanzetti were anarchists who were convicted of murdering two men during a 1920 armed robbery in South Braintree, Massachusetts, United States...
, both historical examples of unfair trials.
Song appearances
- "No Shelter" is featured daily as the closing theme song on "Red Heat" on Hardcore Sports Radio Sirius Satellite Channel 98 from the late fall of 2009 to mid-June 2010 at which point the show was augmented. The song is still featured as the closing before the augmented segment re-opens.
External links
- Official Rage Against the Machine Website
- 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:...
"