Rage Against The Machine – Plan To “Knockout” Bush

MTV.com reports: Back in 2004, in reaction to the Bush administration’s handling of the war in Iraq, the satirical newspaper The Onion ran an article titled, “Where Are You Now, When We Need You Most, RAGE AGAINST THE MACHINE?”

The answer was, um, “busy” — for guitarist Tom Morello, bassist Tim Commerford and drummer Brad Wilk, it was with AUDIOSLAVE; for frontman Zack de la Rocha, it was with, well, who knows? But the important thing is that RAGE AGAINST THE MACHINE will soon reunite for the eighth annual Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival in Indio, California, on April 29. And yes, folks, RAGE will be taking the stage with a singular mission in mind.

“To deliver a knockout blow to the Bush administration,” Morello explained in his first interview since RAGE’s reunion announcement January 22. “And hopefully, one night in the desert is all it will take. They’re teetering, so …”

RAGE AGAINST THE MACHINE — who have remained dormant since splitting in 2000 — will close out the three-day festival, which will also feature performances by THE RED HOT CHILI PEPPERS, THE ARCADE FIRE, INTERPOL, THE ARCTIC MONKEYS, Ghostface Killah, Björk and loads more.

“Everybody’s really into it,” he added. “It’s going to be exciting.”

Morello said Coachella organizers have been trying to convince the band to re-form for the fest “for as many years as they’ve had the festival.” While he has said in previous interviews that a RAGE reunion was unlikely, and despite the fact that the band continually turned down the Coachella offers, Morello said the time was just right for a RAGE return.

“Is it coincidence that in the seven years that RAGE AGAINST THE MACHINE has been away that the country has slid into right-wing purgatory? I think not,” he said. “It occurred to all of us that the times were right to see if we can knock the Bush administration out in one fell swoop, and we hope to do that job well. This administration has done enough damage that it may take generations to undo. This is an administration that believes it’s beyond the laws of the land, which is fine for emperors, but not so great for presidents. One thing this president isn’t above is the laws of physics, and there is no action without reaction. And we’re part of that reaction.”

For now, RAGE are playing just one show, Morello said — but he wouldn’t rule out the possibility of future RAGE activities. Which leads to the obvious question: What’s up with AUDIOSLAVE?

“AUDIOSLAVE is currently not touring on the record — [frontman] Chris [Cornell] did not want to tour [on 2006's] Revelations, and my principal focus is now [Morello's solo project] The Nightwatchman,” he said. “To me, it seems that the world needs songs of rebellion and revolution right now.

“It’s exciting, man,” he continued, of the Coachella gig. “It’s going to be crazy, and … it’s exciting in that I think it’s healing in a way. These are times that demand drastic measures, and RAGE returning for this one show, it’s exciting musically, but it’s the kind of thing that needs to happen now.”

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