Rage Against the Machine has returned for their first show in 11 years and they were back doing what they do best and that’s well, raging against the machine.
And they played some absolute bangers while they were at it.
The legendary rockers performed at the Alpine Valley Music Theatre in Wisconsin over the weekend, which was their first performance together in more than a decade.
RATM was just as defiant as ever, playing out provocative messages on an onstage video screen while taking jabs at the US Supreme Court and the current state of the United States.
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They channelled their rage into the videos with powerful imagery and hard-hitting messages that read (via The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel): “Forced birth in a country that is the only wealthy country in the world without any guaranteed paid parental leave at the national level.
"Forced birth in a country where Black birth-givers experience maternal mortality two to three times higher than that of white birth-givers.
“Forced birth in a country where gun violence is the number one cause of death among children and teenagers.”
Strongly relevant messages at this time were summed up with a simple message: “Abort the Supreme Court.”
The direct and provocative message comes after Supreme Court justices decided to overturn Roe v Wade, a law that protected the right to an abortion in the United States.
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None of the band made any speeches across their 90-minute set, however, it wouldn’t be a RATM show if they weren’t sprouting anti-authoritarian messages and lyrics.
Whilst none of their catalogue were produced in the 21st century, given the current climate of the United States, they felt more relevant than ever.
Frontman Zach De La Rocha slightly tweaked the final number ‘Killing in the Name’ that condemns systemic racism to also put the fault on ‘politicians’ and not just those ‘who work forces’.
The band donated $475,000 from the proceeds of the show and two performances in Chicago to reproductive rights organisations in Wisconsin and Illinois.
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Their comeback show was two years in the making.
The band’s last performance was at 2011’s LA Rising festival.
The four-piece had planned on doing their reunion tour in 2020, however, much like everything in the world in the year 2020, those plans were derailed.
In saying that, their return and their political activism couldn’t come at a more important time for the United States.
Jayden Collins