Rage Against the Machine

[Mysteron]

If you live in the UK, buy 'Killing in the Name of' buy RATM as a single somewhere after 13th December. It is being used as an anti X-factor thing in the UK for Xmas No.1 this year.

I hate those kind of shows and the Rage guys are great. It seems like a good idea.

[Genesis]

RATM is winning by 10% now!

[mrlee]

Xfactor Cd comes out tommorow....

[Alan]

Tom Morello supports it 

[Bansidhe]

Sounds a laugh & it was just on the evening news about it a few minutes ago. The irony is that Cowell has a major stake in the record label which hosts RATM so he's still going to benefit from the increased sales being a major shareholder. It would still be a chuckle though to have something meaningful in the charts rather than some kareoke artist.

[BlowUpYourVideo]

I heard them playing KITN on Absolute Radio earlier on. I assume it's because of this 'campaign' thing. I didn't hear them say anything about it, I was in the car and it was a short journey.

Sounded odd to hear it on a car radio while not playing GTA San Andreas....

[CheapJon]

I heard them playing KITN on Absolute Radio earlier on. I assume it's because of this 'campaign' thing. I didn't hear them say anything about it, I was in the car and it was a short journey.

Sounded odd to hear it on a car radio while not playing GTA San Andreas....

san andreas kicked so much ass, though I almost always listened to tommy "the nightmare" smith's radio show

[Alan]

http://www.facebook.com/board.php?uid=2228594104#/topic.php?uid=2228594104&topic=14532

for anyone outside the UK who want to help with this 

rage were ahead this morning but now only by just over 8,000 sales

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SfZGUdcBBLc

[Alan]

No1 

[Genesis]

Wow, suck on that Simon Cowell. That's the Internet power.

[Layne Staley's Sunglasses]

Here comes another Bombtrack!

Rage is cool, but it can get boring and repetitive.  I only have the debut, I wanna ask all the other Rage fans here, does Zach ever actually sing?  Or is it just speech over melodies?

[babydolls]

Rage Against the Machine beat X Factor winner in charts 
 
From BBC news website:

Rock band Rage Against the Machine have won the most competitive battle in years for the Christmas number one.

The band's single, Killing In The Name, sold 500,000 downloads beating X Factor winner Joe McElderry's The Climb by 50,000 copies to clinch the top spot.

Their success followed a Facebook campaign designed to prevent another X Factor number one.

One retailer said it was a "truly remarkable outcome - possibly the greatest chart upset ever".

Speaking on the Radio 1 chart show, Zack de la Rocha from Rage said: "We are very, very ecstatic about being number one."

He added it was an "incredible organic grassroots campaign".

'Sterile pop'

"It says more about the spontaneous action taken by young people throughout the UK to topple this very sterile pop monopoly," he said.

 CHART ANALYSIS
 
Colin Paterson, BBC News entertainment reporter
It is simply one of the biggest shocks in chart history.

The common belief was that the race for Christmas number one had been destroyed by the X Factor.

This year the corporate might of Simon Cowell has been defeated by a husband and wife's Facebook campaign.

This chart shock is right up there with Spiller's 'Groovejet' derailing the start of Victoria Beckham's non-Spice Career in 2000 or crooner Engelbert Humperdinck ending The Beatles' run of 11 number ones in a row.

Two other points; this could become an annual event, the public deciding on a track with which to take on the X Factor winner.

Secondly there is still every chance Joe will reach number one next week.

The Rage Against the Machine campaign was designed for one week only so Joe could get the top spot, saving him the indignity of being the first X Factor winner not to hit number one with their debut single.
 
McElderry, 18, praised the campaign, adding: "It's been exciting to be part of a much-hyped battle and they definitely deserve congratulations."

Thanking all the fans who bought his single, he said: "This time last year I never thought for one minute that I'd win The X Factor, never mind about having a debut single out, so I'm just delighted to be in the charts.

"It's been such an incredible couple of months and I got the best Christmas gift I could ever have asked for in winning The X Factor."

He later told BBC Radio One he did not believe the internet campaign was a personal attack.

He said: "It's more against the show than me and I think if any other person had have won, the same thing would have happened, because the petition was going on before the winner had been announced."

Despite earlier in the week calling the campaign "stupid", X Factor judge Simon Cowell offered his congratulations to the couple behind it, Jon and Tracy Morter.


Facebook campaigner Jon Morter on why he set up the battle
He said: "I am gutted for Joe because a number one single meant a lot to him but I have to congratulate Jon and Tracy, who started the Facebook campaign.

"I called Jon on Saturday to congratulate the two of them that, win or lose, they turned this into a very exciting race for the Christmas number one.

"I am proud of Joe - he worked really hard this week, but he has a great year ahead of him."

'Silly idea'

This is not the first campaign the Morters have launched to try to influence the charts - last year they attempted to get Rick Astley to the top spot.

Mr Morter, 35, said he learnt "how the charts work" from that experience, and "what you can get away with".

"When this year came around I just thought, let's have another go. If anything, last year was fun. This year it has gone stratospheric."


 
 
His wife Tracy said: "It was one of those little silly ideas that make you laugh in your own house.

"We really love music and remember when were were young the charts were really exciting. We just thought, wouldn't it be funny if that song got to number one?

"It took something really strong and forceful to get people behind it."

The Los Angeles rock band's hit also set another record: it has achieved the biggest download sales total in a first week ever in the UK charts.

McElderry's song was only released digitally after his victory in the X Factor, giving it less time to rack up sales than Rage Against The Machine.

On Friday the band's lead was just 9,000 copies, but sales then soared by 200,000 to secure victory.

 RECENT CHRISTMAS NUMBER ONES
2000: Bob the Builder: Can We Fix It
2001: Robbie Williams & Nicole Kidman: Somethin' Stupid
2002: Girls Aloud: Sound of the Underground
2003: Michael Andrews feat Gary Jules: Mad World
Band Aid 20: Do They Know It's Christmas?
2005: Shayne Ward: That's My Goal
2006: Leona Lewis: A Moment Like This
2007: Leon Jackson: When You Believe
2008: Alexandra Burke: Hallelujah


What is Killing In The Name all about?
Have Your Say: What does Rage's victory mean for X Factor? 
Rage Against The Machine are signed to Epic Records, which is part of Sony BMG, the same label as McElderry.

De la Rocha said the band would perform a free concert in the UK in 2010 to celebrate their chart win.

The past four Christmas number ones have all been by X Factor winners; Alexandra Burke's version of Hallelujah last year was one of the biggest selling festive singles ever.

Guitarist Tom Morello said it had "tapped into the silent majority of the people in the UK who are tired of being spoon-fed one schmaltzy ballad after another".

He added that proceeds from the single would go to homeless charity Shelter tying in with the Morters' Facebook campaign which includes an online link to give to the charity, raising over ?70,000 so far.

The last big Christmas battle on a similar scale was between the Spice Girls' Goodbye and South Park character Chef's Chocolate Salty Balls in 1998. The Spice Girls won with 380,000 to their rival's 375,000.

Despite losing out on the single top spot, Cowell kept a hold on the album chart, with Susan Boyle's I Dreamed A Dream remaining at number one for a fourth week.

 
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/8423340.stm

Fkn brilliant. who cares they are both on Sony - it was about the music.

[AxlReznor]

I mainly wrote this in response to some of the complaints I've heard... but thought I'd post it on here before putting it on Facebook.

Do you remember back in the 1990?s, when there was always great interest in which song was going to make it to Christmas No. 1? Even people who had avoided the charts throughout the rest of the year were eager to listen to the radio to find out who won that coveted spot. The best song didn?t always win... there was a nationwide groan when it was announced that the Mr. Blobby song had gotten to the top spot in 1993 for example. But it was genuinely interesting and unpredictable. And it was a nationwide tradition that dated back to the 1950?s.

It was one of the traditions that in recent years had been lost, with the last Christmas chart race of any interest being in 2003, when Michael Andrews and Gary Jules shocked the country by making ?Mad World? the most depressing ? but awesome ? song to win the race in history. Then, in 2004 onward that all ended. Simon Cowell entered the arena with The X Factor, manipulating it so that the final would take place on the weekend before the Christmas Number One race, and thus ensuring that when the single ? always a bad cover of a ballad, sang exactly the same by whoever the winner is ? was released on the following Monday, it would certainly get to number one.

This method worked four years in a row, taking anything interesting out of the whole idea, because everybody knew what was going to win, it became something that no one bothered talking about any more.
In 2008, there was an attempt to break this tradition by a small-scale campaign for people to buy Jeff Buckley?s version of the song ?Hallelujah? ? the Leonard Cohen song that was also being released by X Factor winner Alexandra Burke. But the campaign was doomed to failure, due to lack of promotion of the campaign. Jeff Buckley ? as awesome a musician as he was before his untimely death ? obviously just wasn?t controversial enough to garner the publicity needed to make such a campaign a success.

One year on, the country decided to make an attempt to end The X Factor?s unfair advantage in the Christmas chart once again, but this time choosing ?Killing In The Name? by Rage Against The Machine ? a band custom-built for controversy. The song had a point to begin with ? calling attention to the KKK and US-led wars with the line ?some of those who work forces, are the same that burn crosses?, but this time the emphasis would be on the defiant outro chant of ?Fuck you, I won?t do what you tell me!?... a political slogan, reinterpreted as an attack on those that have manipulated the charts in their favour.

Now for those who complain that as a major player of Sony Records, Simon Cowell would have won either way, that is not the point. The protest was aimed purely and simply at the monolopy held by The X Factor ? that it?s a creation of Simon Cowell is pure coincidence. Whereas there is a real problem with the money men in the industry ? of which Cowell is certainly one of ? you?ve got to learn to choose your battles. So the aim was not at Simon Cowell?s wallet in any way ? no matter how much he tried to make it about himself. If it was, we would have gone down a slippery slope, because no matter what song chosen, there would be an asshole raking in the profits. Nor is it about Sony, the record label who put out both songs.

Now there?s another argument that Joe McElderry ?deserved? to be number one, because of all of the ?hard work? he put in. Hard work? He entered a glorified talent contest that only gets widespread attention because it?s on TV instead of at the local pub. He turned up every week and he sang a song. Everything else was down to the judges and the people who watched the show. He went to the studio, and he recorded a song that he had no part in writing, arranging, producing, etc. This is not hard work.

The other argument is that not getting to number one with his first single would ruin his career. I?m sorry, but if not going straight to number one with your first single that you had no part in the creation of except for turning up at the studio to sing it is enough to doom his career, then quite bluntly he?s not good enough to have a music career in the first place. Which would have surely turned out to be the case sooner than later anyway... after all, out of the four people who did get to number one with their debut single through the show, only Leona Lewis has managed to keep her popularity after the initial hype had died down. And this is because, despite the fact that I?m not personally a fan, she genuinely does have a fantastic voice, and a stage presence that manages to hold people?s interest.

Now let?s put this in contrast with Rage Against The Machine. Not only did they write their own songs, but they went through the rite of passage that all musicians worth their salt go through. They began playing clubs, had to fight for a record deal, and gradually built up their fanbase. They never had a hit single in the UK until now ? after 20 years ? and yet they have managed to have not one, but two hugely successful headlining sets at the Reading Festival playing to tens of thousands of people each time. Quite simply, if you?re good enough, then not having a hit single has absolutely no basis on your career being a success. The sooner people realise this, the better. But in any case, if anyone deserves a number one single due to their hard work, it?s a band like Rage Against The Machine ? and countless others. Not only that, Rage Against The Machine actually stand for something... I don?t always agree with what they?re saying, but at least they?re not being spoonfed their views, and actually call attention to some important matters in their songs. They?re practically the only band who can use Che Guevara as an icon and be sincere about it.

On a final note, if Rage Against The Machine hadn?t gotten to number one, this campaign still would have been a success. Because the main point of it was to make the race for Christmas Number One interesting again. Something that people could talk about, because it was actually unpredictable for the first time in years. Rebellion in music is vital to shake things up and keep things interesting. It?s something that we used to do so well, before shows like The X Factor came along and sterilised everything to the point where music in this country was actually a joke. The point has been made, but I don?t expect that the whole focus of the UK music fan will magically shift overnight to real musicians. I don?t think anything will change overall... but we did at least shake things up for just one week. And in the interest of UK music, may I suggest that next year?s campaign be for a UK band? ?Anarchy In The UK? by The Sex Pistols for example?

I also sent this into the Jeremy Vine show on BBC Radio 2, as that's one of the topics being discussed this afternoon. Hopefully some part of it will be quoted...

[kaasupoltin]

Well, beating the X-Factor winner with an internet campaign.. "cool". I would have liked to see them beating Bob The Builder's song in 2000 too.
I'm not that into charts and the charts don't mean anything to me, so maybe that's why I don't really care about this either.

But I gotta admit, everything against this Idols/X-Factor -shit is always great.

[FunkyMonkey]

Rage Against The Machine perform Killing In The Name uncensored

Cut by the BBC, watch it here

Fri 18 Dec 2009

http://www.musicradar.com/news/guitars/rage-against-the-machine-perform-killing-in-the-name-uncensored-230139