This is what Rage Against The Machine would sound like if everything was fine

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By ( Louder ) published

Imagine if Rage Against The Machine had nothing to rage against

Rage Against The Machine in 1992
Rage Against The Machine in 1992 (Image credit: Sony Music Archive\/Getty\/Mark Baker)

Imagine a world without racism, violence or petty subtweets. Imagine a world where those annoying people who sit at the back of the bus would shout positive things instead of being obnoxious twats. Imagine a world where ginger step-children could get through a week without getting their glasses thrown out of the school window. Why would a teacher do that, anyway?

What’s harder to imagine is a world where a fledgling Rage Against The Machine didn’t have social injustice as a bile-fuelled muse. It’s difficult to picture a young Zack de la Rocha whistling on his way to the shops to get a paper and not be incapacitated with anger at the headlines.

But what if social injustice was washed away like a stain on a pair of grubby pants? What if people stopped being knobs to each other and learned to just get along and be kind? It’s far-fetched, we know, but it’s that line of idealistic thinking that probably inspired YouTuber Andy Rehfeldt to reimagine Rage Against The Machine’s 1992’s single Killing In The Name as a laid-back number. We’d have even called it Chilling In The Name. It’s so relaxed, it almost makes you forget that the lyrics are about racist coppers.

Watch the video below and just try to forget about how awful the world is for five minutes.

Simon Young
Simon Young

Born in 1976 in Newcastle-upon-Tyne, Simon Young has been a music journalist for over twenty-six years. His fanzine, Hit A Guy With Glasses, enjoyed a one-issue run before he secured a job at Kerrang! in 1999. His writing has also appeared in Classic Rock, Metal Hammer, Prog, and Planet Rock. His first book, So Much For The 30 Year Plan: Therapy? — The Authorised Biography is available via Jawbone Press.