Rage Against the Machine to reunite, report says

[Brian Damage]

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - The leftist rock band Rage Against the Machine will reunite after a seven-year hiatus for a single performance at a southern California rock festival in April, the Los Angeles Times reported on Sunday.

The chart-topping quartet, famed for its angry denunciations of capitalism even as it recorded for a label owned by Sony Corp., will play the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival, the paper said, quoting unspecified sources.

The desert festival will take place over three days beginning April 27, about 130 miles east of Los Angeles.

The paper also said former headliners the Red Hot Chili Peppers and Bjork will return to the event, which is in its eighth year. The lineup is expected to be announced this week.

Rage, which broke through in 1992 with the defiant single "Killing in the Name," won fans across the social spectrum with singer Zack de la Rocha's rap-based lyrics backed by the band's hard-rock melodies. They topped the U.S. pop album charts in 1996 with "Evil Empire" and in 1999 with "The Battle of Los Angeles."

Amid continued internal friction, de la Rocha left in October 2000. His bandmates -- guitarist Tom Morello, bassist Tim Commerford and drummer Brad Wilk -- formed Audioslave the following year with former Soundgarden singer Chris Cornell. They recorded three albums, and in May 2005 became the first American band to play an outdoor show in Cuba. Cornell is now focusing on resurrecting his solo career.

Reuters/Nielsen

[ABlairican Pie]

Isn't it interesting, an anti-capitalist band being on the Sony label?

But I think I remember reading that they didn't necessarily see it as a contradiction, it just meant they had more of the ability to spread their message on a corporate major label.