When I was 12, I heard the song “Guerilla Radio” and discovered Rage Against The Machine, a band that would later teach me to “Testify.”
This was a time when my love for rap and my love for rock hadn’t yet reconciled with one another. To hear a hip-hop flow over rhythmic bass and hard electric guitar (what Tom Morello does is divine) made my day and increased my appreciation for both genres.
The revolutionary sound drilled a hole in my eardrum, and the politics that came along with it filled my head and ignited an admiration for meaningful and political lyrical content.
The next day, I purchased Rage’s 1999 Grammy-winning album, “The Battle of Los Angeles.” It became my all-time favorite, and still is.
After a couple of moves, the album was lost. I recently bought a hard copy of it again and wasted no time in listening to it all the way through for the first time in about eight years. Though every song is absolutely terrific, one special track still shines like a diamond amongst coal: “Testify.”
With all due respect to today’s rock bands, I must say that “Testify” is reminiscent of a time when bands could get personal. Today, music is about relationship problems and other played-out topics I couldn’t care less about.
“Testify” never ceases to amaze me. It explodes with what I believe is the fiercest opening of any song. Vocalist/emcee Zach de la Rocha’s lyrics are still as relevant now as they were eight years ago, putting on trial the handling of Middle Eastern affairs.
“Testify” is from a time when a song could have a distinct reason for being. It could make you want to pump your fist into the air and roar in the name of whatever is important to you.
I can confidently say, without fear of succumbing to a cliché, that this song literally makes me want to party like it’s 1999.
“Mister anchor assure me that Baghdad is burning.”
“Mass graves for the pump when the price is set.”
Relevant at all?

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