One Day As A Lion

I must be getting old: it's already been nine years since the last Rage Against The Machine record. How can the most political band of the 90's (the only one, really) lay out of the entire GW Bush era? There is so much to sing about now! Five years of the Iraq war and we get nothing out of Zach de la Rocha? It's not hard to see why this 5 song EP is one of the most anticipated recordings of 2008.

"Wild International" starts on a familiar note; Zach yells/raps about politics and religion over heavy drums and a low buzz that seems to have replaced Tom Morrello. Then things get really exciting. "Ocean View" is straight up punk with Zach actually singing the chorus. Now you have my attention.

"Last Letter" gets even louder and heavier and features some creepy guitar with a ringing echo effect. He returns to rapping for "If You Fear Dying". Those of you who great up with sayings like "fear is your only God!" will be shouting along with "if you fear dying, than you're already dead!". Good to have you back, Zach.

The guitars squealing on "One Day As A Lion" (the song, not the EP) sound like Tom Morrello might have snuck back in, but this is not a Rage album. This is something new, original, and exciting that will make you wonder how we made it through the last 8 years without this guy. Maybe we won't get anything else out of this project, but it is satisfying enough for now to have a concrete product.

At the end of this brief 20-minute record, I think you'll scream along with the last words: "we'll show you what war is good for!". And then you'll want to play it all again.