Maps of Music

The Battle of Los Angeles (1999)

Where the lyrics of The Battle of Los Angeles take you, and where it was really made.

Its No. 1 debut on the Billboard 200 kept Mariah Carey's highly anticipated album Rainbow from the top of the chart.

Key places

Sunset Sound, Hollywood (1999)

Recording site Sunset Sound — Listed as a recording location for this album. The studio is in Hollywood, Los Angeles. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

Westlake Recording Studios, Los Angeles (1999)

Recording site Westlake Recording Studios — Listed as a recording location for this album. The studio is in Los Angeles. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

Southern Tracks, Atlanta (1999)

Recording site Southern Tracks Recording Studio — Listed as a recording location for this album. The site is associated with Atlanta. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

Album story

Overview

• The Battle of Los Angeles: third studio album by the American rock band Rage Against the Machine
• Released by Epic Records on November 2, 1999
• Described musically as rap metal, funk metal, and rap rock
• Cover art: an original spray-painted piece by graffiti artist Joey Krebs
• Last full-length album of original material before the band's first breakup in 2000

Background

• The band began rehearsing for the album by mid-1998
• The song "Voice of the Voiceless" refers to Mumia Abu-Jamal and a letter written by Mao Zedong
• The band's next album consisted entirely of covers and was released after the breakup
• Lyrics are described as strongly influenced by George Orwell's novel 1984

Recording

• Studio locations recorded for the album: Sunset Sound (Hollywood), Westlake Recording Studios (Los Angeles), and Southern Tracks (Atlanta)

Cover

• Joey Krebs, also known as The Street Phantom, is a well-known Los Angeles graffiti artist
• He has exhibited at numerous galleries in Los Angeles, New York City, and throughout the United States
• The Phantom's graffiti work regularly uses an outline profile of a human with text overlaid

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

Tracklist

Sources: musicbrainz.org

Artist

Formation

• Formed in Los Angeles, California, in 1991.
• Formed after Tom Morello's former band Lock Up broke up; the name came from a song Zack de la Rocha wrote for his former hardcore punk band Inside Out.
• Signed with Epic Records after releasing a self-released demo cassette.

Members

• Zack de la Rocha (vocals), Tim Commerford (bass), Tom Morello (guitar), Brad Wilk (drums).

Career

• Debut album Rage Against the Machine (1992) was a critical and commercial success; ranked 221st on Rolling Stone's 500 Greatest Albums of All Time (2020).
• Commercial breakthrough came after the 1993 Lollapalooza performance.
• Evil Empire (1996) and The Battle of Los Angeles (1999) both topped the Billboard 200.
• Disbanded in 2000 after de la Rocha quit; Morello, Wilk and Commerford formed Audioslave with Chris Cornell.
• Reunited in 2007, toured internationally, went on hiatus in 2011, and formed Prophets of Rage in 2016.
• Second reunion in 2019 led to the Public Service Announcement Tour, cut short by de la Rocha's injury in 2022.
• Inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2023; Wilk confirmed in 2024 the band had disbanded again.
• Sold more than 16 million records worldwide as of 2010; influenced the nu metal genre.

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

Reception

At release

• Time and Rolling Stone both named the album the best of 1999 in their year-end lists
• Nominated for Best Rock Album at the 43rd Annual Grammy Awards
• The song "Guerrilla Radio" won the Grammy for Best Hard Rock Performance
• Debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200, selling around 420,000 copies in its first week
• Kept Mariah Carey's Rainbow from reaching the top of the chart

Reappraisal

• Rolling Stone's 2003 list of the 500 greatest albums of all time ranked it No. 426
• Spin's 2005 list of the 100 greatest albums from 1985–2005 placed it at No. 53
• Rock Hard's book The 500 Greatest Rock & Metal Albums of All Time listed it at No. 369
• Metal Hammer named it one of the 20 best metal albums of 1999 in 2021

Records

• Certified double platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America, indicating at least two million units
• Debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200
• Nominated for Best Rock Album at the 43rd Annual Grammy Awards

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

Trivia

• The title refers to the 1992 Los Angeles riots.
• Michael Moore directed the music videos for "Sleep Now in the Fire" and "Testify" and appears in both.
• The lyrics are described as strongly influenced by George Orwell's novel 1984.
• In January 1999 the band organized a benefit concert for Mumia Abu-Jamal.

Sources: en.wikipedia.org · es.wikipedia.org · fr.wikipedia.org · pt.wikipedia.org

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