Paul Ryan's love for Rage Against The Machine is amusing, because he is the embodiment of the machine that our music has been raging against for two decades
Interpretation
Tom Morello's quote highlights the irony of Paul Ryan's admiration for a band that criticizes the very political and social structures he represents.
In this quote, Tom Morello emphasizes the contradiction of Paul Ryan, a political figure embodying conservative ideals, expressing affection for Rage Against The Machine, a band known for its anti-establishment and activist messages. This ironic juxtaposition serves to underline the disconnect between the political allegiances of individuals and the ideologies communicated through the music they appreciate, suggesting that one can admire art that opposes their own beliefs.
In practice
In a discussion about political figures and their influence on music culture.
Then about 12 years ago it dawned on me that folk music - the music of Woody Guthrie and Phil Ochs, early Bob Dylan, Johnny Cash, Pete Seeger - could be as heavy as anything that comes through a Marshall stack. The combination of three chords and the right lyrical couplet can be as heavy as anything in the Metallica catalogue.
The way corporate media likes to portray America is as a homogenous whole that high-five's each other at the Super Bowl. But what we have is a grotesque disparity between the rich and poor that is only getting wider.
Music and the arts feed our souls, but a decent wage puts food on the table. Musicians, fans of music, and grassroots political organizations are a potent force to fight for social justice.
Of course, music is an art form, and it's not all that competitive. But we don't ever intend to be the second-best band on a stage at any show.
Music, I think, is best when it honestly explores personal demons, and it stirs around in the silt of the psyche to find out what's really there.
Paul Ryan's love of Rage Against the Machine is amusing, because he is the embodiment of the machine that our music has been raging against for two decades.
People in bands don't have the kind of conversations people might think they have. The best things about being in a band are the things that are unsaid.
To this day, if I ever meet grownups who play ukulele, I love 'em.
That happens every time I get behind a guitar, regardless of what I'm saying, 'cause music is freedom and being free is the closest I've ever felt to being spiritual.
I say to string players in small chamber orchestras, 'it's always easy to become a passenger on the journey in sound, just adding volume to the whole. But if you play in an individual way, it makes the difference between good and great sound in an orchestra.'
The major rock instruments and classical instruments were designed for performance, for sharing the music with an audience, and then later people put microphones on them and recorded them. But for electronic music, the opposite was true - they're designed in laboratories, and later, we tried to put them on stage.
I am a reflection of what I sing. Sometimes I have to get serious because the things Ive been through are serious.
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