Album · Rage Against the Machine
The Battle of Los Angeles by Rage Against the Machine
The Battle of Los Angeles is an album by Rage Against the Machine, released in 1999. 6 songs from it have charted on rock radio countdowns, with 157 countdown appearances in total. The biggest is “Testify”, on 51 lists with a best position of #11.
The Battle of Los Angeles, Rage Against the Machine's third album, came out on Epic on November 2, 1999, and it hits like a riot squad coming through the door. Brendan O'Brien produced, and the four of them sound more locked in than ever: Zack de la Rocha spitting fire, Tom Morello's guitar squealing and grinding, Tim Commerford's bass and Brad Wilk's drums laying down grooves as heavy as concrete.
It's rap metal with its fists up and a funk-metal swing underneath. "Guerrilla Radio" charges out of the gate, "Sleep Now in the Fire" swaggers and stomps, "Testify" pummels, and "Calm Like a Bomb" and "Maria" coil tight before they blow. There's no let-up, and no attempt at one.
It landed a Best Rock Album nomination at the 43rd Grammy Awards, and "Guerrilla Radio" won Best Hard Rock Performance. A couple of the big year-end lists named it the best album of 1999, and it has gone double platinum. It also turned out to be the last studio album of original songs from the band before they broke up in 2000; the record that came after was all covers, and it was released once they'd already split.
Written with AI assistance from RockLists chart data, MusicBrainz and Wikipedia.
Songs from The Battle of Los Angeles on radio countdowns
| # | Song | Strength | Lists | Best | #1s | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Testify | 51 | #11 | – | 2000–2026 | |
| 2 | Sleep Now in the Fire | 41 | #3 | – | 1999–2026 | |
| 3 | Guerrilla Radio | 36 | #5 | – | 1999–2026 | |
| 4 | No Shelter | 26 | #13 | – | 1998–2023 | |
| 5 | Calm Like a Bomb | 2 | #82 | – | 2003–2007 | |
| 6 | Maria | 1 | #77 | – | 2000 |
Only songs that appear on at least one countdown are listed. Release data from MusicBrainz.