Rage Against the Machine @ Coachella

After Manu Chao the grounds began to get tighter and tighter. Joe and me were still a pretty far ways out, and it didn’t look like we were going to be able to get any closer until the show started, so we waited it out. I was happy they didn’t draw out the Rage show, and they came and took the stage only 5 minutes after they were scheduled to. Without much talk they started right into Testify.

What a way to start a show. On that opening riff I just started jumping, and that was the last I saw of Joe until after the show. I think being tall helped me tremendously. Every time I would jump up I was like a kite in the wind, as people behind me would latch on and push me forward. By the third song I was pushed way closer to the stage, and within probably a good 5 meters of the first barrier. At this point I was right in the thick of it. I was rocking out harder than I have ever done before, and completely gave in to the music and all the chaos that was going on.

Sometime during the first few songs my shoes became untied. This kind of sucked, so inbetween songs I would tuck my laces into my shoes. Everyone in the pitt was really cool, and looked after each other. There were only a few big mosh circles going on which I avoided quite well. I stuck to jumping around with the crowd. It was really fantastic having an entire crowd all bouncing to the same beat, rocking out so hard.

Eventually the power that had pushed me into the thick of things, continued to push me forward, and before long I was about 3 people off the rail. While I enjoyed being that much more closer, my movement was much more restricted and I had to resign to often being squashed up against the person in front of me. After the first set I had thoughts of getting out of the pit and watching the rest of the show from higher up, but decided I would just power through it, as this was a once in a lifetime experience.

Anyway here is the setlist of the show:

01. Testify
02. Bulls On Parade
03. People Of The Sun
04. Bombtrack
05. Bullet In The Head
06. Down Rodeo
07. Guerrilla Radio
08. Renegades Of Funk
09. Calm Like A Bomb
10. Sleep Now In The Fire
11. Wake Up
12. Freedom
13. Killing In The Name

They closed the first set with Wake Up, which was probably my highlight of the night. Opening the encore with Freedom was also pretty rad. The whole set however was a treat. They played the majority of my favorite Rage songs, and they barely let up at all. I was almost hoping for a slow song or two so that I could catch my breath! The security guards around the rail were really great though. If they weren’t lifting people out of the turmoil they were watering people down with bottles of watter and sprayers. I relished the moments when they would hit me with even the tiniest amount of water.

Anyway this was such an unbelievable show for me. I had so many expectations for the show, and there was so much hype surrounding it, and yet Rage were able to completely destroy all of it. This was probably one of the best live musical experiences I have had, and I am completely satisfied now having finally seen a band I have been listening to for so many years.

After the show I was completely soaked from head to toe as if I had jumped into lake. I was also completely stunned. I had to rip off my shirt as it was stuck to my body. I took a photo of myself right after the show, I think the look on my face will give you an idea of how stunned I was from such an amazing show.