Following the alarming recent swing to the far-right in international politics, the musical counter-offensive has largely been left to hip-hop and grime. However, ex-Rage Against The Machine and Audioslave man Tom Morello has decided it’s time rock did its bit. To that end, he has hooked up with Public Enemy’s iconic Chuck D and maverick Cypress Hill MC, B-Real, to form agit-prop outfit Prophets Of Rage.
Chuck D, of course, is one of music’s most brilliant political and cultural commentators, and lets loose a landslide of anti-establishment invective throughout this thrilling effort. It’s not all a dystopian punk barrage though, with the Prophets striking an upbeat note of solidarity on ‘Unfuck The World’, and getting downright funky on ‘Take Me Higher’, built around a jerky, Pop Group-style punk funk groove.
As ever, Chuck remains greatest as his most confrontational. “Burn that fucking flag!” he barks on ‘Who Owns Who’. “Know your rights… We fucking matter!”
This is one group of prophets who simply can’t be ignored. More power to them – in all senses.