Rating: 
Summary: Very Poor effort
Review: This book is a very weak attempt at chronicling one of the most politically motivated and innovative bands in the last 20 years. I would not recommend this book for anyone because there is very little if any new information or stories behind the music and the people who built it. Time would be better spent on the web reading a good faq. I was very disappointed with the effort put into this book, (entirely made up of magazine quote references) and find this book and insult to any biographer or Rage Against the Machine fan. Not worth the 90 minutes it took to read it (nap included).
Rating: 
Summary: It's not bad
Review: Whether or not Colin Devenish's biography of Rage Against The Machine will be of any use to you depends on how big of a fan you already are. While Mr. Devenish does a decent job of collecting information from magazines and various other publications to inform the reader about the bands history, most of it is probably information that the hardcore fan has already discovered for themselves.The book chronicles the entire career of the band, starting with their childhoods with their first introductions to music and the various frustrations with society, government, and racism that each one faced in order to start out their elite political path. It moves through the members first bands in their teen years until their formation in the early 90's and debut album. It then proceeds to discuss the details behind each albums recording process, the tours in support of each, and various other tidbits all the way up to when Zack de la Rocha departed from the group. While the biographical information is useful if you've never been exposed to the band before, any serious Rage listener will know that 148 pages is simply not enough to keep track of one of the most integral, politically-minded, and activist bands in rock history, especially one that has released such honest, truthful, and rebellious music. The author seems to have a decent grasp on researching, but falls short a few times when he uses the same quote twice in various places. Thankfully, shortcomings aside, the book will give you an insight into some of the organizations and stances against oppression Rage has aligned themselves with, including the Anti-Nazi Leauge and the efforts to free two innocent prisoners of the U.S. government, Mumia Abu-Jamal and Leonard Peltier. The biography will give enough adequete information about each to lead the reader in the right direction of finding more information. The real complaint that I have is that the book was simply not long enough. Rage is by far one of the most important bands in rock history in the ways of both politics and music and has shaped both in drastic ways. A less-than 200 page summary just doesn't cut it. If you're a die-hard fan, I would go along with another reviewers suggestion and try to find a good web site or FAQ online, if you're new to the band and want some starting information, Colin Devenish's effort isn't bad as it will at least give you some information about the band and their cause, not to mention the various opinions on the group by rap virtuosos Public Enemy and rock gods such as Neil Young.
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