Woo! It looks like Simon Cowell’s four year domination of the Christmas charts has ended after a hugely popular Facebook campaign helped US metal band Rage Against the Machine nab the Christmas number one slot from X-factor’s Joe McEdlerry.
More than half a million people downloaded Rage Against the Machine’s famously anti-authoritarian and expletive laden track Killing in the Name. It is the first time a non-X-Factor song has made it to Christmas number one for four years. X-Factor winner McElderry was less than a year old when Rage Against the Machine released their triple platinum self titled album in 1992. When McElderry heard Killing in the Name last week (for the very first time) he described it as “dreadful”.
Speaking on BBC Radio 1’s Chart Show, Rage frontman Zach de la Rocha said his band getting to number one said “more about the spontaneous action taken by young people throughout the UK to topple this very sterile pop monopoly and less about the song and the band. We are very proud to have had the song chosen as the vehicle by which to do this.” Rage Against the Machine have pledged to donate their royalties to charity and to play a thank you gig in the UK next year.
A bit hilarious that the repeated chorus is ‘Fuck you I won’t do what you tell me’ when the reason most people bought the single is cos some Facebook group or other told them they should.
Pah.
Niamh, I did spot the irony in one mass popular and annoying vehicle being toppled by another mass popular and annoying vehicle, but it’s still funny all the same.
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