Know Your Enemy (Rage Against the Machine song)

"Know Your Enemy"
Song

"Know Your Enemy" is a song by the American rock band Rage Against the Machine. It features Maynard James Keenan on vocals during a bridge part.

Political Statements

The song's main message is that the government touts America as the land of the free, but lies and takes our freedoms away. That message is evident in lines such as, "What? The land of the free? Whoever told you that is your enemy!", "As we move into '92, still in a room without a view!" and "Yes I know my enemies! They're the teachers that taught me to fight me." The song ends with the following lines:

Compromise
Conformity
Assimilation
Submission
Ignorance
Hypocrisy
Brutality
The Elite
All of which are American dreams [x8]

Beat

The song is in 4/4. In the opening of the song, Tom Morello uses his guitars toggle switch to switch between a pickup that is turned off, and one that is on, to create a tremolo effect. This is similar to the transform effect used by hip-hop DJs from whom Morello took much of his inspiration. After this, it starts up in a fast paced riff, which leads into the verse, another fast paced riff centered upon the bass guitar. The chorus then returns to the original riff again, and then returns back to the verse. Then, the song goes into a slower, 4/4 beat with trance-like vocals, which are brought to an end by Tom Morello's guitar solo using the Digitech Whammy Pedal. The song ends with the original riff.

Chorus

The chorus feature a riff by Morello followed by repetitions of the phrase "Know Your Enemy".