Rage Against the Machine fans are confused by the band’s latest Instagram post. And so are we.
The rock and metal world kind of feels like a big game of clue as of late, with musicians sharing cryptic posts and mysterious teasers on their social media profiles left and right. We’re all looking into things very intensely, perhaps more than we should, because sometimes these types of posts lead to something, and sometimes they don’t. Sleep Token are a good example of this, as a lot has transpired within their community over the last couple of days just before announcing a new North American tour.
Just a few weeks after drummer Brad Wilk shared a statement confirming the end of Rage Against the Machine’s touring days, the band posted a photo on their Instagram yesterday (Jan. 18) that shows a black silhouette of them performing in front of a red background with the song “Wake Up” playing over it. They credited photographer Hate5six as having taken the image.
Wilk also shared the same photo shortly after on his own page, and wrote, “What he said…” in the caption. A couple of fans commented that they didn’t see frontman Zack de la Rocha in the photo, and questioned whether that had any meaning.
“Look for the [microphone emoji] n cord,” the drummer responded to one individual who thought the singer was missing from the picture.
Another fan commented, “This is really strange. What are they doing? Giving the signal ZDLR is the issue? Seems unnecessary. Sad way to end.”
“Nah you’re way off. This is celebrating an end of an era,” Wilk replied.
Over on the Rage Against the Machine Reddit, fans are discussing what they think the post could be indicative of. One person noted that Hate5six had recorded a couple of the band’s performances, and hopes that the post means that they’ll be releasing one of them on video.
“This could be something,” someone else commented on the thread. “Considering how pissed Brad seemed the other day about Rage now posting something cool about them looking back on that tour. Considering how bitter he seemed about the whole thing maybe something is happening.”
“I hate being a Rage fan. Being kept in the dark is just friggin torture. But I’ll keep being a Rage fan,” another person said.
READ MORE: How Did Rage Against the Machine Get Their Name?
“I think he’s just telling people to wake up,” another comment states, noting the chosen song playing on the post. “That is one cold ass picture tho.”
It’s possible that the photo could have an underlying message tied to it, or it’s possible that, as Wilk said, it’s just a celebration of the end of the band as we know it. Time will tell.
Check out the photo below and the Reddit discussion here.
Farewell Tours That Were Actually Farewell Tours
This time, they meant it.
Gallery Credit: Chad Childers, Loudwire
