One Day as a Lion
One Day as a Lion EP

Strange, when everyone is expecting a new chapter of the Rage Against the Machine saga, Zack de la Rocha, the curly-haired frontman of the group, gives life to this side project duo with Jon Theodore, former drummer of Mars Volta. This EP is the first effort of the duo, and it is definitely a must for the fans of the two musicians, especially for those of the rapper, as this is his first discographic release since he parted ways with RATM 8 years ago.

What do these "One Day as a Lion" sound like? Browsing the web, I read that many described them as a cross between Led Zeppelin and Dr. Dre. I can say that this is not true. First of all, the sound is very minimal, just vocals, keyboards, and drums; it seems like a version of late-period RATM without Tom Morello's extraordinary riffs. The 5 tracks are all quite similar, without any particular flair or rhythm changes; they seem more like hip-hop tracks with non-sampled drums. This is, in my opinion, the sore point: while Zack does his part with his hysterical and politicized rap (he may not scream like he used to, but the grit is still there), Jon Theodore delivers a performance far below his capabilities, simply accompanying the melody, further flattening the already not very imaginative keyboard parts. His drumming too closely resembles that of Brad Wilk (drummer of RATM), which isn't necessarily a compliment... There's nothing to criticize on the lyrics side, however: Zack has always managed to combine music and political passion, and gives us further proof: war, religion, political struggle are once again the basis of his political harangues.

Ultimately, an interlocutory release, hoping that this duo can gel better, providing us with a better product at the next discographic appointment.

RATING = 6.5