Who wrote the most defiant song of all time?

Do you agree that this 90’s hit should be crowned the most defiant song ever? Or what song and songwriter would you nominate?

by Ian Temple of SoundFly

What’s the ultimate scale, mode, or chord progression to score a full-out protest riot?

There’s only one place to turn for that sort of question. Yup, you guessed it: 

That’s right, today we’re breaking down the… SEVERAL… different modes and tonalities featured in Rage’s “Killing In The Name,” a hit anthem of the mid-1990’s loaded with head-banging guitar riffs, heavy dissonant intervals, and some hardcore tonal ambiguity.

This song even manages to feature every single pitch in the chromatic scale.

It’s almost as if the very essence of “unrest” or “friction” was built right into the music itself…  

In fact there’s so much to explore and love about this iconic song: its embrace of Blues tonality, wild tempo changes, the unabashed defiance of its lyrics. 

So, is this the best “protest song” ever written? Well, eat your heart out Woody Guthrie, because Rage is comin’ for ya! 

Check out our newest video courtesy of Soundfly’s YouTube channel to find out just how they pulled this off. *And don’t forget to like and subscribe!

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Ian is a pianist, entrepreneur and professional musician. He started Soundfly to help people really find what gets them most excited musically and pursue it. He’s toured all over the world with his experimental trio Sontag Shogun. Follow him on Twitter at @ianrtemple.