Tom Morello became an unwilling participant in Rage Against the Machine’s bodyguard’s work on Saturday in Toronto. According to TMZ and other outlets, Morello was on the side of the stage when a fan attempted to hop up and rush the stage. While it doesn’t seem like a repeat of Chris Rock or Dave Chappelle’s recent experiences, security wasn’t playing.
The problem comes when Morello gets caught up in the tackling guard’s force and falls off the stage. Right in the middle of the final song of the night, “Killing in the Name,” meaning the red-shirted fan waited all that time to jump on the stage and ruin his night. Could’ve stayed in the parking lot and done it for free.
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Morello was fine and got back on stage after the inadvertent tackle. TMZ notes he even gave a little wave to fans to calm fears that he might be injured by the fall.
A little round of applause should be given to the security worker, though. The entire incident is lightning quick and security is on the fan almost instantly. Morello just happened to be in a poor location when it went down, which is unfortunate.
But as the outlet points out, it is far from the worst thing that could happen on Rage’s tour. Not only has this reunion been marred by the COVID-19 pandemic and the voided few years we’ve suffered through, singer Zack de la Rocha injured his leg in an earlier show and has been forced to sit for performances since.
While it is preparation for that eventual Rage Cruise Against the Machine when the band is old enough to require sitting, it is still unfortunate. The message of the band is still firmly intact and they make no effort to hide it. Toronto’s crowd was hit with facts about indigenous people in Canada, their treatment over the years and how it differs for those who are outside of those groups.
The band’s reunion tour kicked off in Chicago earlier in July, finally hitting Toronto on Saturday and moving to Pittsburgh on Friday. The band also has two upcoming shows in Washington, DC to kick off August, likely to get heated given the current political climate in the city.
