News

Rage Against the Machine Beating X Factor in Chart Race

9:15 a.m. · December 16, 2009 · by Nick Neyland

The battle to top the U.K. charts at Christmas is hotting up, with Rage Against the Machine’s “Killing in the Name” currently beating out its X Factor competitor (Joe McElderry’s cover of Miley Cyrus's “The Climb”) by around 65,000 sales. The Rage Against the Machine song has shot up in sales after a Facebook campaign was orchestrated to thwart the TV show.

X Factor mastermind Simon Cowell has hit out at the campaign, calling it "stupid", "cynical" and "very Scrooge.” Meanwhile, Tom Morello from the band, who must be baffled by all the attention, has said he will donate profits to Youth Music, a charity scheme set up to help young musicians in the U.K.

Numerous other attempts to topple the X Factor from the Christmas #1 slot have emerged, but Rage Against the Machine is the only realistic contender. Unfortunately, the McElderry single is set for a physical release today (Dec. 16), which may give the single enough of a push to thwart the Rage campaign.

Meanwhile, someone with far too much time on their hands has assembled the video above, which superimposes mouths over X Factor and Britain’s Got Talent contestants to make it appear as though they are singing “Killing in the Name.”