Tim Mcllrath was born on November 3, 1979 in Arlington Heights, Illinois. Mcllrath grew up being a member of many bands, his first being a band named Baxter when he was just a teen. An album called Lost Voices was recorded and distributed with Mcllrath as the leading vocalist. Lost Voices was released when Mcllrath was still a member of Baxter. In 1999 Mcllrath broke off of Baxter and teamed up with 88 Fingers Louie bassist, Joe Principe, and drummer Brandon Barnes to form Rise Against. He later married his still wife Erin and the two had two daughters together. Mcllrath has commented on how much he misses his children when on tour and recording. An interesting fact about Mcllrath is that he actually has one blue eye and one brown eye.
Principe was the former bassist of the band 88 Fingers Louie, based in his hometown of Chicago, Illinois. Principe was in 88 Fingers Louie for six years, releasing multiple records and touring. He became the co-founder of Rise Against in 1999 and has been the bassist for Rise Againt on every album they have produced.
Barnes along with all other members of Rise Against was born in Chicago, Illinois. He became a member of Rise Against in 2000, replacing the previous drummer Toni Tintari. Tintari was only with the band for a demo album and Barnes has been the drummer for all produced albums from The Unraveling and is still a member of the band.
The only band position in Rise Against that has belonged to many people is guitar. Rise Against has had five guitarists, including Blair, Mr.Precision, and Todd Mohney. Blair has only been with Rise Against for their latest studio album, Appeal To Reason. However, Rise Against has released a statement stating that Blair is now a permanent member of the band and there will be no more confusion about who the guitarist will be.
Rise Against formed in 1999 with the original lineup of Tim Mcllrath, Joe Principe, Toni Tintari, and Mr.Precision. Their first album was released on April 24, 2001, entitled The Unraveling. The album had 18 songs on it, but was never really commercially successful. Then on April 8, 2003 Rise Against released Revolutions Per Minute. Again this album was not a very big success, and received many bad reviews calling the music, dark, and furious.
It was not until the release of the bands third album Siren Songs of The Counter Culture that the band got their first taste of fame. The album which was released on August 10,2004 featured many prolific tracks like “Give It All”, “Swing Life Away”, and “State of The Union.” This album had many tracks that showed Rise Against”s Anti-President George W. Bush stance. This led to a lot of the albums success, and making their music well known. “Give It All” has been featured on Rock Against Bush, Vol. 1, and is a song that can be played in the popular game Rock Band 2.
On July 4, 2006 Rise Against released The Sufferer & the Witness. This album was one with many tracks regarding rebellious teenagers including “Ready To Fall”, and songs about world problems like “Prayer of a Refugee.” The album received great reviews and was much more successful than any of their previous albums. It reached number 10 on the Billboard 200.
Rise Against”s most recent album Appeal To Reason was released on October 7, 2008. This marks the first time guitarist Zach Blair played with the band. On this album the songs themes include anti-Bush, anti-Iraq War, and many others. The album reached number 3 on the Billboard 200. This album marking Rise Against”s greatest success and best album. With the rising success of Rise Agaisnt there are new albums being produced that are projected to be very successful.
All the members of Rise Against are vegans and big supporters of PETA. The lyrics of “Give It All”, “Dancing For Rain”, and “Ready to Fall”, all show their animal rights beliefs. They even released a pair of completely vegan shoes in assosiation with DC Shoes.
Rise Against has shown in their lyrics for many year that they are Anti-Bush and Anti-Iraq War. The song “State of the Union” is directed directly to Bush’s poor job as president. They also put the track “Give It All” on Rock Against Bush, Vol. One. They have also been a part of several festivals with other bands like Anti-Flag and Against Me. Rise Against were supporters of Barack Obama during his 2008 presidential campaign.
Rise Against has shown their beliefs for equal human rights in the songs “Re-Education”, “Savior”, and mostly “Prayer of a Refugee”. They have also done a lot of donations and work to help places around the world that need help.