I always felt like they borrowed heavily from Public Enemy. PE had the rap/rock fusion down in 1986/7. Listen to songs like Sophisticated Bitch or She Watch Cha

I always felt like they borrowed heavily from Public Enemy. PE had the rap/rock fusion down in 1986/7. Listen to songs like Sophisticated Bitch or She Watch Channel Zero with Vernon Reid (of Living Color) on guitar, or the Bring The Noise track with Anthrax, all of which predates RATM by a mile. Public Enemy had a unique sound never really rivalled by anybody and they lived and breathed fighting the power.