Top 20 Rise Against Songs

Rise Against is a band that I have followed for quite some time now. I first discovered them back in 2003 when I came across the video for “Heaven Knows” from their second album Revolutions Per Minute. I have followed them ever since and, in my opinion, they have gotten better and better with each release. Like most bands, some people favor the “old stuff” versus the “new stuff”or vise versa. I think the entire Rise Against discography is outstanding and I consider them to be an underrated band, even now that they are considered one of the top rock bands going.

So what are the best Rise Against songs? Everyone probably has a different opinion – and the band probably does as well – but what I tried to do with this list is take everything into account and I aimed to appease fans of the old stuff, fans of the new stuff, and do the band justice at the same time. You can look at this list as ‘Rise Against’s Greatest Hits’ meets ‘if I had a $20 iTunes gift card to buy Rise Against songs, which ones should I buy?’

• Research around the web
• How well the songs charted on Billboard and similar charts
• The overall popularity of the songs (Youtube video views, top iTunes/Amazon tracks, lists I found on message boards and blogs, etc.)
• The sheer awesomeness of the songs
• Some elements of my opinion and people that I know who love Rise Against
• The potential to fall in love with the song
• Songs that the band consistently play live

Listen to the complete Top 20 list as a Spotify playlist here
Watch the complete Top 20 list as a Youtube playlist here

20. “From Heads Unworthy” (2008)

Spotify • Youtube • Last.fm • Lyrics • Wikipedia • Amazon

19. “Chamber The Cartridge” (2006)

Spotify • Youtube • Last.fm • Lyrics • Wikipedia • Amazon

18. “Behind Closed Doors” (2006)

• The 4th video made from The Sufferer & The Witness album
  The official video is coming up on 2 million views on Youtube

Spotify • Youtube • Last.fm • Lyrics • Wikipedia • Amazon

17. “Architects” (2011)

• The 2nd single from Endgame
  An official video was not made for the song
  The most viewed upload on Youtube is coming up on 1 million views

Spotify • Youtube • Last.fm • Lyrics • Wikipedia • Amazon

16. “Worth Dying For” (2006)

• Track 9 from The Sufferer & The Witness
  A common favorite among Rise Against fans and consistently ranks on lists found around the web
  The most viewed upload on Youtube is coming up on 1 million views

Spotify • Youtube • Last.fm • Lyrics • Wikipedia • Amazon

15. “Injection” (2006)

• Track 2 from The Sufferer & The Witness
  The official live video is coming up on 2 million views on Youtube

Spotify • Youtube • Last.fm • Lyrics • Wikipedia • Amazon

14. “Satellite” (2011)

• The 4th single and 3rd video made from Endgame
  The song peaked at #9 on Billboard’s Alternative Rock Charts, #14 on Billboard’s Rock Charts, and #17 on Billboard’s Mainstream Rock Charts
  The official video is past 3 million views on Youtube

Spotify • Youtube • Last.fm • Lyrics • Wikipedia • Amazon

13. “Life Less Frightening” (2004)

• The 3rd single from Siren Song of the Counter Culture
  The song peaked at #33 on Billboard’s Alternative Rock charts
  The most viewed upload on Youtube is coming up on 500k views

Spotify • Youtube • Last.fm • Lyrics • Wikipedia • Amazon

12. “Audience of One” (2008)

• The 2nd single and 2nd video made from Appeal to Reason
  The song peaked at #4 on Billboard’s Alternative Rock Charts and was the 1st Rise Against song to chart on Billboard’s Rock Charts, peaking at #16
  The official video is past 4 million views on Youtube 

Spotify • Youtube • Last.fm • Lyrics • Wikipedia • Amazon

11. “Heaven Knows” (2003)

• The very 1st official video Rise Against made
  The official video is coming up on 4 million views on Youtube

10. “Make It Stop (September’s Children)” (2011)

• The 3rd single and 2nd video made from Endgame
  The song peaked at #6 on Billboard’s Alternative Rock Charts, #8 on Billboard’s Rock Charts, and #14 on Billboard’s Mainstream Rock Charts making it the 4th best charting Rise Against song to date
  The official video is coming up on 10 million views on Youtube

Spotify • Youtube • Last.fm • Lyrics • Wikipedia • Amazon

9. “Hero of War” (2008)

• Not an official single from Engame but the band made an official video for the song
  The official video is past 11.5 million views on Youtube

Spotify • Youtube • Last.fm • Lyrics • Wikipedia • Amazon

8. “Ready To Fall” (2006)

• The 1st single and video from The Sufferer & The Witness
  Arguably the song that put Rise Against on the map
  The song peaked at #13 on Billboard’s Alternative Rock Charts
  The official video is past 5 million views on Youtube

Spotify • Youtube • Last.fm • Lyrics • Wikipedia • Amazon

7. “Swing Life Away” (2004)

• The 2nd single and video from Siren Song of the Counter Culture
  One of the only acoustic songs in the entire Rise Against discography and surely the first acoustic song from Rise Against at the time of release
  The song peaked at #12 on Billboard’s Alternative Rock Charts
  The official video is past 7 million views on Youtube

Spotify • Youtube • Last.fm • Lyrics • Wikipedia • Amazon

6. “Re-Education (Through Labor)” (2008)

• The 1st single and video from Appeal To Reason
  The song peaked at #3 on Billboard’s Alternative Rock Charts and was the 1st Rise Against song to chart on Billboard’s Mainstream Rock Charts, peaking at #22
  The official video is coming up on 3.5 million views on Youtube

Spotify • Youtube • Last.fm • Lyrics • Wikipedia • Amazon

5. “Help Is On The Way” (2011)

• The 1st single and video from Endgame
  The song peaked at #2 on Billboard’s Alternative Rock Charts, #2 on Billboard’s Rock Charts, and #6 on Billboard’s Mainstream Rock Charts (the best charting positions of any Rise Against song)
  The official video is coming up on 6 million views on Youtube

Spotify • Youtube • Last.fm • Lyrics • Wikipedia • Amazon

4. “The Good Left Undone” (2006)

• The 3rd single and video from The Sufferer & The Witness
  Arguably one of the few songs that ALL Rise Against fans love
  The song peaked at #6 on Billboard’s Alternative Rock Charts
  The official video is past 8 million views on Youtube

Spotify • Youtube • Last.fm • Lyrics • Wikipedia • Amazon

3. “Give It All” (2004)

• The 1st single from Siren Song of the Counter Culture and the 2nd single and video in the Rise Against discography
  A true Rise Against classic, embodying everything their music is about
  The song peaked at #37 on Billboard’s Alternative Rock Charts
  The official video is past 5 million views on Youtube

Spotify • Youtube • Last.fm • Lyrics • Wikipedia • Amazon

2. “Prayer Of The Refugee” (2006)

• The 2nd single and video made from The Sufferer & The Witness
  The song peaked at #7 on Billboard’s Alternative Rock Charts and the single is Certified Gold
  The official video is past 20 million views on Youtube

Spotify • Youtube • Last.fm • Lyrics • Wikipedia • Amazon

1. “Savior” (2008)

• The 3rd single and 4th video made from Appeal To Reason
  The song peaked at #3 on Billboard’s Alternative Rock Charts, #3 on Billboard’s Rock Charts, and #18 on Billboard’s Mainstream Rock Charts
  The single is the 2nd Rise Against single to be Certified Gold
  The official video is past 20 million views on YoutubeThe video has just a few thousand more views than Prayer Of The Refugee, currently making it the most viewed Rise Against video on Youtube

Spotify • Youtube • Last.fm • Lyrics • Wikipedia • Amazon

Honorable Mentions:

“Six Ways ‘Til Sunday” (2001)
“Black Masks & Gasoline” (2003)
“The First Drop” (2004)
“Tip the Scales” (2004)
“Drones” (2006)
“Collapse (Post-Amerika)” (2008)
“Long Forgotten Sons” (2008)
“Disparity By Design” (2011)
“Wait For Me” (2011)

And there you have it! I would love to see come comments and opinions about this list. What are some of your favorite Rise Against songs? If you were to make a similar list, what would your ranking be?

Be sure to check out the Top 10 Rise Against Songs which is a list from the website The Top Tens which allows users to vote and post Top 10 lists for just about everything imaginable. This list was definitely part of the online research I did while putting my list together.

Also check out my post on Top 20 Best Rise Against Songs – Editors Choice and the Top 15 Underrated Rise Against Songs.

Links of Interest: