Audioslave

Audioslave biography

Audioslave was an American rock supergroup formed in Los Angeles, California, in 2001 and disbanded in 2007. The four-piece band consisted of then-former Soundgarden lead singer/rhythm guitarist, Chris Cornell, and then-former Rage Against the Machine members, Tom Morello (lead guitar), Tim Commerford (bass/backing vocals), and Brad Wilk (drums). Critics initially described Audioslave as an amalgamation of Soundgarden and Rage Against the Machine, but by the band's second album, Out of Exile, it was noted that they had established a separate identity.

Audioslave's trademark sound was created by blending 1970s hard rock with 1990s alternative rock. Moreover, Morello incorporated his well-known, unconventional guitar solos into the mix. As with Rage Against the Machine, the band prided themselves on the fact that all sounds on their albums were produced using only guitar, bass, drums, and vocals.

After Audioslave released three successful albums, received three Grammy nominations, and became the first American rock band to perform an open-air concert in Cuba, Cornell issued a statement in February 2007 announcing that he was permanently leaving the band "due to irresolvable personality conflicts as well as musical differences." The 2007 Rage Against the Machine reunion and tour involving three members as well as solo albums released that same year by Morello and Cornell cemented the supergroup's permanent demise.

History

Formation (2000-2002)

Audioslave's history dates back to October 18, 2000, when lead vocalist Zack de la Rocha announced he was leaving Rage Against the Machine. This led to the band's breakup, but the remaining three members of the band decided to stay together and announced plans to continue with a new vocalist. Several vocalists jammed with the three, including B-Real of Cypress Hill, but they did not want another rapper or anybody who sounded like de la Rocha. Music producer and friend Rick Rubin later suggested that they play with Chris Cornell, the ex-frontman of Soundgarden. Rubin also persuaded the three of them to go into group therapy with performance coach Phil Towle after the breakup. Commerford later credited Rubin for being the catalyst that brought Audioslave together. He called him "the angel at the crossroads" because "if it wasn't for him, I wouldn't be here today."

The chemistry between Cornell and the other three was immediately apparent; as Morello described: "He stepped to the microphone and sang the song and I couldn't believe it. It didn't just sound good. It didn't sound great. It sounded transcendent. And...when there is an irreplaceable chemistry from the first moment, you can't deny it."

Name

The original idea for the band's name was "Civilian," but it was dropped when members found out that it was already taken. Morello later discredited the story, contradicting Commerford and Cornell, and commented that "Civilian" was merely a rumor circulating at the time. He stated: "The band has only ever had one name, and that is Audioslave." Morello described the origin of the "Audioslave" name to LAUNCHcast as follows: That was Chris's suggestion that sort of came to him in a vision. We're all on the two-way pagers, and Chris one night said, "I got it. It's Audioslave." We were all, like, "All right, fantastic." ... To paraphrase Elvis Costello, talking about band names is like dancing about architecture-there's just no point in it because the band name becomes the music and the people.

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