...
First of all, the members of Audioslave came together after the demise of their previous bands. Apparently Cornell was originally just going to replace Zack De La Rocha on RATM vocals, but the band decided to alter their sound instead.
Cornell was joined by expert guitarist Tom Morello, ... Read review
Audioslave
DVD video features:Three hit music videosDocumentary of Audioslave's performance in New ... more
York, Live On BroadwayDigitally Re-masteredPCM Stereo1. Cochise2. Like A Stone 3. Show Me How To Live4. Audioslave In New York: November 25, 2002Featuring the songs...
Audioslave - Audioslave
The debut of thundering supergroup Audioslave--featuring members of Rage Against the ... more
Machine post-Zack de la Rocha with ex-Soundgarden singer Chris Cornell--is as much curio as fascinating blend of visions. Cornell might be outnumbered, but his unmista...
Audioslave - Audioslave
The debut of thundering supergroup Audioslave--featuring members of Rage Against the ... more
Machine post-Zack de la Rocha with ex-Soundgarden singer Chris Cornell--is as much curio as fascinating blend of visions. Cornell might be outnumbered, but his unmista...
A review by tonguelessghostofsin on Audioslave - Audioslave October 12th, 2004
Author's product rating:
Originality
Groundbreaking
Lyrics
Sublime
Quality and consistency of tracks
Flawless
How does it compare to the artist's other releases
Outstanding
Value for Money
Advantages:
Booming magnificence from metal veterans
Disadvantages:
None for hard - rock fans
Recommend to potential buyers:
yes
Full review
Rarely has a debut album come with such a massive weight of expectation burdening it's very release. But after the first word of the collaboration between the musical trio from Rage against the Machine and voice of a generation; Soundgarden's Chris Cornell, the gauntlet was thrown down. Surely they could not fail.
First of all, the members of Audioslave came together after the demise of their previous bands. Apparently Cornell was originally just going to replace Zack De La Rocha on RATM vocals, but the band decided to alter their sound instead.
Cornell was joined by expert guitarist Tom Morello, bassist Tim Commerford and drummer Brad Wilk for this mighty alliance. Cornell wrote lyrics, the other guys wrote the music. One of the boasts that appear on the inside sleeve is that 'all sounds are made by guitar, bass, drums and vocals'. Why such a ridiculous disclaimer? Well, some of the incredible sounds created here, especially by Cornell's voice and Morello's guitar, are startling to believe are made by these simple instruments. Morello's expertise on six-string apparently comes from a dedicated 12-hour-a-day practice schedule, but Cornell's incredible vocal capacity is God-given.
1) 'Cochise' Named after a Native American freedom fighter, this blistering power rock track was the first single release in the UK. Opening with bizarre guitar 'sound effects' that sound like a cross between a scratching record and a revving motorcycle, we soon crash into an insatiable and strangely familiar guitar riff, complete with pounding drums, twanging bass, and howling from Cornell, with the song being about a partner (or friend) reluctant to tackle their own problems, shifting the blame onto the other person. Superb stuff.
2) 'Show me how to live' Probably the best track on the album, this leaps out of the speakers and uses your eardrums as punching bags. The third UK single, a foreboding riff is rolled in, with uneasily whispered verses, and funkified drum beats. As the first comes to an end, you sense you're in for something special, and the band don't disappoint, with a tsunami of a chorus, crashing strings and drums led by an insane howling chorus from Cornell about being crucified! I can't decide whether this is about Jesus, Frankenstein, or a possessed person, but it is lyrically flawless, and brings intense satisfaction! Enjoy!
3) 'Gasoline' Uplifting, shimmering guitar, and wonderful verses define this song about a tormented arsonist. The clever chorus; 'Burning that gasoline' could suggest the arsonist's choice between arson, or driving away from his torment. A fantastic third song.
4) 'What you are' A US single, this alternates between longing, whispered verses, and bellowed choruses about a partner who just takes, until Cornell is; 'free of what you are'. The incredibly loopy guitar licks are the highlight, Morello confounding expectations of how a guitar should sound.
5) 'Like a stone' The second UK single, this is a ballad, done as only Audioslave could do. More stringy strangeness from Morello, and a funk rhythm from Commerford and Wilk. Anyone who heard Cornell's solo album 'Euphoria Morning' will not be surprised by his tender tones here, but others more used to his howls, drones and bellows from Soundgarden may be. More lyrical brilliance shines through, but hey, you don't expect anything less from Cornell. An aching tale of waiting for a partner to avoid dying alone, but realising that you must embrace your destiny, for you may wander through the vast expanses of the afterlife.
6) 'Set it off' The bizarre vinyl-scratching sound effects made by Morello's guitar on the intro. have to be heard to be believed, then we have a strange 'swish' effect, before this monster grinds into life, with a superbly funky bass and drum beat, and hard-rock guitar. Cornell sets his vocal tones to hard 'n' heavy, and we have a degree of swearing for this bellowing behemoth about what sounds like a dying cult leader whose last words to his 'flock' are to start a fire! Excellence.
7) 'Shadow on the sun' Low key guitar utterings with a hint of melancholy rule the verses, and bass and drums announce themselves about halfway through the first verse, building from Cornell's rumbling vocals to a bellowed and powerful chorus; "I can tell you why people die alone, I can tell you i'm a shadow on the sun!" The second chorus is slightly different lyrically, and we have a highly inventive middle-eight interlude, with Morello playing a typically weird strained and warped solo, before another verse and Cornell howling "Shadow on the sun!!!" numerous times as the track closes on a very loud note.
8) 'I am the highway' This slow-burning power ballad takes some digesting, but satisfies when you take it for what it is. Okay, that makes no sense, but it is slow, and affecting, in that Cornell puts on his soul voice, and sings to, presumably his partner, about his perceived importance; "I am not your rolling wheels, I am the highway, I am not your carpet ride, I am the sky" Backing instruments are splendid, especially the atmosphere created by Morello's guitar.
9) 'Exploder' I read that someone criticised this track. Well, the only criticism i can give this is it sounds slightly similar to 'Set it off', but ignore that. This is class. Loud, proud and with Cornell on top howling form, it is a lesson in being happy with your lot, with sublime lyrics; "I met a man locked away for things he hadn't done, Innocence on a ball and chain, he'll never feel the sun again on his face, Or roses in his hands, but when he smiled at me i could understand: If you're free you'll never see the walls, If your head is clear you'll never free fall, If you're right you'll never fear the wrong, If your head is high you'll never fear at all" Insightful and brutally loud, this is Audioslave at their hypnotic best. Infectious vocal stylings from Cornell at the climax too.
10) 'Hypnotize' This is quite simply magnificent. An ingeniously throbbing, funky song about 'sharing the wealth', containing thinly veiled threats! "Well i know you've got problems, i see it in your eyes, But if you want to live to see the morning, Give it up to your brother or you'll get a surprise" The lyrics printed don't do the threatening nature of the song justice, as one of the last lines from Cornell is printed as; 'You can be', but sounds a lot more like; "You won't breathe!" There is also a background singer, but who it is i don't know.
11) 'Bring 'em back alive' Strangely structured opening, this is a dark, mid-tempo track, with distorted, echoey vocals from Cornell all the way through, especially the howled chorus; "Aa-a-a-a-a-agh! I am a virus, Aa-a-a-a-a-a-a-a-agh! I live in silence!" Some humorous high-pitched, stop-start scratchy guitar soloing again.
12) 'Light my way' Faster track, but similar in many ways to the last, i advise you to read the printed lyrics to understand just how good Chris Cornell's wordplay is. The tempo kicks right up on the bellowed chorus, and this is a grower, with strange effects going on throughout, no doubt from the twisted fingers of Morello.
13) 'Getaway car' Totally mellow, soft and smooth, until the ever-so-slightly 'power-ballady' chorus, this starts and ends as a very subtle and smooth easy-listening funk track, and winds down with Cornell pleading for his partner to drive well away from him. Some amazingly orthodox blues soloing from Morello follows, and Cornell croons more and more passionately, until the gentle end.
14) 'The last remaining light' Highly ironic and fitting title for this album, which not only contains a lot of fire and arson references, but has a flame as the main logo and cover art. Of course, it also heralds the end to a tremendous album. Dizzily spinning in melody and direction, Morello adds a touch of psychedelia, and more orthodox blues touches here and there, while Cornell alternates between hazy vocals, and power-howling as only he can pull off. A quite masterful end from four highly accomplished musicians.
This should be widely available on e-bay and record stores for a reasonable price, as it is over two years old. I give this full marks, and wait with baited breath for Audioslave's next effort.
Advantages: the finest rock singer in the business today Disadvantages: -
...to.
To make your Audioslave yummy cake you will need 3/4 of Rage Against The Machine (the guitarist and rythym section) mixed with 1/4 of Soundgarden's ex vocalist, stir together with lashings of Marshall amp, place in a CD player to warm up and immediately begin to frig out to the huge sound eminating from your speakers. Note to anyone who hasn't heard either of the above bands: attitude, sound and the extended middle finger are the three words ... ...Audioslave are Chris Cornell - vocals / Tom Morello - guitar / Tim Commerford - bass / Brad Wilk - drums Without going into exhaustive detail on each and every track, suffice it to say that this is hard-riffing, heads-down rock music. It's something of an understatement to say Morello knows his way around a fretboard. The man is shaping up to be a 21st century guitar god. Let's pick out some of the highlights. Cochise gets things underway. Oh, Jimmy, ...
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Repeat (songs I can never get enough of): Gasoline, Like A Stone, I Am the Highway, Getaway Car Skip (songs I have trouble listening to even once): some of those rockers near the album's endRepeat (songs I can never get enough of): Gasoline, Like A Stone, I Am the Highway, Getaway Car Skip (songs I have trouble listening to even once): some of those rockers near the album's endRepeat (songs I can never get enough of): Gasoline, Like A Stone, I Am ...
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Ciao members have rated this review on average very helpful
Advantages: Musically brilliant Disadvantages: Growing animosity in the group may split them up
...is now focusing his attention. Audioslave are a collaboration between Cornell, and the musical members of also defunct Rage Against The Machine who are Tom Morello, Brad Wilk, and Tim Commerford. The original plan was that Cornell would just replace Zac De La Rocha as RATM vocalist, but he thought that they were too political, and if they carried on with the same name, they would have to carry on with the same music, and he was not happy with that. ... ...single, and is a ballad, Audioslave style. It really works, and it is a song I connected with straight away. Lyrically, it is the best song on the album. It is a love song full of regret, and it is not too ambitious, and that is why it is such a cracking track. It is simple, but memorable, and full of emotion. It has to be said that the talent of Morello is another reason why this track is a winner, as his guitar riffs add to the feel of the song, ...
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Advantages: Brimming with talent and imagination Disadvantages: Listen to it, I havent found any yet
...more influential. The members of Audioslave must be very proud of themselves, as the album really reflects their most musically productive stage in their lives.
The album is of a good length, a typical 14 song CD with bonus pictures, music and videos accessed on your PC. The songs are never let down by the previous song, it just seems to build itself up to a very calm and meaningful end, whereas the first song "Cochise" is very hard hitting and ... ...album.
Audioslave, believe me, are not your typical, new age band. The sheer rock side of this album will leave you speechless and begging to re-visit the 80's to see some of the original rock!
The lyrics (composed by Chris Cornell) are mouth watering, they are poetic, everything you could ask for from a young, talented star. The other band members do not fail to back this up, by playing their own music to really emphasise what Chris Cornell is ...
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Advantages: Cool as beans rock, funk superbness Disadvantages: one track
...Soundgardens ex frontman Chris Cornell, Audioslave released this album last year and it has since gained critical acclaim from most rock circles. If you could imagine Rage Against The Machines inimitable fifage and ferocity blended with Cornells spectacular vocal stylings and at times gentle pacing then your probably pretty close. Mixing tunes that will make you shake your ass like a crazy person and nod your head,like scooby doo.
Racking up jst ... ...starts with a bang and ends in a shower of noise and is guaranteed to emote something from all but the most hardfaced casual listener, heres a run down of the tracks.
COCHISE - A recent single from the album and a perfect opener. Starting with a growl. Forty eight seconds in the fun begins with what can only be described as one mad chicken of a riff and Cornells growl that breaks the song out brilliantly. A stand up and bring it on style of song ...
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Advantages: Some decent pop-rock tracks Disadvantages: He's not moved far enough away from his Busted sound
...being more of a rock song than a pop-rock song, even with the obligatory rock swearing. Another one for the Busted fans, really.
There?s another ballad up next with ?From Myself Baby? being an acoustic guitar led track. There?s very little that separates this song from the mundane and it?s really nothing more than a pop ballad. I think Willis is trying to get more of an edge to his vocals to elevate the track, but this is certainly the dullest track on the album.
The intro to ?Fade Out? sounds almost like a sample of Audioslave?s ?Cochise?. Sadly, the song doesn?t retain that heavy edge and turns out to be just another pop-rock track, although not a bad one. There?s a bit more of an edge this time around, giving it more of a rock influence than before, but still not enough that you?d call this a rock song.
There?s another acoustic...
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Ciao members have rated this review on average very helpful
Advantages: A superb old school rock album Disadvantages: But, like many, I'm still waiting for long overdue new G 'N' R material
...of the rock clubs I frequent, although some of the vocal work towards the end does take the edge off the enjoyment a little, but there are again flashes of what made Slash one of the guitar gods of the late 1980s and early 1990s.
Guns ?N? Roses fans are going to go completely nuts over ?Fall to Pieces?. Musically it?s closest to their sound, with a distinctive guitar riff in much the same style as ?Sweet Child O? Mine?, in that it sticks out a mile. Fortunately, Scott Weiland has avoided sounding like Axl on this one, giving the song a distinctive edge. It?s at this point that you really start to believe that Velvet Revolver could be the equals of their respective pasts.
It?s maybe slightly inevitable that Velvet Revolver are going to be compared to Audioslave, another recent rock group which came together in much the same way and such...
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Advantages: The guitars and drums sound amazing Disadvantages: The vocals in places
...Well to take a bit of a break from Shed Seven and Runrig I decided to pull something a bit heavier out of my collection after seeing Audioslave on MTV2. No not the Audioslave album but an album by Rage Against the Machine who no make up 3/4 of Audioslave. This album was released back in 1996 and is considered to be their poorest album.
The band were an American 4 piece who started out playing in some ones front room in Orange County, California. A good number of RATM (from here on) songs are political protest songs but that shouldn?t put you off as they are quite good as well. As I mentioned 3/4 of Rage are now in Audioslave, after Zack left a couple of years ago to pursue a solo career and has hardly been heard of since.
Band
****
Zack De La Rocha: Vocals
Tim Bob: Bass
Brad Wilk: Drums
Tom Morello: Guitars
People...
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Label / Distributor: Epic / Sony Music/Arvato Services
Pieces in Set: 1
Studio / Live: Studio
Format: Performer
EAN: 5099751013020
Catalogue Number: 5101302
Additional notes
Album Notes: Debut album from the band formerly known as Civilian and featuring former members of Rage Against The Machine with ex-Soundgarden frontman Chris Cornell. Since recording the album in LA with the legendary Rick Rubin, they have split up, reformed and changed their name. 'Audioslave' sounds exactly as you would expect - Rage Against The Machine with vocals and lead guitar by Chris Cornell. Includes the single 'Cochise'.
Titles on disc 1
1.: Cochise
2.: Show Me How To Live
3.: Gasoline
4.: What You Are
5.: Like A Stone
6.: Set It Off
7.: Shadow On The Sun
8.: I Am The Highway
9.: Exploder
10.: Hypnotize
11.: Bring 'em Back Alive
12.: Light My Way
13.: Getaway Car
14.: Last Remaining Light
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