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Page 1
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Rick Rubin, the man who married rap and rock, sets his eyes on Rage and Chris Cornell ...
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Page 2
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Audioslave quickly jell, write songs, land Ozzfest spot and then Cornell quits ...
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Page 3
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Tom Morello creates 'electric termite' sounds, discusses Audioslave's future ...
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Photos of the Band
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" 'Gasoline' is one of the most punishing rock tracks perhaps committed to the digital format," he boldly declared. "It combines the hugeness of those riffs with a very sort of surreal verse. And Chris' vocals on it and lyrics are so great and frightening."
"Set It Off" is another agreed-upon standout. Like the single "Cochise," "Set It Off" begins with some Morello handiwork ("It sounds like electric termites made their way into a bagpipe," he said) and explodes into an epic rocker about a dying protester whose final words are "Set this f---er off."
"The lyrics were really inspired by the mood of the song," Cornell explained, clinching the back of his well-groomed hair. "Somebody made a comment while we were standing there writing it that it sounded like a riot song. And then I envisioned the people and the riot and what would spark that, and it wasn't that long after the [riots at the Seattle meeting of the World Trade Organization], which I actually saw while on tour.
"And that's the first time I've seen something that happened in my hometown just via CNN and I knew people that were there and I knew that the CNN loop of things going on made things seem much more dramatic and dangerous and crazy. And that image kept playing back in my head."
Whereas a Rage Against the Machine song would have probably attacked the WTO, Cornell took a more personal approach. Lyrics are easily the biggest difference between Rage and Audioslave, and the band wouldn't have it any other way.
"Music is best when it's honest, and Chris Cornell is a great lyricist," Morello explained. "I love his lyrics in Soundgarden, and it was very important to us for Chris to write from his soul. He has a great poetic and haunted kind of existential vision, which I think is one of the engines that drives the band."
"It's actually a lot easier to make a record that is angry than it is to put yourself out on the line maybe on a softer or more sensitive level," added Wilk, whose piercing eyes say more than he does.
To this point, Audioslave's journey has been an unpredictable one that appears to have settled on a comfortable road. They have total confidence their music will shake up an already unstable music world and are looking forward to touring together. Still, given the nature of this high-profile merger, it's easy to wonder how it will end.
"We have a record that we love, our experience working together has been great, and it's easy to look ahead and say, 'We're a band and we will continue to make records until we don't want to anymore,' " Morello said. "And that could be 10 years or 20 years or on the next record, but there's no reason for me to feel like it's not going to be something that goes on for a while."
Morello stops to ponder his answer. Twice before, he has "re-answered" questions, but he seems happy with this one. And besides, he has another interview to do. He has something to tell Rolling Stone.
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Photo: Epic
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