Audioslave

Audioslave was an American rock supergroup formed in Glendale, California, in 2001. The four-piece band consisted of Soundgarden's lead singer and rhythm guitarist Chris Cornell with Rage Against the Machine members Tom Morello (lead guitar), Tim Commerford (bass/backing vocals), and Brad Wilk (drums). Critics first described Audioslave as a combination 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. Their unique sound was created by blending 1970s hard rock and 1990s alternative rock, with musical influences that included 1960s funk, soul and R&B. As with Rage Against the Machine, the band prided themselves on the fact that all sounds on their albums were produced using only guitars, bass, drums, and vocals, with emphasis on Cornell's wide vocal range and Morello's unconventional guitar solos.

In their six years together, Audioslave released three albums, received three Grammy nominations, sold more than eight million records worldwide and became the first American rock band to perform an open-air concert in Cuba. They disbanded in February 2007 after Cornell issued a statement announcing that he was leaving the band. Later that year, Cornell and Morello (under his moniker The Nightwatchman) released solo albums, and Morello, Commerford, and Wilk reunited with Zack de la Rocha for the Rage Against the Machine Reunion Tour.

Audioslave reunited to perform at Prophets of Rage's Anti-Inaugural Ball, which took place on January 20, 2017. Cornell's death later that year precluded any chance of further reunions.

History

Formation (2000–2001)

On October 18, 2000, Rage Against the Machine broke up after the vocalist, Zack de la Rocha, announced he was leaving, citing a breakdown in the band's "decision-making process". The remaining members—Tim Commerford, Tom Morello and Brad Wilk— announced plans to search for a new vocalist.

Several vocalists jammed with them, including B-Real of Cypress Hill, but the band did not want another rapper or anybody who sounded like de la Rocha. Layne Staley of Alice in Chains was long rumored to have auditioned, but Morello denied this on Twitter in 2015. Music producer and friend Rick Rubin suggested that they play with Chris Cornell of Soundgarden, which had broken up in 1997. Rubin also persuaded Morello, Wilk and Commerford to go into group therapy with performance coach Phil Towle after the breakup. Rubin was confident that, with the right new voice, Rage Against the Machine had the potential to become a better band, as the Yardbirds had evolved into Led Zeppelin. 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 with Cornell was immediately apparent. Morello said: "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." The group wrote 21 songs during 19 days of rehearsal, and began working in the studio in late May 2001 with Rubin as producer, while sorting out the label and management issues.

''Audioslave'' (2002–2003)

On March 19, 2002, the group, still unnamed, was confirmed for the seventh annual Ozzfest. A few days later, reports surfaced that the band had broken up before they had played for a public audience. Cornell's manager confirmed that he had left the band, with no explanation given.

Initial rumors suggested that Cornell took issue with having two managers actively involved in the project (Jim Guerinot of Rebel Waltz represented Cornell, and Peter Mensch of Q Prime handled Rage Against the Machine). According to the band, however, the split was not triggered by personal conflicts, but by their quarreling managers. After the mixing of the album was finished, roughly six weeks later, the group reformed and simultaneously fired their former management companies and hired another, the Firm. Their previous labels, Epic and Interscope, settled their differences by agreeing to alternate who released the band's albums.

Meanwhile, 13 rough mixes of songs the band had created months previously were leaked to peer-to-peer filesharing networks in May 2002, under the names Civilian or the Civilian Project. According to Morello, the songs were unfinished and, in some cases, "weren't even the same lyrics, guitar solos, performances of any kind". He described them as "inferior sketches of works-in-progress, sent to Seattle for Chris to work on. Someone at that studio helped themselves to a copy and, after eight months, it made its way to an Italian website. Then it went global and everyone thought they had the record, which was so frustrating."

The band announced their name after coming to an agreement with a Liverpool based band with the same name and launched their website in early September. The first single, "Cochise", was posted online in late September, and was on the radio in early October. Critics praised Cornell's vocal style, a departure from the rapping of de la Rocha, and found that "the former members of RATM have gone and done a Paul Weller, retreating from the ground they broke back othe sounds that inspired them". Director Mark Romanek shot a music video for "Cochise", which shows the band playing atop a tower under construction in the midst of a giant fireworks display providing all the lighting. The firework explosions during filming prompted fears of a terrorist attack among residents living near Los Angeles' Sepulveda Dam, the shooting location.

The band's debut album, ''Audioslave'', was released on November 19, 2002, and entered the ''Billboard'' 200 chart at No. 7 after selling 162,000 copies in its first week. It was certified gold within a month of release, and by 2006 achieved triple platinum status. It remains the most successful Audioslave album, having sold more than three million copies in the United States alone. It received mixed reviews; some critics felt it was uninspired, and predictable. ''Pitchfork'' praised Cornell's voice, but criticized virtually every other aspect, deeming the lyrics "complete gibberish" and Rubin's production "a synthesized rock-like product that emits no heat". Other critics praised the style as reminiscent of 1970s rock, and compared it to Led Zeppelin and Black Sabbath, saying they added much-needed sound and style to contemporary mainstream rock.

Audioslave made their live debut on November 25, 2002, performing a brief concert on the roof of the Ed Sullivan Theater on Broadway in New York City for the ''Late Show with David Letterman''. It was the first time any band had appeared on Letterman's marquee. That year's KROQ Almost Acoustic Christmas was Audioslave's first paying concert, in which the band played on the first night, December 7, after giving a secret club show the night before. Toward the end of the band's six-song set, Cornell told the audience, "These guys saved my life this year," and the show ended with his bandmates hugging him. Afterwards, asked to expand on his comments, he would say only that he had dragged the trio "through a trail of shit" in the past months. Cornell later confirmed that he had checked into drug rehabilitation. In a San Diego CityBEAT article, Cornell explained that he went through "a horrible personal crisis" during the making of the first record, staying in rehab for two months and separating from his wife. He credited Morello, Commerford and Wilk with helping him rebound. He dismissed rumors about problems with OxyContin or heroin, but when asked, offered only, "Various things. I'm not picky. Mainly for drinking."

" Like a Stone", the second single from ''Audioslave,'' was released in early 2003. It was the highest-charting single from the album, reaching number one on ''Billboard''s Mainstream Rock Tracks and Modern Rock Tracks charts. It was certified gold, making it Audioslave's most successful single. The music video for "Like a Stone" was written and directed by Meiert Avis. It was shot in the Los Angeles house where Jimi Hendrix wrote "Purple Haze". The video uses negative space to invoke the memory of musicians past. The music video for the third single, " Show Me How to Live", was banned by MTV, reportedly because it shows the band in a high-speed car chase running police cars and motorcycles off the road. The band's first DVD, ''Audioslave'', was released on July 29, 2003.

Audioslave toured extensively worldwide in 2003, gaining positive reviews for their performances, including at the revived Lollapalooza. Their performance on the Lollapalooza tour won the '' Metal Edge'' 2003 Readers' Choice Award for "Favorite Lollapalooza Band".

''Out of Exile'' (2004–2005)

In 2004, at the 46th Grammy Awards, "Like a Stone" was nominated for " Best Hard Rock Performance" and ''Audioslave'' for " Best Rock Album". They spent the rest of 2004 on break from touring and working on the second album. This gave Morello time to concentrate on his solo project, the Nightwatchman, and also to take an active part in political activities. Cornell had time to focus on his personal life; after his divorce from his first wife was finalized, he married Vicky Karayiannis, a Paris-based publicist he met during Audioslave's first European tour.

Work on a new album had started in 2003 during the Lollapalooza tour, and continued at the end of the year when band members entered the studio. Aside from writing new material, the band also had some leftover songs from the ''Audioslave'' sessions; according to Morello, they had "almost another album's worth of stuff lready done" " Be Yourself", the first single from the still-untitled album, was panned by some critics, who felt it was "limp, and the lyrics are bland and directionless". Nevertheless, it reached number one on the Mainstream and Modern Rock charts.

In April 2005, the band launched a club tour, which lasted until late May. Although on previous tours Audioslave occasionally played cover songs, they deliberately avoided playing their former bands' songs to avoid using those songs as a "crutch" to "help sell and break Audioslave" as their aim was to establish the band as an "independent entity". After achieving that goal, they thought it was "time to own those histories," and began performing a selection of the two bands' most popular songs (such as " Black Hole Sun" and " Bulls on Parade") on the tour.

The second single, " Your Time Has Come" was released through a unique promotion, lasting one week, which involved radio listeners around the world. Radio stations were asked to post a link on their websites to a special timed-out download of the song. Once one million people clicked on the link, the song was unlocked and became downloadable by all one million.

On May 6, 2005, Audioslave played a free show in Havana

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