Go On And Save Yourself, And Take It Out On Me (Audioslave - Audioslave)

Member Name: Andy.mack

Product:	Audioslave - Audioslave
Date:	28/11/06 (1283 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: A decent alternative to the now demised Soundgarden and Rage Against The Machine. Cornell's vocals a

Disadvantages: If your looking for a direct replacement for RATM or Soundgarden this isn't it

It’s pretty normal that when one great band dies another one or two usually rise from the ashes. With Audioslave though it took the demise of two great bands, Soundgarden and Rage Against The Machine, for the band to be created. When Zack De La Rocha left Rage Against the Machine due to creative differences it left the rest of the band without a lead singer. Over the few months after Zack’s departure the band worked with a few different lead singers before a producer suggested they try Chris Cornell. Now a solo artist having disbanded Soundgarden.

The rest as they say is now history and the formation of the new band saw them write some 21 tracks in just 19 days. Of course it wasn’t all plain sailing for them and in 2002 whilst recording this album the band actually split up for a short time. It was 2 years after Rage Against The Machine had gone that Audioslave really burst onto the music scene with some pretty heavy rock tracks. The political agenda of Rage Against The Machine had seemingly gone and in its place a slightly more placid album lyrically.

It almost seemed suiting though that Audioslave filled the voids left by the demise of Soundgarden and RATM. They took their place alongside the likes of System Of A Down and Queens Of The Stone Age to become one of the best rock bands around at the moment. The album has really blended the two bands together and seen the unmistakeable musical stylings of RATM crossed with very early Soundgarden material to make a very pleasing musical combination.

The great thing about this debut from the newly formed Audioslave is the fact the entire sound is derived from the guitars, drums and bass. There wasn’t a synthesiser, keyboard or a samples board anywhere to be seen. The guitars really lead the tracks, with the bass especially emphasising the new, louder sound the band are going for. The drums back the bass up fantastically and it provides a very solid grounding for the lead guitars and vocals to really build upon. In fact at times the guitar solo’s really stole the album for me and became part of my instant love affair with Audioslave.

When the band started out Chris Cornell wanted to make sure people realised he wasn’t just taking over from Zack as RATM’s new vocalist. For this reason the band moved away from the political lyrics but also from the Hip hop influenced rock that RATM seemed to be producing towards the end. What you are left with is a very astute, solid vocal performance that really hits the higher, faster tracks but also suits the slower, mellower ones as well. His vocals along with the lead guitar give Audioslave a bit of direction and I think it really helps to make this album as good as it is.

From the first time I heard “Cochise” I knew that Audioslave would be the band to take the place of the departed RATM. The track has quite a typical RATM intro to it but as soon as the vocals kick in the flashback is ended. The song is quite reminiscent of RATM but features a much more melodic twist. Something that Cornell seems to have brought to the three remaining members of RATM that seems to have changed the direction they were heading.

Along with “Chochise” I was also hooked on the much slower, melodic sound of “Shadow On The Sun”. It has a much mellower start to it with Cornell’s powerful vocals kicking it off before the real backing to the track kicks in. This in contrast with “Cochise” shows just how diverse Audioslave are and that they can equally do the more classical rock as well as the more modern heavy stuff. As I liked both the previous incarnations I found it hard to dislike any of the tracks, but with 14 in total I’m sure some people will be able to find a few flaws on here.

Overall the self titled debut album from Audioslave really did what they set out to do. They made a name for themselves and in the process managed to prove there would be live after both Soundgarden and RATM. This album is a must for Rock fans, but if you’re into your dance music or R ‘N’ B then I’d seriously recommend giving it a wide birth. There certainly will be a lot more to come from Cornell, Morello, Commerford and Wilk of that you can be certain.

Amazon: £4.97
Amazon Marketplace: £3.47
Myspace: http://www.myspace.com/audioslave

Summary: The debut album by the fushion of Soundgarden and Rage Against The Machine