Audioslave Biography

news-detailsReady to create one more sensation in music scene with the coming out of their third work, 'Revelations', Audioslave appear to have no difficulty in running their path throughout year 2006. Despite the cancellation of their European tour which included a high billing at the Reading and Leeds festivals in the U.K., wide exposure kept flowing smoothly for the band, notably that of being the Xbox 360's August Artist of the Month also the featured guest on Rockline with host Bob Coburn on August 28. What's more, the nationally syndicated radio show has eagerly aimed to broadcast a program named 'Best of Audioslave' highlighting 'Revelations' on Labor Day, September 4, surely giving the quartet another potential chance to shine brighter in the music industry.

A rock super-group which has capability to produce strong, rich sounds using only vocals, guitar, bass guitar, or drums, Audioslave resulted from the merging between two substantial bands of Soundgarden and Rage Against the Machine (RATM). The origin of the group dated back to October 2000 when RATM vocalist, Zack de la Rocha, decided to quit from the troupe that consequently led to the disbanding of the L.A.-based quartet. As the three remaining members namely guitarist Tom Morello (born Thomas Baptist Morello on May 30, 1964 in Harlem, New York), bassist Tim Commerford (born on February 26, 1968 in Irvine, California), and drummer Brad Wilk (born September 5, 1968 in Portland, Oregon) opted to stay together in continuing their path, producer Rick Rubin then suggested them to jam with former Soundgarden vocalist, Chris Cornell (born on July 20 1964 in Seattle, Washington), to see if the guy could fill the empty seat left by de la Rocha.

Feeling the good chemistry between them after the meeting, the threesome and Cornell really did not take much time to finally join forces to work together in composing also recording songs, but the road gravely turned out to be not all smooth for them to undergo. Just before the 2002 Ozzfest in which they had been plotted to make a gig, Cornell abruptly concluded to leave the band due to the disputes between his management company and the other members'. Things got worse when 14 rough demo tracks they have recorded were leaked onto various peer-to-peer file-sharing networks under the name of "Civilian" or "The Civilian Project." Fortunately, everything began turning to better direction following Cornell's return and the hiring of a third management company, later taking its culmination in the release of their self-titled debut album, 'Audioslave', on November 19, 2002.

Launched under Epic Records, the record delightfully managed to gain vast attention through its memorable singles like 'Cochise', 'Like a Stone', and 'Show Me How to Live.' The former two even made their way to enter the top three of Billboard Mainstream Rock Tracks, boosting the LP to the seventh rank on The Billboard 200 Album chart as well as its sale to ultimately be certified three-times Platinum. Unmistakably catapulted to widespread prominence, Audioslave joyously followed it up with a number of live performances around the country, including that at the 2003 Lollapalooza Festival before returning to the studio to work on their next effort. The materialization of the process took form in their sophomore album, 'Out of Exile', which hit the stores on May 24, 2005.

Containing 12 tracks, the second work wonderfully generated another success for Audioslave when it went straight away to the top spot of The Billboard 200 in its first week on the chart. In the meantime, its four songs namely 'Be Yourself', 'Your Time Has Come', 'Out of Exile', and 'Doesn't Remind Me' all gloriously entered the top 20 of Billboard Mainstream Rock Track during the year. However, it was the latter that truly became the highlight of the quartet's career as the composition amazingly led them to land a Grammy Awards nomination for Best Hard Rock Performance in 2006. Riding high on this attainment, they optimistically went on to make the third LP, titled 'Revelations', which is expected to repeat the great outcome its predecessors have gained by the time of its unveiling on September 5, 2006.

In February 2007, lead singer Cornell decided to quit the band citing "irresolvable personality conflicts as well as musical differences" while wishing "the other three members nothing but the best in all of their future endeavors." In the wake of the split, Cornell went on working his solo career, planning to have his second solo album, "Carry On," released May 1 later that year. Remaining members of Audioslave meanwhile, went on with Rage Against the Machine by reuniting with de la Rocha. It was previously only planned for an attempt to voice the band's opposition to the "right-wing purgatory" the United States has "slid into" under the George W. Bush, Morello said. However, after making their first performance at 2007 Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival, they went on with a number of festivals that is scheduled up to early 2008.