Sometimes things are just meant to happen. As some bands split up or band members leave for solo careers, others are left with the question: what now? For the remaining Rage Against the Machine members Tom Morello, Brad Wilk and Tim C. this turned out to be simple: continue. And so they did. It was Rick Rubin who introduced them to Chris Cornell, who turned down a few other vacancies. After a few jams, and creative moments Audioslave was born. With the release of their self titled debut album the world can finally hear that this is NOT a hybrid of Rage Against the Machine and Soundgarden. This is Audioslave. Music from the heart, as pure as rock music can be. Sure, the unmistakable sound of RATM has not been erased. The strength of Audioslave is combining the best of two worlds colliding in a gathering of 14 great songs. Just listen to Rage’s temperamental rhythms and recognisable guitar sound, topped of by Chris Cornell’s epic stadium rock vocals. It sounds natural, not forced, as if this should have happened a long time ago. Hear RATM in the songs ´Cochise´ and ´Show Me How To Live´, hear Chris Cornell solo in ´Like A Stone´ and ´I Am The Highway´, but most of all, hear Audioslave in all of the 14 tracks.

This means that the anger attacks, the groove and blues that made RATM famous have to share time with down to earth rock and even calm acoustic songs. And that’s what makes this album, this band special. A combination that really works. Overall the album sounds great – produced by the infamous Rick Rubin -; lots of depth mostly thanks to Chris Cornell, whose edge and emotional vocals give the sound an extra amount of boost. Guitars sound heavier and Brad Wilk’s groovy drum attacks are still as swinging as ever. For all the purists, Audioslave is not a political band; it’s a rock band. Check out www.axisofjustice.org for more information on their political views. The comparison with RATM and Soundgarden will probably be made a million times – yes, we like references –, but it would never do Audioslave any justice. Because Audioslave is not some meaningless rock star project. It’s as true as the blood that’s running through my veins.