Audioslave- Audioslave

This is the debut album, released in 2002. This was about 2 years after Rage Against the Machine split, which freed up its members to create the band with Chris Cornell (Soundgarden imploded about 5 years beforehand).

The album is over 65 minutes long, so let's get stuck in...

Wow, what an opening! Cochise is the perfect way to kick off this hard rock album. From the build-up of the introduction to the classic riff that explodes on the scene, it establishes the mood perfectly. Show Me How to Live continues the theme of riff-driven hard rock goodness. Gasoline is again similar, but in my book it needs more to differentiate it from the previous two songs.

Recording quality is a mixed bag. Cochise is a painful distortion-fest (*cough*... Loudness War again, sigh) and the bass guitar sound is messy in Show Me How to Live. But when it's good, it's very good indeed: wonderfully meaty and enveloping, with the more subtle elements (cymbals, vocals and quieter guitar parts) being crisp and sweet.

My favourite song on the album is What You Are, probably due to the contrast in intensity between the poetic verses and the headbanging chorus. Both are wonderful in their own way, and somehow complement each other perfectly here. The lyrics are also brilliant, for example:
When you asked for light,
I set myself on fire

The mood is then relaxed (relatively speaking!) for Like a Stone. With a relatively laid-back chorus, the song gently flows from start to finish. This serves as both a breather amongst the onslaught of this album and a great rock ballad in it's own right. I Am the Highway is similar to Like a Stone, which also makes it a fine song (aside from the pointless viola opening).

While I'm on my high-horse, here's a few more quibbles: Set It Off is a bit bland in my opinion, especially the lytics. And while Shadow of the Sun has good section, somehow I don't think they fit together properly. Hypnotize's electronica elements do not appeal to me at all, nor does its cheesy chorus. Bring Em Back To Life's downfall is the awful distortion effect on the vocals. And The Last Remaining Light comes across as a B-grade copy of Soundgarden's Black Hole Sun.

While the hard rock style is very enjoyable, I can only take it in limited doses as I find it quite draining. Therefore I wonder if I'm a bit harsh on the later songs in the album, because I've had my fill by then? To end on a good note, Exploder features a fantastic riff and epic chorus.

Favourite song

Cochise, Show Me How to Live, What You Are, Like a Stone, I Am the Highway, Exploder

Worthwhile?

Headbanging hard rock isn't usually my cup of tea, so the handful of songs which do captivate me is quite an achievement. It therefore fits nicely as the token riff-rock element of my collection.