The Nightwatchman

One Man Revolution

[3/5] Those who prefer the explosive political outrage of the records he made as a member of Rage Against The Machine to the slick apolitical bluster of Audioslave will be thrilled to find guitarist Tom Morello again taking on the issues of the day with a healthy dose of righteous indignation. But you’re going to have to bring a tolerance for non-explosive folk traditions to the table. This is straight-up unplugged protest folk the way Bob Dylan used to do it with a noticeable Springsteen vibe on several tracks (although Morello’s baritone is more like Johnny Cash). At times, the album gets a little precious, but the more inspired moments are truly undeniable. Take “One Man Revolution,” a haunted blues-punk track that finds Morello wrestling with his thoughts on revolution: “In my nightmares the streets are aflame/And in my dreams, it’s much the same.” Or the Pogues-like revolutionary’s anthem, “The Road I Must Travel.” Some may wish it had a bit more juice, but in a lot of ways, the understatement only underscores the urgency. (EPIC) Ed Masley



ROCKS LIKE:

Bruce Springsteen’s Nebraska

Bob Dylan’s The Freewheelin’ Bob Dylan

Neil Young’s Living With War

IN-STORE SESSION WITH TOM MORELLO

The record’s very powerful for such a quiet album.
I’ve long thought that some of the heaviest music doesn’t have a thing to do with Marshall stacks or electric guitar. I honestly think that this is the heaviest record I’ve made. And there’s not an electric guitar [on it].

What inspired the move into more of a folk sound?

It started out just going down to open mic nights while touring with Audioslave, signing up anonymously under the name the Nightwatchman and playing in front of, like, eight people and a latte machine. When I first started writing these Nightwatchman songs, I suspected that I might be on to something, but I didn’t know if I was the right person to sing them. So I actually went over to Rick Rubin’s house one day and played him about 12 songs. He said, “Oh, you sing fine. You just need more experience.” So I went out and played literally hundreds of shows and in doing that developed confidence and found out what my voice was.

The angrier moments on this record remind me of Bob Dylan’s ‘Masters Of War.”

Well, part of the idea was what if Bob Dylan hadn’t turned his back on protest music 40 years ago? What kind of songs would he be writing?

It’s a very angry record.

It’s definitely an outlet to vent just how insanely pissed off I’ve become at world affairs and the Bush administration. But none of the songs-with maybe the exception of “Union Song”-are didactic. I was actually surprised and sometimes scared the shit out of myself with some of the lyrics I wrote, a song like “Battle Hymns” or “Garden Of Gethsemane.” I was just like, “Where did that come from?” I didn’t suspect that I was that pissed off until I wrote some of these songs.

So what’s the deal with Rage Against The Machine?
The opportunity to do some Rage shows came up, and I thought, “You know, these times demand that band, and during the seven years Rage has been dormant, the country’s gone to hell.” So I think the fact that I’ve got this Nightwatchman record and Rage Against The Machine is returning, perhaps the times they are a-changing after all.

Well, now that you’ve done this album of angry, politically motivated music, have you thought at all about channeling that into new material with Rage?

No, these are really separate things. I very much enjoy doing the Nightwatchman as a solo thing. The goal is to be the black Woody Guthrie, to show up and play for the people whenever there’s a need. -Ed Masley