The concert that Tom Morello said “proved me wrong”
Tom Morello’s CV is an extensive one. An undisputed guitar hero, without his drop-tuned, blues-heavy riffs, it is sure that Rage Against the Machine would have lacked the infectious power that made them such world beaters.
The perfect middle ground between the furious political rants of frontman Zack de la Rocha and the rumbling rhythm section of bassist Tim Commerford and drummer Brad Wilk, in many ways, it is Morello’s work that makes some of the group’s best-loved efforts really tick, from ‘Killing in the Name’ to ‘Bulls on Parade’.
Morello is a distinctive player who fuses rock, punk and metal influences with a natural prediction for mind-melting sonics through heavy riffing and experimentation with pedals. It says a lot about the American guitarist’s work that he is just as known for his inventions on the fretboard as he is for his reliance on the DigiTech WH-1 Whammy, which has coloured almost all of his most memorable solos.
Apart from being a highly influential musician, Tom Morello is also noted for being something of a purist when it comes to his art form. A true defender of rock music and all its offshoots, he even named Jane’s Addiction as the band who “saved hard rock” on their 1988 debut album, Nothing’s Shocking.
Morello told SPIN: “Jane’s Addiction saved and redeemed hard rock music with this tour de force. The band unapologetically embraced bold metal riffs, fused them with underground artistry and brilliant street poetry that created an unprecedented alloy of rock and roll greatness.”
An adherent of the traditional rock ‘n’ roll band formula, Morello has even admitted that until he witnessed one particular live performance, he didn’t believe that keyboards could be used appropriately within one. According to him, watching industrial legends Nine Inch Nails on the 1991 Lollapalooza tour changed his mind, with him conceding that the band’s leader and frontman, Trent Reznor, “proved me wrong”.
Speaking to Guitar World in 2021, Morello looked back on that momentous moment: “I had never heard of Nine Inch Nails before the 1991 Lollapalooza tour. Trent Reznor and company put on the most exciting, outrageous, violent, ferocious, industrial punk-metal cage match that I had ever seen on stage. Until that moment, I didn’t think you could ever rock properly with keyboards in a band, but Trent proved me wrong.”
Watch a clip of Nine Inch Nails live at 1991 Lollapalooza below.
