“Emotionally active”: the musician Tom Morello called singularly brilliant
There is a lot of talk about innovation in music. Conversations surrounding various bands and musicians are centred around how innovative those perceived artists are and what new qualities they can bring to the genre. When we refer to rock legends such as Jimmy Page and Jimi Hendrix, the conversation focuses on how they played, but with Tom Morello, it’s something else entirely.
Tom Morello can play guitar. No one is denying that. When you listen to the riffs on songs like ‘Bombtrack’, ‘Bulls on Parade’ and ‘Guerilla Radio’, the energy he brings to the guitar is perfect for Rage Against The Machine and impossible to recognise as anybody else. He brings more to the instrument than that, though. Tom Morello wasn’t just innovative in what he played on the guitar but how it could be played as well.
He doesn’t just pluck strings; he embraces technology and messes with effects to give guitar solos a much-needed change. His sound is entirely unique, as he reaches notes that other musicians could only dream of while still maintaining a cohesive sound and interesting melody throughout.
When Morello provided a list of some of his favourite albums of all time, it was interesting to hear him talk about why records affected him, as they all seem to add up to make the sound that he is so famed for. For instance, he spoke about Ozzy Osbourne’s solo album Blizzard of Ozz because of Randy Rhoads’ guitar playing.
“It was Randy Rhoads’ poster that I had on my wall when I was practising eight hours a day,” he said, “And he remains my favourite guitarist of all time. His genius is splattered all over this metal masterpiece, and this album revived Ozzy Osbourne’s career. Every song, every riff, and every solo drips off a guitar genius emerging to kick the world’s ass.”
The shredding that Randy Rhoads was famous for can certainly be heard in Morello’s playing, but Morello also adopted a singularity, which meant that his music stood out as an individual aspect rather than just something contributing to a band. He champions this style of writing and adheres it to albums such as Ruminations by Conor Oberst, who he says is one of the best artists of all time.
“Conor Oberst in and out of Bright Eyes is a singularly brilliant and emotionally evocative lyricist. Ruminations is a torn tapestry of a soul falling apart, and it’s absolutely gorgeous. Each razor-sharp turn of phrase is astounding and gives Dylan a run for his money,” he said, “Also, I’m pretty sure ‘Till St. Dymphna Kicks Us Out’ is about a night out in the East Village with Conor, myself, and Michael Moore.”
Morello remains one of the most innovative modern guitarists, taking elements of rock music and adding technological advancements to add something unique to it.
