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	AUDIOSLAVE NO MORE RAGEGARDEN

When Audioslave emerged, in 2002, out of the smoldering ashes of two of the ’90s’ finer alt-hard-rock heavyweights, Soundgarden and Rage Against the Machine, they sounded like a band with an identity crisis. Not surprising when you consider how far the differences between Rage and Soundgarden outweighed the similarities. Yeah, they were both earnest, riff-based, post-hardcore bands with dexterous guitarists and provocative singers. But the dirty, downtuned grunge of Seattle’s Soundgarden coupled with singer Chris Cornell’s cock-rock crooning stood in stark contrast to the sharp, serrated, politicized agenda of Rage’s Harvard-grad guitarist Tom Morello and Zack de la Rocha’s rap-inflected delivery. Granted that grafting Cornell’s head onto the body of Rage wasn’t exactly an oil-and-water proposition, the transition still wasn’t as easy or as obvious as Velvet Revolver’s 12-step-meeting marriage of STP junk-rock frontman Scott Weiland and the washed-up dudes from Guns N’ Roses’ overindulging original line-up — or anywhere near as cynical.

With a new album in the can (Out of Exile, due May 24 from Universal) and an outstanding new single on the radio (the feel-good anthem "Be Yourself"), Audioslave are out on a club tour that came to Avalon last Thursday, and it seems they’ve finally found themselves. In part, that’s meant re-embracing their pasts by peppering sets with choice cuts from the Rage and Soundgarden songbooks. It’s a crowd-pleasing move for sure, but it also reflects a confidence and a cohesiveness that were missing back when they released their Audioslave debut. Although the old Audioslave tunes that opened the set — "Set It Off" and "Exploder" — still sound like Ragegarden, the new ones, including "Be Yourself," with its finely structured wah-wah solo, and the only slightly more explosive "Your Time Has Come," suggest that Cornell, Morello, bassist Tim Commerford, and drummer Brad Wilk have found common musical ground.

Cornell had the good sense to sit out while Morello led the band through a vocal-less version of Rage’s "Bulls on Parade" (nobody wants to hear the guy rap), and he let the audience handle most of the vocals on "Killing in the Name Of." Wilk and Commerford had no trouble adding funky snap to Soundgarden’s "Spoonman"; Morello, one of the first rock guitarists to break new ground since Eddie Van Halen, endowed "Outshined" with one of his patented hip-hop-inspired screech ’n’ scratch solos. They handled the Soundgarden material so well that it was a little disappointing when Cornell emerged alone with an acoustic for a solo rendition of "Black Hole Sun." But this was yet another sign that, in spite of the egos involved, Audioslave are prepared to serve the songs.