Eight or nine years ago, Tom Morello began to play original tunes on acoustic guitar at open-mic nights in Los Angeles-area coffee shops. The Rage Against the Machine and Audioslave guitarist signed up anonymously as the Nightwatchman, so as not to invite requests for popular songs such as “Bulls on Parade.” Since that beginning last decade, Morello has built a body of material speaking to social consciousness and political activism.
“Initially it was very intimidating,” said Morello last week during a phone interview of his first forays in front of a microphone.
| Onstage |
| Tom Morello |
| Where: Birchmere |
| When: 7:30 p.m. Friday |
| Info: $25; birchmere.com |
Morello, touring in support of “World Wide Rebel Songs,” his third full-length album as the Nightwatchman, performs at the Birchmere in Alexandria on Friday.
“World Wide Rebel Songs,” which came out this week, is the first Nightwatchman album in which Morello plays an electric guitar on some of the tracks, complete with the occasional solo. He said that he finally became comfortable singing while playing electric guitar after a performance of “The Ghost of Tom Joad” with Bruce Springsteen. “World Wide Rebel Songs” also features a full backing band called the Freedom Fighter Orchestra. Morello describes the resulting album as “one part Johnny Cash, one part Che Guevara.”
Highlights on “World Wide Rebel Songs” include “Save the Hammer for the Man,” a duet with Ben Harper; the punk gospel revival “Speak and Make Lightning;” and “It Begins Tonight,” which features some of that guitar work that made Morello famous.
Morello said that the new album was inspired by a group of South Korean guitar manufacturers. The workers attempted to unionize, so the company moved operations to China. The workers came to the United States to raise money for their cause, and Morello offered to play a fundraising concert. The day before the concert, an earthquake devastated Haiti. The workers opted to direct all money raised to Haitian relief.
“I was so moved by this great selfless act of international solidarity, I wrote [the title track],” Morello said. “It became the starting point for this record. Their selfless act was a moment that opened a window into the kind of world that I’d like to see.”
Morello, 47, said he’s been politically active since his teen years. That passion is reflected in his Rage Against the Machine and Nightwatchman work.
As for Morello’s other music projects, Audioslave has broken up, and Rage Against the Machine plays the occasional show, like July’s L.A. Rising performance.
“That was our one show for this year,” Morello said. “We clearly don’t like to overtax ourselves.”
“Right now, there’s nothing on the calendar,” Morello added. “Rage is an ongoing entity, and I hope to do more shows in the future.”
