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Rating: But was it really necessary? Audioslave breaks up, so far so good: the last album was little more than mediocre. It was fair to expect a grand return from Cornell (after all, You Know My Name gave us high hopes) and instead we get an album worse than Euphoria Morning. And what does Morello do? While waiting for a new Rage album, he decides to "delight" us with a grand solo album.
What's good about this CD? Forget Morello's distinctive style and his guitar scratching: the CD is folk, so only acoustic guitar. Granted, Morello knows how to play the guitar and some melodies are quite catchy, but in the end, all the songs tend to sound the same and by the third song a deadly boredom sets in. Nothing that makes you want to listen more than once (if you even make it to the end without indignantly pressing stop), nothing that particularly captures your attention.
So what remains of this album, once it's left to gather dust on some shelf? The annoying jingle of "One Man Revolution" stays stuck in your head, the horrendous title track, with an absurdly stupid and self-congratulatory lyric (I hope Tom doesn't take himself too seriously...): on the streets of New York / the cabs don't stop / on the street where I live / they called the cops, and so on. The soporific slowness of "The Garden Of Gethsemane", "Until The End" and "Let Freedom Ring" remains, and the ridiculous "Flesh Shapes The Day" and "House Gone Up In Flames" where Morello attempts to do something more with his voice, but fails miserably (it makes one wonder why Commerford always did the backing vocals in both Rage and Audioslave...). In my opinion, the only two songs worth saving are "The Road I Must Travel" and "The Dark Clouds Above". They are the only ones with drums and bass, and you can feel the difference. Nothing transcendental, but compared to the rest of the album, they’re almost masterpieces.
In conclusion: avoid it. Because if you know Tom Morello, it means you're a listener of rock music (Rage or Audioslave), and therefore this album is not for you. If you're really that curious, go to the official website and listen to the songs in streaming. Have a laugh.
Tracklist Lyrics and Videos
07 Flesh Shapes the Day (03:43)
Now you might have heard different But I know it's a fact That Jesus, Mary, Joseph And the Apostle Paul were black Ten letters I am writing Each one reads the same Nine circles I am drawing One around your name Land and freedom Steel and faith Tooth and bone and wire Skin, scar, dirt and fire It doesn't matter who you are It does not matter what you say Flesh shapes the day Now it's clear as a pillar of smoke And broken Starbuck's glass Yeah, I support my troops They wave black flags They wear black masks All the roads are closed Smoke is rising from the fields The monsters left their cages An angel set them free Land and freedom Steel and faith Tooth and bone and wire Skin, scar, dirt and fire It doesn't matter who you are It does not matter what you say Flesh shapes the day Veteran's hospitals And witches spells Low to buy And high to sell And little girls Collecting shells And memories Upon the shelves And ringing bells And high school choirs And faithful dogs Beside the fire And billionaires And open bars And early exits And judgments hard And land and freedom And steel and faith And tooth and bone and wire And skin, scar, dirt and fire It doesn't matter who you are Does not matter what the fuck you say Flesh shapes the day
11 No One Left (03:32)
Each one had a father
There's no one left
A name and a mother
No one left
Each one had a dream
A prayer on their breath
The world's gone black
No one left
On the streets of Manhattan
A dusty wind blows
Letters and wishes
A girl with a rose
On the streets of Baghdad
A dusty wind blows
Letters and wishes
A girl with a rose
Each one had a father
There's no one left
A name and a mother
No one left
Each one had a dream
A prayer on their breath
The world's gone black
No one left
Fire and vengeance
In the New York sky above
Stole my angel
Stole my true love
Fire and vengeance
In the Baghdad sky above
Stole his angel
Stole his true love
I stand on my front porch
I look up at the sky
Will my world go black
In the blink of an eye
He stands out in the desert
He looks up at the sky
Will his world go lack
In the blink of an eye
Each one had a father
There's no one left
A name and a mother
No one left
Each one had a dream
A prayer on their breath
The world's gone black
No one left
Each one had a wish
Each one had a home
Each one had a name
A name and a rose
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Other reviews
By frogproduction
The album is composed of ballads and anthems for acoustic guitar and voice: a genre where it’s difficult to produce something truly bad, but equally difficult to excel.
Wow, this really is making a revolution.
