Tom Morello

Tom Morello，前知名乐队Rage Against The Machine吉他手，现Audioslave吉他手。
Tom Morello于1964年5月30日在纽约市的哈莱姆区出生。他出生后不久，他的家人搬到利伯蒂维尔，伊利诺伊州——一个以白人为主的社区。在此地上中学期间，他积极参加艺术表演并出演过学校的话剧。
编辑本段
音乐生涯
 
　　1980年，TOM拥有了他的第一把吉他并组了一支名叫Electric Sheep的乐队。他的队友之一便是Adam Jones（TOOL乐队的吉他手）。在那时，TOM喜好的音乐是重金属。 1982年, TOM高中毕业并考入哈佛大学, 就读于社科学院。在大学期间，他越来越多地专注于吉他的练习，甚至是每天必练。
　　1986年，TOM取得政治学学士学位，为了更好地发展自己的音乐事业，他搬往洛杉矶。
　　1988年，TOM组建了一支名叫LOCK UP的乐队，签约到格芬唱片并在发表了一张叫做Something Bitchin' This Way Comes的唱片后解散。他立即开始寻找队友，计划组织一支新乐队。不久他接触到之前已经参选过LOCK UP的鼓手Brad Wilk。随后TOM又在一个场子里遇见了说唱歌手Zack de la Rocha，最终Zack和他弹贝斯的朋友Tim Commerford都加入了乐队。
　　1991年，Rage Against The Machine正式成立。随后他们制作了一张有十二首歌的小样，并因此吸引了众多唱片公司的眼球，签约到Epic唱片。
　　1992年，RATM发行第一张专辑，即同名专辑《Rage Against The Machine》。
　　1996年，RATM发行第二张专辑，即《Evil Empire》。
　　1999年，RATM发行第三张专辑，即《Battle Of Los Angeles》。
　　2000年，RATM发行第四张专辑，即《Renegades》。同年，ZAKK由于与乐队在音乐理念上的差异而离队。
　　2001-？ZAKK走后TOM一心重组乐队，后来RATM余下的三位成员与前SOUNDGARDEN乐队主唱Chris Cornell 组成了名叫Audioslave的新乐队并凭借乐队同名专辑取得了成功。
 
　　在业余时间，TOM用艺名The Nightwatchman发表了一些民谣风格的音乐。不同于AUDIOSLAVE的音乐风格，他个人的民谣音乐含有很强的政治元素，他定期在洛杉矶的酒吧里演出这些非常个人化的音乐。
　　TOM最为人所知的是他对吉他音色的控制及创造能力，他善于利用各种踏板及效果器。他最出名的音色是打碟一般的“刮刮”声。另外，TOM在表演时总是带着一顶棒球帽。
Biography
by Greg Prato
Few rock guitarists in the 1990s were as groundbreaking as Rage Against the Machine's Tom Morello, who incorporated a myriad of different styles into his own playing. Born in New York City on May 30, 1964, Morello was raised by his mother (who, decades later, would help create the anti-censorship organization Parents for Rock & Rap) in Libertyville, IL. As a teenager, Morello became infatuated with both rock music and politics, as he was almost entirely self-taught on guitar (in fact, he learned the most about the instrument while practicing up to eight hours a day during a stint at Harvard University, where Morello majored in political science). Upon graduation, Morello relocated to the Los Angeles area, where he decided to try and make a career out of music (making ends meet by working for a spell as a California senator's secretary). By the late '80s, Morello was a member of L.A. rockers Lock Up, who inked a deal with Geffen and issued a lone album, 1989's Something Bitchin' This Way Comes. When the album sank without a trace upon release, the group broke up.
But Morello already had plans for his next project, which would be more thought-provoking and politically minded (taking a cue from such respected artists as the Clash and Public Enemy) and harder-edged musically. Joined by vocalist/rapper Zack de la Rocha, bassist Tim Commerford, and drummer Brad Wilk, Rage Against the Machine was born in 1991. Over the course of a four-album career -- 1992's self-titled release (an album which many point to as the trailblazer for the heavy metal/rap style, inspiring countless other bands in its wake), 1996's Evil Empire, 1999's The Battle of Los Angeles, and 2000's all-covers Renegades -- Rage Against the Machine became one of rock's leading (and most confrontational) bands. But rumors of friction between de la Rocha and the rest of the members continued to persist (stemming from the fact that the frontman wanted to issue a solo album), and shortly before the release of the fourth album, de la Rocha left the band. Undeterred, Morello and the rest of the Rage members enlisted the services of former Soundgarden frontman Chris Cornell, forming the group Civilian, which would later be redubbed Audioslave.
In addition to his work with Rage and Audioslave, Morello has lent his playing (and in some cases, production) talents to recordings by a variety of other artists, including Bone Thugs-N-Harmony, the Crystal Method, Perry Farrell, Primus, Puff Daddy/Jimmy Page, and Run-D.M.C., as well as collaborating with enigmatic Alice in Chains singer Layne Staley on a cover version of Pink Floyd's "Another Brick in the Wall, Pt. 2" for the soundtrack of the 1998 film The Faculty. Morello also performs solo material sporadically under his political folk alter ego, the Nightwatchman.