Just an observation. . .

. . .as I sit here listening to some tunes before heading into work. But, for a raging commie pinko, Tom Morello is one hell of a guitarist. And, make no mistake about it, the guy is a committed socialist -- but in the same sense that George Soros is. That is, I think it's much easier to decry corporate greed from atop a fat stack of cash.

I don't keep up with the break-ups and reformations of rock bands like I used to -- there was a time when I could recite the six degrees of separation between any guitarist in the world and Ronnie James Dio, but that was back in the day -- when Circus and Hit Parader magazines were the only things that kept me going from month to month. But, from what I understand, Rage Against the Machine are now completely defunct. It's often hard to tell, since it seems these days that a lot of musicians simply like to have their own side projects while maintaining the appearance of commitment to the the band that brought them to the dance.

But, it's all just as well if RATM never makes another record. I mean, how can you keep that name while cranking out radio-friendly platinum hits for the record companies? How can you write songs called "Guerilla Radio" knowing they're going to be played on Clear Channel? Is it possible to rage "against" the machine while being an integral part of the machine itself?

It's also ironic that Tom Morello's most recent involvement is a band called Audioslave. I can't knock the music. It's what I've been listening to as I write this blog entry. Very good stuff. But, don't you think the roadies and sound techs would be a little resentful on the road, working for a band called Audioslave? Don't you think at least one guy running cables and doing mic checks has said, "I gotcher audioslave right here"?

Speaking of which -- I need to get my ass to work. This internet connection ain't gonna pay for itself.