Iconic metal guitar hero Tom Morello is set to release a new album with his side project Street Sweeper Social Club.
Morello’s deeply felt political beliefs and super charged metal riffing formed a huge part of seminal rock heroes Rage Against The Machine. The band released their self-titled debut album in 1993, inspiring a generation of rap-metal acts.
Yet none were capable of raising the ire like Rage Against The Machine. The band split in 2000 after the departure of singer Zack De La Rocha, but reformed late in 2007 for a series of spectacular gigs.
The band’s performance at T In The Park last year has gone down in the annals of festival history, featuring 80,000 Scottish people chanting ‘fuck you I won’t do what you tell me’. Rage Against The Machine have vowed not to record new material, with each band member working on solo projects.
Last year Morello recorded an album of protest songs under the name The Nightwatchman. Indebted to songwriters such as Woody Guthrie, Phil Ochs and many more the project was followed by a very select batch of live appearances.
Now the guitarist is indulging his love of hip hop. Street Sweeper Social Club is a collaboration with Boots Riley, and the band are currently on tour with industrial godheads Nine Inch Nails.
Issuing a statement about their self-titled debut album, Morello claimed the eleven track album would feature “revolutionary party jams”. Continuing the guitarist said “it’s got huge steamroller riffs combined with depth, charge, funk, while Boots unloads clip after clip of incendiary rhymes rich with satire and venom.”
Street Sweeper Social Club release their debut album on June 16th.
