Audioslave: Audioslave

By RUSSELL BAILLIE

(Herald rating: * * * )

The resulting name of this hard rock marriage of convenience - former Soundgarden singer Chris Cornell joins three-quarters of Rage Against the Machine - might be lacklustre but it's hard to fault the logic. Audioslave allows Cornell to howl like he did in his old band's heyday and reprieve himself from a dead-end solo career.

For guitarist Tom Morello, bassist Tim Commerford, and Brad Wilk it gets them out of the political rap-rock corner they painted themselves into when fronted by the firebrand Zack De La Rocha. The resulting album, produced with due power and clarity by Rick Rubin, should keep fans of both camps happy, even if it's the riffs and Cornell's bulging-vein vocals that leave more of a lasting impact than the 14 songs.

It does a very good line in reconstituted Led Zeppelin, especially on openers Cochise (which also echoes Soundgarden's Spoon Man) and Show Me How to Live, as well as the churning Exploder.

But those dino-rock moves can sound a little by-numbers in places, especially when Set It Off starts reminding of Eagle Don Henley's solo hit Dirty Laundry with extra histrionics, while I Am The Highway is the sort of hairy-chest rock-god ballad you would expect from the likes of Creed.

Still, as it was in RATM, Morello's imaginative guitar work is a sideshow in itself, especially on the likes of the funky Hypnotize and the epic finale The Last Remaining Light.

By the usual standards of supergroups, it's impressive - but more for its firepower than its heat.

Label: Epic