The Nightwatchman

I first became aware of Tom Morello’s persona, The Nightwatchman, when I saw him perform as part of the “Tell Us The Truth” tour in 2003 (along with Steve Earle, Billy Bragg, Lester Chambers (of Chambers Brothers fame), Mike Mills (of REM), and Boots Riley (of the Coup)).

Anyway, that concert was amazing and I’ve been watching and hoping for him to release a ‘Nightwatchman’ CD since. So, I was most pleased to see this news story which says, in part:

As the lead guitarist of Rage Against the Machine and Audioslave, Tom Morello played loud arena rock — and loved it. Once back home, going through his record collection, he realized there was more to music than volume.

“In more recent years, I’ve discovered that music doesn’t need to be loud to be heavy,” Morello says by phone from his California home. “Some of the darkest and heaviest albums I have are Bruce Springsteen’s `Nebraska,’ Bob Dylan’s `The Times They Are A-Changin’,” Johnny Cash.

“I found some inspiration in that.”

The newly inspired Morello created a new persona: The Nightwatchman, a solo acoustic singer-songwriter in the tradition of those Rock and Roll Hall of Famers. “I’ve found my voice,” he says with a laugh, “as a black Woody Guthrie.”

Morello, under the nom de tune The Nighwatchman, is releasing his first solo album, “One Man Revolution,” on April 24. The album is Morello, his acoustic guitar and his harmonica; for the first time, Morello will handle the vocals, too.

I don’t often get terribly worked-up about new music releases, but I am really excited about this one; I’ll be buying it just as soon as it comes out.

If you like good acoustic music with a (left-leaning) political conscience, check it out.