Live in Cuba

Review by Greg Prato In May of 2005, Audioslave became the first U.S. rock band to ever play Cuba -- that is, if you dont consider Billy Joel "rock." (The Piano Man played Castros stomping grounds back in 1979.) And the whole trip has been documented on the Live in Cuba DVD, issued later in the same year as Audioslaves performance. Although theyve had a shortage of U.S. rock acts there, it doesnt take the young Cuban audience long to indulge in moshing, crowd surfing, and hoisting signs welcoming the band and requesting their favorite songs. Since Rage Against the Machine and Soundgarden were two of the top live rock acts of the 90s, this hybrid of both bands delivers in concert, as expected. Standouts from Audioslaves two albums, 2002s Audioslave and 2005s Out of Exile, are given a jolt of live electricity, including "Set It Off," "The Worm," "Show Me How to Live," and "Cochise." But the main attraction for longtime fans will be the Audioslave-ized versions of classics by both Rage Against the Machine ("Bulls on Parade" and "Sleep Now in the Fire") and Soundgarden ("Spoonman," "Outshined," and a solo Chris Cornell reading of "Black Hole Sun"). Live in Cuba also features a nearly 40-minute documentary of the band in Cuba and a CD with five live tracks from a Sessions@AOL Music taping (including a cover of another Soundgarden nugget, "Loud Love"). This is just about everything fans would want from a live Audioslave DVD.