Riff Tone

Wake Up

Rage Against the Machine

Guitarrock1990s

Original Gear

GuitarCustom 'Arm The Homeless' guitar

AmpMarshall JCM800 2205 head into Peavey 4x12 cabinet

PickupsEMG 85 (bridge), EMG H (neck)

Amp Settings

gain7.5

bass6

mid7

treble7

reverb0

presence6

Effects & Signal Chain

No effects used for this tone

Notes

Studio recording, 1991-1992, as used on the debut Rage Against the Machine album. The 'Arm The Homeless' guitar is confirmed for the riff section. Amp and cab are Morello's long-running studio rig. No evidence of alternate guitars or amps for this section.

Tone Character(10)

tight and percussiveaggressive and saturatedfocused midrange puncharticulate note separationdry and directminimal ambiencecompressed sustainstrong pick attackchunky palm-muted riffsactive pickup clarity

Difficulty

The riff requires intermediate-level control of palm muting, tight timing, and aggressive picking to achieve the signature percussive sound, but does not involve advanced lead techniques or complex chord voicings.

Sources

Watch Tom Morello demonstrate just how close his MXR Power 50 Overdrive pedal gets to his trademark Marshall amp sound | Guitar World Tom Morello's Guitar Gear, Pedalboard & Amps | Equipboard Rage Against the Machine's Tom Morello Guitar Rig Rundown Gear Tour - Premier Guitar

This tone has been researched 4 times by the community

Create an account to adapt this tone to your gear

Create Free Account