On March 19, 2002, Audioslave was confirmed for the seventh annual Ozzfest; despite, at that time, having neither an official name nor a release date for their debut album.
A few days later, reports surfaced that the band had broken up before they had played for a public audience.
Cornell's manager confirmed that the frontman had left the band, with no explanation given.

Initial rumors suggested that Cornell took issue with having two managers actively involved in the project (Jim Guerinot of Rebel Waltz represented Cornell, and Peter Mensch of Q Prime handled Rage Against the Machine).
According to the band, however, the split was not triggered by personal conflicts, but by their quarreling managers.
After the mixing of the album was finished, roughly six weeks later, the group reformed and simultaneously fired their former management companies and hired another, The Firm.
Their previous labels, Epic and Interscope, settled their differences by agreeing to alternate who released the band's albums.

Meanwhile, 13 rough mixes of songs the band had created months previously were leaked to peer-to-peer filesharing networks in May 2002, under the name "Civilian" (or "The Civilian Project").
According to Morello, the songs were unfinished and, in some cases, "weren't even the same lyrics, guitar solos, performances of any kind."
To MTV, he described them as "inferior sketches of works-in-progress, sent to Seattle for Chris to work on.
Someone at that studio helped themselves to a copy and, after eight months, it made its way to an Italian website.
Then it went global and everyone thought they had the record, which was so frustrating."

The band divulged their official name and launched their website in early September.
The first single, "Cochise", was posted online in late September, and was on the radio in early October.
Critics praised Cornell's vocal style, a distinct departure from the rapping of de la Rocha, and found that "the former members of RAtM have gone and done a Paul Weller, retreating from the ground they broke back [to] the sounds that inspired them."
Director Mark Romanek shot a music video for "Cochise", which shows the band playing atop a tower under construction in the midst of a giant fireworks display providing all the lighting.
The firework explosions during filming prompted fears of a terrorist attack among residents living near Los Angeles' Sepulveda Dam, the shooting location.

The self-titled debut album, Audioslave, was released on November 19, 2002, and entered the Billboard 200 chart at No.
 7 after selling 162,000 copies in its first week.
It was certified gold by the RIAA within a month of release, and by 2006 achieved triple platinum status.
It is the most successful Audioslave album to date, having sold more than three million copies in the United States alone.
Despite its commercial success, Audioslave received mixed reviews.
Some critics lambasted the group's effort as uninspired, and predictable.
Pitchfork Media praised Cornell's voice, but criticized virtually every other aspect of the album, deeming the lyrics "complete gibberish" and Rubin's production "a synthesized rock-like product that emits no heat."
Other critics, however, praised the supergroup's style reminiscent of 1970s rock and compared it to Led Zeppelin and Black Sabbath, saying they added much-needed sound and style to contemporary mainstream rock.

Audioslave made their live debut on November 25, 2002, performing a brief concert on the roof of the Ed Sullivan Theater on Broadway in New York City for the Late Show with David Letterman.
This was the first time any band had appeared on Letterman's marquee.
That year's KROQ Almost Acoustic Christmas was their first official paying concert, in which the band played on the first night, December 7, after giving a secret club show the night before.
Toward the end of the band's six-song set, Cornell told the audience, "These guys saved my life this year", and the show ended with his bandmates hugging him.
Afterwards, asked to expand on his comments, he would say only that he had dragge
On March 19, 2002, Audioslave was confirmed for the seventh annual Ozzfest; despite, at that time, having neither an official name nor a release date for their debut album. A few days later, reports surfaced that the band had broken up before they had played for a public audience. Cornell's manager confirmed that the frontman had left the band, with no explanation given.
Initial rumors suggested that Cornell took issue with having two managers actively involved in the project (Jim Guerinot of Rebel Waltz represented Cornell, and Peter Mensch of Q Prime handled Rage Against the Machine). According to the band, however, the split was not triggered by personal conflicts, but by their quarreling managers. After the mixing of the album was finished, roughly six weeks later, the group reformed and simultaneously fired their former management companies and hired another, The Firm. Their previous labels, Epic and Interscope, settled their differences by agreeing to alternate who released the band's albums.
Meanwhile, 13 rough mixes of songs the band had created months previously were leaked to peer-to-peer filesharing networks in May 2002, under the name "Civilian" (or "The Civilian Project"). According to Morello, the songs were unfinished and, in some cases, "weren't even the same lyrics, guitar solos, performances of any kind." To MTV, he described them as "inferior sketches of works-in-progress, sent to Seattle for Chris to work on. Someone at that studio helped themselves to a copy and, after eight months, it made its way to an Italian website. Then it went global and everyone thought they had the record, which was so frustrating."
The band divulged their official name and launched their website in early September. The first single, "Cochise", was posted online in late September, and was on the radio in early October. Critics praised Cornell's vocal style, a distinct departure from the rapping of de la Rocha, and found that "the former members of RAtM have gone and done a Paul Weller, retreating from the ground they broke back [to] the sounds that inspired them." Director Mark Romanek shot a music video for "Cochise", which shows the band playing atop a tower under construction in the midst of a giant fireworks display providing all the lighting. The firework explosions during filming prompted fears of a terrorist attack among residents living near Los Angeles' Sepulveda Dam, the shooting location.
The self-titled debut album, Audioslave, was released on November 19, 2002, and entered the Billboard 200 chart at No. 7 after selling 162,000 copies in its first week. It was certified gold by the RIAA within a month of release, and by 2006 achieved triple platinum status. It is the most successful Audioslave album to date, having sold more than three million copies in the United States alone. Despite its commercial success, Audioslave received mixed reviews. Some critics lambasted the group's effort as uninspired, and predictable. Pitchfork Media praised Cornell's voice, but criticized virtually every other aspect of the album, deeming the lyrics "complete gibberish" and Rubin's production "a synthesized rock-like product that emits no heat." Other critics, however, praised the supergroup's style reminiscent of 1970s rock and compared it to Led Zeppelin and Black Sabbath, saying they added much-needed sound and style to contemporary mainstream rock.
Audioslave made their live debut on November 25, 2002, performing a brief concert on the roof of the Ed Sullivan Theater on Broadway in New York City for the Late Show with David Letterman. This was the first time any band had appeared on Letterman's marquee. That year's KROQ Almost Acoustic Christmas was their first official paying concert, in which the band played on the first night, December 7, after giving a secret club show the night before. Toward the end of the band's six-song set, Cornell told the audience, "These guys saved my life this year", and the show ended with his bandmates hugging him. Afterwards, asked to expand on his comments, he would say only that he had dragge
Audioslave