Tim Commerford on Rage: “I don’t know anything, I’m just the bass player”

The bassist of Rage Against The Machine Tim Commerford in an interview with Rolling Stone magazine he spoke about his battle against prostate cancer and the band after the drummer Brad Wilk last January announced that “they would never tour or play live again”.

Talking about the story Rage Against the Machine he said: “I’m not involved in it.

I’m the bass player. I’m just waiting for someone to tell me what to do. Brad said what he said, but he’s a step above me. He is in third place. I’m the lowest on the totem pole. That’s all I can say. I’m the bass player. Bass players are always the last to find out about shit like that.”

In 2020, i Rage Against The Machine had announced their return, including their first world tour in 20 years. Everything was then delayed due to the pandemic, the band returned to the stage in July 2022, but they were forced to cancel some concerts in August because the singer Zack de la Rocha he ruptured his Achilles tendon. The entire tour was later cancelled. Speaking about that decision, Commerford explains that in addition to Zack’s difficulties there were other health problems, including his diagnosis of prostate cancer which led him to undergo treatment before the tour and to become psychologically stressed on stage. “At that time with Rage, I wasn’t there. I was very emotional and that was the hardest part. It wasn’t like the physical part. It was the psychological aspect of accepting that I had cancer. I was turning my back on my amplifier trying to hold back the tears. It was very difficult… people asked me how I was and I cried.”

Although after the surgery he got the all-clear from the doctors Tim Commerford he explains that every control weighs on him. “The cancer will never go away. It will always be there. When you have prostate cancer, they measure your PSA level. I’m at zero right now. But I get tested every three months. I’ll be really stressed before the next test.”

Given Rage’s period of limbo, Commerford’s latest project, formed in 2022is called 7D7D. The band has released four singles to date, the latest of which, “Insignia”, it’s fresh out. Tim just wants to play and play and play more: “I want to play that damn bowling alley. I want to play coffee shops. I want to go out there and do this stuff and not be the Rage guy as much as I can be.”