Guitarist Tom Morello cryptic about future of Rage Against the Machine

During a July 11th performance in Chicago, Rage Against the Machine singer Zach de la Rocha tore his achilles tendon on stage. He soldiered on to finish the show– and the remaining string of shows that summer– before inevitably cancelling the 38 remaining performances on the 22/23 reunion tour.

Fans anticipated that these shows would later be rescheduled when de la Roya's injury healed, but guitarist Tom Morello threw that all in the air in a recent interview with Rolling Stone.

"We’ll see," said Morello to interviewer Andy Green when asked about the possibility of rescheduled shows. "If there is to be any more shows, we will announce it as a band. I don’t know. I know as much as you do, honestly. Right now we’re in time of healing.”

Morello called Rolling Stone from his home studio in California to set the record straight over complaints about ticket prices and purported vaccine requirements, but his ambiguity toward the band's future ended up being the greatest takeaway for many readers.

"If there never is another show, I think that this tour made the case," accounted Morello. "It’s not about how much you tour. It’s about what it’s like during those moments when you do. Rage Against the Machine has played 19 shows in the past 12 years. And the resonance of those 19 shows feel, in talking to fans, like those were historical events that furthers the idea of what that band is like live onstage.”

Green pushes the matter further, saying: "I guess. But you had 38 shows on the books that you cancelled. I’m no doctor, but I’d imagine any ruptured Achilles heel would be essentially healed after a year, at least well enough to tour. A lot of fans in Europe, especially ones that had tickets, are really jonesing to see you guys."

"There are fans everywhere that are jonesing," Morello laughs. "There are fans all over the world. Do Rage Against the Machine fans around the world deserve to see the band? Yes. Of course they do. Would the times benefit from a culturally, spiritually, rocking-ly, potent band like Rage being onstage? Of course. I don’t have news for you on that. I apologize. There’s nothing internal in our discussions that says either yes or no."

Green continued to pester Morello, stating that some fans might perceive him as being intentionally evasive. Morello just laughed. "I can’t help that," he remarked to the journalist.

Morello is about to embark on a slew of solo shows with his band the Freedom Fighters Orchestra. He will be heading to Europe and South America.