Tim Commerford
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{{Infobox musical artist <!-- See Wikipedia:WikiProject_Musicians -->
| Name = Tim Commerford
| Img = Tim Commerford Montreux Jazz Festival 2005.jpg
| Img_capt = Tim Commerford on stage playing with Audioslave.
| Background = solo_singer
| Birth_name = Timothy Robert Commerford
| Alias = Timmy C<br>Y.tim.K.<br>Tim Bob<br>TIM.COM
| Born = {{birth date and age|1968|2|26}}<br>[[Irvine, California|Irvine]], [[California]], [[United States|U.S.]]
| Died =
| Instrument = [[Bass Guitar|Bass]], [[Backing vocals]]
| Voice_type =
| Genre = [[Alternative rock]]<br>[[Rapcore]]<br>[[Alternative metal]]<br>[[Funk metal]]<br>[[Hard rock]]<br>[[Funkcore]]<br>[[Post-grunge]]
| Occupation = [[Musician]], [[Songwriter]]
| Years_active = 1990 - Present
| Label = [[Interscope Records|Interscope]], [[Epic Records|Epic]]
| Associated_acts = [[Rage Against the Machine]]<br/>[[Audioslave]]<br/>[[Puscifer]]| URL = [http://www.ratm.com ratm.com]
| Notable_instruments =
}}
'''Tim Robert Commerford''' (born [[February 26]], [[1968]] in [[Irvine, California]]), also known by his various monikers/stage names ('''Timmy C.''', '''Y. tim K.''', '''Simmering T''', '''Tim Bob''', and '''tim.com''') is the [[bassist]]/[[backing vocalist]] for American rock band [[Rage Against The Machine]] and was previously for now-defunct [[Audioslave]].
==Personal life==
Tim was born the youngest of five children in his middle class California family. His father was an [[Aerospace engineering|aerospace engineer]], and worked on the [[Space Shuttle]] and his mother was a teacher/[[mathematician]]. When Tim was in fifth grade, he met [[Zack de la Rocha]]. Around this time, his mother was diagnosed with cancer. Shortly thereafter Tim's father divorced and remarried, his mother was forced to move to [[Sacramento, California]] to live with her sister, while seeking treatment. Tim remained with his father, who Tim claims abused him. Around this time (age 15) Zack introduced Tim to bass, and Tim soon found an outlet in music, and poetry. Tim’s mother died of brain cancer in 1988.
In 1993 Tim was introduced to mountain biking by his future father-in-law Jimbo Insko. Tim has since become an obsessive mountain biker, even going so far as to thank all of his bikes in the liner notes for ''[[The Battle of Los Angeles (album)|The Battle of Los Angeles]]''.
In 2001 Tim married his longtime girlfriend Aleece Dimas, who is an AIDS activist and medical professional. Tim and Aleece have had two sons together, Xavier and Quentin, the family lives in [[Malibu, California]], which is well-suited for mountain biking.
Tim is known for his numerous [[tattoo]]s. His first tattoo was a solid black band around his left arm to remember his mother by. He soon had half of a face tattooed on his back, and various other designs on his arms.[http://i59.photobucket.com/albums/g320/Zorro101790/Before.jpg] In 1993 he began work on an intricate design on his left leg. By 1996 this tattoo evolved into a [[Maori]] warrior tattoo that now covers over 65% of his body (covering his arms, left leg, chest, back, and two swirls on his posterior).[http://i59.photobucket.com/albums/g320/Zorro101790/culorizado.jpg]
Tim is also a [[vegan]].
== Career ==
===Rage Against The Machine (1991-2000; 2007-Present)===
In 1991, guitarist [[Tom Morello]] quit his band [[Lock Up (U.S. band)|Lock Up]], in the hopes of forming a new outfit. He began to frequent local clubs, and viewed [[Zack de la Rocha]] rapping. He soon called [[Brad Wilk]], who had auditioned for Lock Up. Zack de la Rocha convinced his longtime friend Tim to play bass. After frequenting the L.A. club circuit, Rage Against the Machine signed a record deal with Epic Records in 1992. That same year, RATM released their self titled debut. They achieved a phenomenal amount of mainstream success and released three more studio albums.
In late 2000, after [[MTV_Video_Music_Awards#2000s|Tim’s stunt at the VMA’s]], the disgruntled de la Rocha quit the band. On September 13th, 2000, Rage Against the Machine performed their last concert at the [[Grand Olympic Auditorium]] in [[Los Angeles]], [[California]]. The remaining members formed [[Audioslave]] with former [[Soundgarden]] frontman [[Chris Cornell]].
On April 29th 2007, the band reunited at the [[Coachella Music Festival]]. This was originally thought of as a one-off show, which later turned out to be untrue. The band later played four shows in the Hip Hop festival [[Rock the Bells]] with the [[Wu Tang Clan]], [[Public Enemy (band)|Public Enemy]] and [[Cypress Hill]], and later an additional night in [[New York City]] after the first night sold out in twenty minutes. Rage also played their first (non-festival) concert in 7 years at the [[Alpine Valley Music Theater]] in [[East Troy]], [[Wisconsin]], supported by [[Queens of the Stone Age]] in August 2007.
The band played co-headlining spots at [[New Orleans]]' [[Voodoo Music Experience]] in late October and the [[Vegoose]] Festival in the Las Vegas metropolitan area.
On January 18th 2008, the band played their first show outside of the U.S. since their reunion in [[Auckland]], [[New Zealand]] as part of the [[Big Day Out]] festival series. The band also played 8 shows in [[Australia]] including 2 headlining shows in [[Melbourne]] and [[Sydney]]. The has band continued to shows in [[Japan]] and [[Europe]].
===Audioslave (2001-2007)===
After [[Zack de la Rocha]] left [[Rage Against the Machine]], music producer [[Rick Rubin]] suggested the three remaining members of Rage get together with former [[Soundgarden]] singer [[Chris Cornell]], and "see what happens."
By May 2001, they had began to work in the studio, writing their first song “Light My Way.” By April of 2002, the newly formed band had split due to “outside” pressures, mainly from management companies. They soon got back together though, and on [[November 19]], [[2002]] they released their eponymous debut, which would attain triple platinum status. Audioslave attained a large amount of success, and released another two studio albums. On May 5, 2005 Tim & [[Audioslave]] played a free concert in front of 65,000 Cuban fans, becoming the first American rock band to play a concert within [[Cuba]].
On February 15, 2007, [[Chris Cornell]] officially announced his departure from Audioslave, disbanding the band.
===Side Projects===
Tim Commerford and drummer Brad Wilk contributed in [[Maynard James Keenan]]'s side project [[Puscifer]] and his album ''[["V" Is for Vagina]]'' on the track "Momma Sed."
==Equipment Overview==
[[Image:TimmyC 2007.JPG|300px|thumb|right|[[Tim Commerford]] performing with Rage Against the Machine at Coachella 2007.]]
*'''Amplifiers and Effects''': Tim has used a wide variety of effects and amplifier setups throughout his career. Tim began to [[Bi-amping|bi-amp]] for the recording of Evil Empire, and has since moved to [[tri-amping]] in Audioslave onwards. He primarily uses [[Ampeg]] speaker cabinets and amplifiers and often drapes an inverted [[American flag]] over the setup. He is known to tinker with things, even going as far as to build some of his own effects.
*'''Basses''': Tim has used a variety of instruments throughout his career, all of which have been heavily customized. For [[Rage Against the Machine]]’s first studio recording (1991), and ensuing tour, Tim used an [[Ernie Ball]] [[Music Man Stingray]]. For the recording of Evil Empire (1996), Tim switched to [[Fender Musical Instruments Corporation|Fender]] [[Jazz Bass]]es. In 2008, Tim has started using [[Lakland]] Jazz Basses.
*'''Bass Necks''': Tim is known to install [[Fender Musical Instruments Corporation|Fender]] [[Precision Bass]] necks on some of his [[Jazz Bass]]es. <ref> ”Tim Commerford: Audioslave’s bassist talks Fender, touring, Rage, Rush and the Police …” by Fender News http://www.fender.com/news/index.php?display_article=75 </ref>
*'''Bass Tuning''': Tim has used different string tunings over the years. Including E-A-D-G (standard), D-A-D-G (Drop-D), [With the use of Hipshot D-Tuners], and B-E-A-D (Five string bass tuning, minus the G-String.)
*'''Bridges''': During the RATM era, Tim exclusively used Leo Quan Badass II Bridges. With Audioslave, Tim uses both Leo Quan Badass II, and Gotoh bridges.
*'''D-Tuners''': Tim uses Hipshot D-Tuners on some of his basses. (D-Tuners allow you to simply flip a switch to tune down the E-string of a bass a D-tuning, then back up when the switch is reversed.)
*'''Thumbrests''': All of Tim’s basses have a thumbrest installed on them, all of which are presumably homemade.
*'''Pick-Ups''': Around the time Tim had switched to Fender Bass, he bought a pair of vintage pick-ups, took them apart, and re-wound them by hand. He used this specific pair of pick-ups in his 70’s Natural Jazz Bass. During this time, he is known to have hand-picked each pair of pick-ups for each of his basses. After he smashed that bass, he salvaged the pick-ups, and the Fender Custom Shop made several copies of these pick-ups, he now uses them as backups in his current bass lineup. <ref> ”Tim Commerford: Audioslave’s bassist talks Fender, touring, Rage, Rush and the Police …” by Fender News http://www.fender.com/news/index.php?display_article=75 </ref>
*'''Strings''': Commerford is an endorser for Ernie Ball Slinky Strings.
*'''Strap Locks''': Commerford does not use conventional strap locks, but rather continues to use the rubber tops of [[Grolsch]] beer bottles as he did in his youth, claiming they are more reliable than commercial ones.
===Rage Against The Machine Basses & Amplification (1991-2000)===
*'''[[Ernie Ball]] Natural [[Music Man StingRay]] 2EQ''' (1991-1995) [http://i59.photobucket.com/albums/g320/Zorro101790/stingray.jpg]
*'''[[Fender Musical Instruments Corporation|Fender]] Natural American [[Jazz Bass]] (Modified)''' (1996-2000) <small>(Main Bass - Smashed at 2000 MTV Awards)</small>[http://i295.photobucket.com/albums/mm125/bojosoto/My%20Photos/TimCommerford5.jpg]
*'''Fender Natural American [[Jazz Bass]] (Rosewood Neck)''' (1997)
*'''Fender Black American [[Jazz Bass]]''' (1997-2000)
*'''Fender Vintage White American [[Jazz Bass]] (Modified)''' (1999-2000) [http://i295.photobucket.com/albums/mm125/bojosoto/My%20Photos/TimCommerford2.jpg]
*'''[[Ampeg]] Pro Series Amplification''': 2x Ampeg SVT-2PRO heads, connected to 2x Ampeg 8x10 Cabinets. Cabinets & Heads are mounted in road cases that have graffiti art work pressumely done by Commerford himself. Usually draped with an upside-down American flag which was occasionally burnt during concerts, most notably at the band's 1999 [[Woodstock]] performance during "[[Killing in the Name]]." [http://i59.photobucket.com/albums/g320/Zorro101790/TimCommerford_RATM12.jpg]
===Audioslave Basses & Amplification (2002-2006)===
*'''[[Fender Musical Instruments Corporation|Fender]] Black American [[Jazz Bass]]''' (2002-2005) [http://l.yimg.com/www.flickr.com/images/spaceball.gif]
*'''Fender Black American [[Jazz Bass]]''' (2003-2005) [http://i18.photobucket.com/albums/b126/Inslaved/DropB.jpg]
*'''Fender Natural Sunburst American [[Jazz Bass]]''' (2005-2006) [http://farm1.static.flickr.com/18/23821444_2248672659.jpg?v=0]
*'''Fender Olympic White American [[Jazz Bass]]''' (2005-2007) [http://i59.photobucket.com/albums/g320/Zorro101790/SimmeringT4.jpg] (Used at all [[Rage Against The Machine]]'s concerts in 2007.)
*'''Fender 3-Tone Sunburst American [[Jazz Bass]]''' (2005-2007) [http://i59.photobucket.com/albums/g320/Zorro101790/SimmeringT2.jpg] (Used at all [[Rage Against The Machine]]'s concerts in 2007.)
*'''Fender Custom Shop Twin-Necked [[Jazz Bass]]''' (2006) [http://img444.imageshack.us/img444/1041/timsdoubleneckce8.jpg] [http://i295.photobucket.com/albums/mm125/bojosoto/My%20Photos/TimCommerfordsFenderTwinNeck.jpg] <small>(Tim has not been seen using this bass live.)</small>
*'''[[Ovation]] Acoustic Bass''' (2005)
*'''[[Ampeg]] Pro Series Amplification''': x1 [[Ampeg]] SVT-2PRO head for dirty distortion[http://i18.photobucket.com/albums/b126/Inslaved/TimsRack.jpg], a [[Ashdown Engineering|Ashdown]] ABM 500RC EVO head for overdrive and a [[Mesa]] M-Pulse 600 for clean tone, connected to 1x Ampeg 8x10 Cabinet, and 2x Ampeg SVT 4x10 Cabinets.[http://i18.photobucket.com/albums/b126/Inslaved/TimsAmps.jpg] <ref>[http://www.bassplayer.com/article/tim-commerford-with/mar-05/4128 Tim Commerford With Audioslave<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref>
===Rage Against The Machine Basses & Amplification (2008)===
*'''[[Lakland]] Black Joe Osborn Signature''' (Dual Access Bridge, used on the majority of songs) [http://i18.photobucket.com/albums/b126/Inslaved/TimStackKnob.jpg], [http://i295.photobucket.com/albums/mm125/bojosoto/My%20Photos/RageBDO2.jpg]
*'''[[Lakland]] 3-Tone Translucent Joe Osborn Signature''' (Tortoise Shell Pickgaurd, Rosewood neck) [http://i18.photobucket.com/albums/b126/Inslaved/TimLakland.jpg]
*'''[[Lakland]] 3-Tone Translucent Joe Osborn Signature''' (Pearloid Pickgaurd, Maple neck) [http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2268/2243538569_db04d08595_b.jpg]
*'''[[Ampeg]] Pro Series Amplification''': 2x Ampeg SVT-VR heads <small>(as of May 2008)</small>, connected to 2x Ampeg 8x10 Cabinets. The cabinets are the same as his 2000-era setup; graffiti art work on the cabinet cases. [http://www.ratm.com/photos/voodoo_atlas/images/rageda02.jpg]
===Effects===
Tim is very secretive of his tone, even going so far as to put effects on his pedalboard that he doesn’t even use, making his own gear, and even removing the labels off of some of his effects. Here are some effects which he has used during his career.
'''Pedalboard''': [http://i18.photobucket.com/albums/b126/Inslaved/TimsPedalboard4.jpg] & [http://i18.photobucket.com/albums/b126/Inslaved/TimsPedalboardReunion.jpg]
*[[Aphex Systems|Aphex]] Punch Factory (Audioslave) [http://www.sweetwater.com/images/publications/reports/11Aphex.Punch.jpg]
*[[BOSS]] DD-3 Digital Delay Pedal (Audioslave & RATM, heard in 'No Shelter' & 'Ashes in the Fall') [http://img3.musiciansfriend.com/dbase/pics/products/regular/0/4/8/475048.jpg]
*[[BOSS]] OC-3 Octave Pedal (Audioslave & RATM) [http://images.miretail.com/products/full/Boss/632866103646530210.jpg]
*Custom ABY Amp Selector
*Homemade Overdrive Pedals (Audioslave & RATM)
*[[Jim Dunlop]] 105Q Bass Wah (1x with RATM & 2x with Audioslave) [http://images.miretail.com/products/full/Dunlop/632866102933883082.jpg]
*[[Marshall Amplification|Marshall]] Guv'nor Distortion Pedal (RATM, 1991-1998) [http://www.blamepro.com/gifs/guvnor1.jpg]
*[[MXR]] Flanger Pedal (RATM) [http://www.rehearseinlondon.co.uk/catalog/images/M117R.jpg]
==Discography==
'''Studio albums:'''
* '''1. ''[[Rage Against the Machine (album)|Rage Against The Machine]]''''' ([[November 3]], [[1992]])
* '''2. ''[[Evil Empire (album)|Evil Empire]]''''' ([[April 16]], [[1996]])
* '''3. ''[[The Battle of Los Angeles (album)|The Battle of Los Angeles]]''''' ([[November 2]], [[1999]])
* '''4. ''[[Renegades (album)|Renegades]]''''' ([[December 5]], [[2000]])
* '''''1. [[Audioslave (album)|Audioslave]]''''' ([[November 19]], [[2002]])
* '''''2. [[Out of Exile]]''''' ([[May 24]], [[2005]])
* '''''3. [[Revelations (album)|Revelations]]''''' ([[September 5]], [[2006]])
== References ==
<references/>
{{Audioslave}}
{{Rage Against the Machine}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Commerford, Tim}}
[[Category:1968 births]]
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:California musicians]]
[[Category:American heavy metal bass guitarists|Commerford, Tim]]
[[Category:Rage Against the Machine members]]
[[Category:People from Irvine, California]]
[[Category:American vegans]]
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