“Me Yelling at Me”: The Multi-Layered Meaning Behind Audioslave’s “Cochise”

Let’s spend some time examining one of the biggest post-grunge hits of the 2000s. Discover the meaning behind Audioslave’s “Cochise” ahead.

Supergroups are nothing new in rock and roll. Although at the start of the new millennium we got hit with some interesting ones. Them Crooked Vultures, A Perfect Circle, Velvet Revolver…and then Audioslave. This latter quartet combined three members of Rage Against the Machine—guitarist Tom Morello, bassist Tim Commerford, and drummer Brad Wilks—with Soundgarden vocalist Chris Cornell. As their original bands had split, they decided to unite forces. It wasn’t initially smooth sailing, but the four-piece soon gelled They produced three albums and racked up three Grammy nominations.

Blasting Off

The single that kicked off everything off in pyrotechnic fashion was “Cochise.” It’s a hard-hitting, groove-oriented song that allowed the then-new group to showcase the intensity they had together. Oddly enough, the video shoot for the clip was the first time the group had delivered any sort of public performance, even though it was lip synched, and it was done while Cornell was in rehab (at the urging of his bandmates). The singer was driven to the set from rehab for the two-day shoot, which took place in September 2002 at the Sepulveda Dam in Los Angeles. Once they got through the shoot, it was clear that as performers the members of Audioslave were developing a bond.

“Cochise” has some interesting lyrics that can be interpreted more than one way. Cornell himself said the song was, “Me yelling at me, looking in the mirror.” And at the time, he was struggling with sobriety. So it could be his mirror image, his ideal self, warning him about self-destruction. It also comes off as an alcoholic literally being taunted by the booze within the bottle.

Well, I’ve been watching
While you’ve been coughing
I’ve been drinking life
While you’ve been nauseous
And so I drink to health
While you kill yourself
And I’ve got just one thing
That I can offer

Go on and save yourself
And take it out on me
Go on and save yourself
And take it out on me, yeah

The Meaning Behind Audioslave’s “Cochise”

In coming up with the song’s title, Morello said at the time, “Cochise was the last great American Indian chief to die free and absolutely unconquered. When several members of his family were captured, tortured, and hung by the U.S. Cavalry, Cochise declared war on the entire Southwest and went on an unholy rampage, a warpath to end all warpaths. He and his warriors drove out thousands of settlers. Cochise the Avenger, fearless and resolute, attacked everything in his path with an unbridled fury. This song kinda sounds like that.”

[RELATED: Behind the Meaning of the Powerful and Controversial Band Name Audioslave]

Of course, European settlers often used booze as a means of trade and negotiation. Alcohol’s powerful effects reportedly altered the natives’ daily lives. Iron Maiden makes a quick reference to this in “Run to the Hills.” Alcoholism is an issue in some Native American communities. So that title likely involves an unintended side theme (let’s not forget that Morello loves discussing revolutionary figures).

The Power of a Video

Although “Cochise” only hit No. 69 on the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart, and the follow-up ballad “Like a Stone” just missed the Top 30, Audioslave’s self-titled album would go on to sell three million copies. Stations like Fuse and MTV aired the videos. They had to have influenced a lot of fans and music consumers.

The video for “Cochise” was impressive and auspiciously announced the arrival of Audioslave. The group played atop a very tall structure while fireworks exploded around and behind them. Embers slightly singed Wilks; they fell on his hair, back, and drum stool.

In an audio interview with Cornell archived by The Grunge Scene on YouTube, the late singer recollected that the video took place “on this eight-story scaffolding that they had built in the L.A. River Reservoir area because behind this [director] Mark Romanek was gonna blow up like $800,000 worth of fireworks. This was the tail end of that period where there were huge budget videos, and you could get the money. It was the easiest way to get a lot of marketing done, just throw money at it.”

For the singer, it was a surreal experience. “There was that quick moment while we’re running through a version of it where I look back and I see Rage Against the Machine basically,” Cornell continued. “It’s like whoa, this is like a weird video game, like Guitar Hero. Once we did that, then it felt fine. I didn’t feel like I was odd man out or a fish out of water. I felt like what we did was a completely different thing. I really liked what we did.”

Photo by Kevin Winter/Getty Images