The band is made up of Chris Cornell ( vocals ) , who was with Soundgarden until 1997 , and Tom Morello ( guitar ) , Tim Commerford ( electric bass ) and Brad Wilk ( drums ) , who were with Rage Against The Machine until 2000 . It consisted of then-former Soundgarden frontman , rhythm guitarist , and lead singer Chris Cornell and the then-former instrumentalists of Rage Against the Machine : Tom Morello ( guitar ) , Tim Commerford ( bass and backing vocals ) and Brad Wilk ( drums ) .