Tom Morello Staging ‘Flash Mob Dance Party’ for Occupy SXSW

Rage Against the Machine guitarist Tom Morello is bringing his alter ego, The Nightwatchman, to the Swan Dive in Austin, Texas, on Friday as part of the SXSW festivities that have been going on for the past week.

Morello is taking his involvement a step further and is coordinating his appearance with the Occupy movement. "I thought it was important that at a music gathering of that size," Morello explains to Rolling Stone, "to have a place where the rebels, revolutionaries, rockers, rappers and the 99 percent could gather and have a mighty SXSW throw down."

When Morello initially thought about doing a show at the SXSW festival, he contacted the Occupy Austin folks to see how they could combine their efforts. "I basically said 'What do y'all want to do, how can I best serve?'" says Morello. "So they made a wish list of things and I was able to say yes to, ironically, about 99 percent of them."

Morello explains that one of those plans is "to have this flash mob dance party that's going to arrive at the venue." Following the "dance party," Wayne Kramer and friends will open the set ahead of The Nightwatchman's performance with his band The Freedom Fighter Orchestra.