Police have charged a 27-year-old man over the brutal bashing of an American musician in Melbourne's north which left the tourist with bleeding on the brain.

Key points: Man charged was on bail at the time of the alleged attack

Man charged was on bail at the time of the alleged attack The offender bashed the American tourist twice, taunting and pointing at him when he passed out

The offender bashed the American tourist twice, taunting and pointing at him when he passed out The 32-year-old American victim needed two surgeries, for a brain bleed and broken jaw

The attack, which was caught on CCTV, happened as the 32-year-old victim left a tram near the intersection of Bell Street and Plenty Road in Preston, about 11:20pm on Wednesday.

The alleged attacker, of no fixed address, was on bail at the time and is due to face the Melbourne Magistrates Court tonight.

He was charged with assault-related offences, including intentionally causing serious injury in circumstances of gross violence and committing an offence while on bail.

The victim, a musician travelling in Australia, had been in the country six weeks and was due to leave on Saturday, but three days before his flight he was beaten into unconsciousness twice.

Security camera vision showed a man leaning over the victim on the ground, taunting him as he came to, before assaulting him again.

The 32-year-old eventually regained consciousness enough to walk towards a main road for help.

He was found by a passer-by almost half an hour after the attack happened and taken to hospital.

Police sought the public's help to identify the offender, describing it as a "terrifying" attack unlike any they had seen before.

"The victim is unfortunately suffering some serious memory loss as a result of the assault, so he can barely recall the incident occurring," Detective Senior Constable Matthew Coleiro said at the time.

"His family have been notified overseas, he's got no other real support network here in this country."

The victim has required two surgeries since the attack to stop the bleeding on his brain, as well as for a broken jaw.

He was due to fly home on Saturday after spending six weeks in Australia, but has had to defer his return home.