Soundgarden Reuniting

By Mark Lorenz on January 3rd, 2010

Soundgarden-1 THEY WILL COME TOGETHER WITH THEIR HANDS. SIMILAR TO THE SPOONMAN.

If you’re favorite grunge band was coming back together, what do you think would be an appropriate celebration? Buying nothing but cut-off flannel, and eating ramen for two months? Growing you hair out, dying it, and not showering for three months? How about just buying a ticket to Soundgarden, because they’re reuniting?

Soundgarden was the ’90s Seattle powerhouse group that spawned countless nu-metal imitators. And they were much more ferocious than Savage Garden, who love you. Truly, madly, deeply. Between Chris Cornells’ paint-stripping screams, Kim Thayil’s downtuned guitars, Matt Cameron’s never-overbearing drumming in odd times, and Ben Shepard’s throbbing bass, they were one of the most distinctive and heaviest groups of the time. That’s right, throbbing bass. If any of you hate the album Superunknown, and I see you in person, we will never have a conversation. Then again, if we never have a conversation, I will never be able to learn about your horrible music tastes.

All four members of Soundgarden were at the Pearl Jam show on October 6 in Los Angeles. Chris Cornell got onstage and sung “Hunger Strike,” a song that made all the leaders of the G8 summit weep simultaneously.

I’m excited. Cornell’s last album was a collaboration with Timbaland, which turned out to be like a train-wreck covered in glitter.