Download Free Apps & Games @ PHONEKY.com
Download Free Apps & Games @ PHONEKY.com
Subject: Soundgarden (Bio)
Replies: 6 Views: 622
toddster 19.04.09 - 01:12am
One of the first bands to come out of the Seattle grunge scene (and one of the earliest to sign with Sub Pop Records), Soundgarden parlayed gloomy metal riffs, surrealistic psychedelia, and punk into platinum with a trilogy of popular albums released in the '90s. After graduating high school in Illinois in 1981, musicians Kim Thayil and Hiro Yamamoto, as well as fanzine editor (and later Sub Pop founder) Bruce Pavitt, moved to Olympia, Washington, where they planned to attend college. When this did not pan out, the three each ended up in Seattle, attracted by its nascent music scene.
*
toddster 19.04.09 - 01:12am
After playing in cover bands, Yamamoto joined his roommate and sometime drummer Chris Cornell in his new band. Thayil signed on, and they called themselves Soundgarden after a noisy pipe sculpture in a Seattle park. The addition of drummer Scott Sundquist in 1985 (he was replaced by Cameron in 1986) freed Cornell to front the band. After contributing two songs to a local compilation, they signed with the new Sub Pop label. Their two EPs, Screaming Life (1987) and Fopp (1988), attracted major-label interest. But the band decided to stay true to their indie roots, signing to SST for their debut alb*m Ultramega OK. *
toddster 19.04.09 - 01:13am
For Louder Than Love (108, 1990), the band signed with A&M. The higher profile of a major label increased sales and helped the band garner a Grammy nomination. Yamamoto left the band in late 1989 to go back to school (in 1994 he joined Truly) and was replaced by Jason Everman, who had previously played with Nirvana. Everman was soon replaced by Hunter Ben Shepherd in early 1990. *
toddster 19.04.09 - 01:13am
The sales of Badmotorfinger (39, 1991) were helped by Outshined being chosen as an MTV Buzz Clip and a spot opening for a Guns n Roses tour (they were invited by Axl Rose, a longtime fan). In 1991 Cornell and Cameron, along with members of Pearl Jam [see entry] were part of Temple of the Dog, a tribute to the late Mother Love Bone singer Andrew Wood. In 1993, during a break from Soundgarden, Shepherd and Cameron released an alb*m with their side project Hater, a band which also included Andrew Woods brother Brian. Cameron, Shepherd, and McBain resumed their collaboration in 1997 under the name the Wellwater Conspiracy (in which Cameron and Shepherd were originally billed as Ted Dameron and Zeb, respectively). *
toddster 19.04.09 - 01:13am
Superunknown (1994), debuting at 1, emphasized Cornells emotional lyrical content and Soundgardens newfound stylistic flourishes. The alb*m s ed the bands breakthrough track, Black Hole Sun, which propelled them into the pop mainstream. Cameron even performed the song with the Seattle Symphony and experimental keyboardist Wayne Horvitz. In 1994 Black Hole Sun won a Grammy for Best Hard Rock Performance, while another Superunknown song, Spoonman, won for Best Metal Performance. *
toddster 19.04.09 - 01:14am
The musical evolution started on Superunknown became even more pro nounced on Soundgardens followup, Down on the Upside (2, 1996). Produced by the band, the alb*m attempted to balance Cornells trademark tortured lyrics (Nothing seems to kill me no matter how hard I try), metal energy, and increasingly complex arrangements and melodies. Despite its initial success with the 1 Modern Rock hits Burden in My Hand and Blow Up the Outside World, the alb*m wasnt as popular as its predecessor. Subsequent touring was rumored to be rife with the kind of internal tension that had plagued the albums recording. *
toddster 19.04.09 - 01:14am
In April 1997 Soundgarden announced that they were disbanding. Explanations offered at the time included Shepherds increasingly antagonistic onstage behavior, as well as divergences between Thayil, who wanted to stick to metal, and Cornell, who would have preferred to explore new directions. While Cameron joined fellow grunge survivors Pearl Jam, Cornell released a solo album, Euphoria Morning (38, 1999) in which he was free to display his love for the Beatles and his pop sensibility. In 2001 Cornell began recording with Rage Against the Machine. *
This topic is locked.
rock Forum
