The long awaited final Soundgarden album featuring Chris Cornell is finally coming into focus, with guitarist Kim Thayil revealing the band is now aiming for a 2027 release.
The update marks the clearest timeline yet for the project, which has remained in development since legal issues between Soundgarden and Cornell’s estate were resolved in 2023.
Since then, Thayil, drummer Matt Cameron and bassist Ben Shepherd have been carefully completing songs that were written and partially recorded with Cornell before his death in 2017.
Speaking with Ultimate Guitar, Thayil said the album is still a work in progress, but revealed it is currently expected to feature around nine tracks:
“There are at least two songs that I wrote the music for. One of them, I wrote the lyrics for… [O]ne of the collaborations would have been that I submitted music to Chris, and he wrote lyrics for them.
“[H]e would move the verse and chorus lengths and sequences to accommodate his lyrics. But then, they themselves had to accommodate the dynamic of the instrumental. Sometimes, lengths will increase to accommodate guitar solos.”
No track list as yet
While the exact tracklist hasn’t been locked in, Thayil explained that the band are still assessing which unfinished songs can realistically be completed:
“Part of that is the work in progress. We’re looking at the material that we intend to complete, and we also look at material that perhaps we can complete…
“[T]hese are decisions that are going to have to be made between Matt [Cameron] and Ben [Shepherd] and I, and the producer. Right about now, it’s likely about eight or nine songs. More likely nine.”
The guitarist also explained why the record has taken so long to finish, pointing to the band’s busy schedules over the past year:
“We have to book studio time here and there,” he said, noting commitments including Soundgarden’s Rock & Roll Hall of Fame induction, his own book and Matt Cameron’s work with Pearl Jam before adding that they’re now “aiming for next year.”
Thayil also left the door open for live performances after the album arrives, saying discussions around touring would come later:
“We love these songs… These are ideas that were created by Matt, by Ben, by myself and by Chris. These are songs we’ve worked with in a collaborative fashion amongst all four of us in different combinations over the years.”
For Thayil, making sure the album is finished properly remains the priority:
“[W]e know the significance of this material, with our legacy and with Chris’ legacy… we want to make sure that it’s as great as it can be, and because it’ll be the last studio album.”
With work steadily continuing behind the scenes, Soundgarden’s final chapter is now closer than ever.
MORE IN News
