Soundgarden’s Matt Cameron has shared an update on the band’s final album, revealing that the project is halfway done and will feature posthumous vocals from Chris Cornell.
Soundgarden’s Matt Cameron has shared a rare update on the band’s final album, which is set to feature posthumous vocals from the late Chris Cornell.
In an interview with Billboard, the drummer revealed that Soundgarden were “over halfway done” with the project. The future album will be a collection of eight songs that the band had been working on before Cornell’s death in May of 2017.
As of writing, the band still don’t have a release date in mind. Cameron admitted that the band considered releasing singles; however, they decided against it, saying, “Eventually we decided we want to make sure the whole thing is completed before we start releasing singles. I’m excited for people to hear it.”
Cameron would also reveal that guitarist Kim Thayil is still in the process of finishing his guitar parts, saying “he wants to make sure they get exactly the way he wants them”.
Soundgarden began working on a follow-up to their 2012 album, King Animal, in 2015. However, the group could not continue working on the songs until legal issues between the band and Cornell’s widow, Vicky Cornell, could be settled.
On returning to the material, Cameron would admit, “Emotionally it’s been extreme highs and extreme lows”.
“Hearing [Cornell’s] voice on these powerful hard rock songs is the most empowering thing in the world for me,” Cameron continued. “Then I listen to his voice soloed up when I’m working on stuff, or if Kim or [bassist] Ben [Shepherd] is working on something, and it all comes back to the fact that he’s not with us and he left us in a way that has so many questions. It’s been gut-wrenching but at the same time very empowering.”
In a 2023 interview with Rolling Stone, guitarist Thayil expressed his optimism that the band’s final recordings would eventually be heard. However, he was quick to acknowledge the importance of getting it right. “It doesn’t exist in the vacuum,” shared Thayil. “[The music] exists as a collaboration with Matt and Ben and Chris, but it takes on an entirely different weight when you think about what it is you’re honouring, and the work that you’re paying tribute to. It is us collectively. We want to do it proud. And that part of us is certainly one of the most intimate components of what Soundgarden has been since 1984.”
Soundgarden are set to be inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame on November 8th. The live ceremony will take place in Los Angeles and will be available to stream live on Disney+.
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