December 4, 2012
Making ‘Attrition’
Ben Shepherd and Kim Thayil talk about the making of 'Attrition' from Soundgarden's album King Animal HERE.
Ben Shepherd and Kim Thayil talk about the making of 'Attrition' from Soundgarden's album King Animal HERE.
Ben and Kim talk about 'Black Saturday' from Soundgarden's King Animal HERE.
Chris & Matt talk about the writing of 'Blood On The Valley Floor' from Soundgarden's King Animal HERE.
Soundgarden received rave reviews for their show at London's Shepherd's Bush Empire on November 9.
Kerrang's review [click thumbnail below] gave the show their best possible rating, saying: ” In an age when bands come today and go the same day, the return of this most magnificent of bands serves nothing less than to reaffirm the currency of music as being more than a disposable.”
Meanwhile Clash said “Chris Cornell still has the voice of a thousand angels…his vocal style has gotten stronger over time” and DIY said “the perennial outsiders of the early 90s seem to be at home with their place in history and ready to embrace a fruitful future.”
Here's what the press has been saying about Soundgarden's new album, 'King Animal':
“Time has stood still, rightfully and triumphantly, for Soundgarden’s music, which is still the moody, heaving, asymmetrical hard rock that made the band a trailblazer of grunge…the band sounds like four musicians live in a room, making music that clenches and unclenches like a fist. Added layers – of guitars, vocal harmony or horns – are for heft, not decoration.” – The New York Times
“When you hear frontman Chris Cornell's brutal wail crashing into guitarist Kim Thayil's fretboard fireworks, you'll wonder how we got by without a new disc from the guys since '96.” – Rolling Stone
“The adventurous spirit that fired Soundgarden out of the metal ghetto is gloriously alive…a mighty result.” – Mojo
“King Animal not only delivers all the heaviness, darkness, and beautiful weirdness that made Soundgarden so great in the first place, but also seem to actually benefit from the passage of time since the band’s last studio album.” – Revolver
“Soundgarden have always possessed a real ability to combine darkness with immense grooves…the 13 sturdy tracks of King Animal carry this compositional attitude into the 21st century. King Animal undeniably draws its strength from the band’s accessible Superunknown era, but also takes Soundgarden somewhere fresh.” – BBC
“This beast doesn't temper expectations. It lowers its massive antlered head and simply walks forward. It doesn't run because it doesn't need to, and what doesn't run from it gets run over. In the chorus of 'Non-State Actor', Cornell sings the song of his band's bestial spirit guide: “We'll settle for a little bit more than everything.” Because that's what a King Animal was born to do.” – Spin
“None of it has the ring of compromise that so many reformation albums bring…this is a band continuing their artistic arc. Hence, in songs such as the moody 'Bones of Birds', the dots can be joined between their classic mid-90s work and this, nearly 20 years on. Guitarist Kim Thayil has lost none of his ability to write a riff, and there's still that darkness in his playing; a growling hum seeps everywhere, adding the glowering psychedelic menace that always made Soundgarden special.” – Kerrang
“Soundgarden’s reboot has everything a fan who fell for them in their heyday could hope for….Throughout the album, the guitars function like the imposing façade of a brutalist building, clad in granite grandeur. That style finds an ideal brother in the scream of Cornell, whose macho confidence remains unmatched in the mainstream.” – New York Daily News
“An intriguing, challenging, sometimes compelling album…their trump card has always been Chris Cornell's extraordinary voice, which still switches from urgency to desolation within a few bars, and with it comers his overall aesthetic, lyrical imagery that recurs throughout: blood, bones, fumes. These are touchstones of heavy metal that – in his hands, cradled by that furnace-intense flame of a vocal – become something more meaningful.” – Classic Rock
“Sceptics expecting to find a band struggling to match the power and weirdness of its career highs will be pleasantly surprised by the dark Americana at the heart of sprawling, bluesy monsters such as Taree and Blood on the Valley Floor, while unconventionally odd anthems-in-waiting like Bones of Birds and By Crooked Steps reiterate the band's enduring dynamism, rolled up in haunting, gratifying hooks that claw deeper into the psyche with every listen.” – The Skinny
“Rock 'n' roll roars back to life with Soundgarden's King Animal. The group's long-awaited sixth studio offering is both the year's best album and a landmark for the Seattle legends. In essence, it's a journey in the truest since of the word. From the jump, Chris Cornell, Kim Thayil, Ben Shepherd, and Matt Cameron open up the gates into a world not far removed from Badmotorfinger and Superunknown but existent within its personal sphere. In the most wild, weird, and wonderful way, King Animal is distinctly its own beast.” – Artist Direct
“This comeback…is a snarling, propulsive, alpha rock monster…Chris Cornell is in possession of one of the finest pure rock voices: a magnificent leather bray that comes from the top of Thor's staircase…an enveloping, heavyweight and dynamic record that will delight the diehards, and no doubt continue to reveal myriad rhythmical intricacies in the months ahead.” – The Quietus
Ben Shepherd talks about the making of 'Rowing' from new album 'King Animal'. Watch video commentary HERE.
Soundgarden's new album 'King Animal' is released worldwide today.Stream the album and read the lyrics HERE.
Soundgarden have announced their Winter 2013 North American tour dates. Fan Club pre-sales begin on Monday, November 12th and tickets go on-sale to the public starting on Friday, November 16th.
This is the first North American tour for Soundgarden showcasing their new album, King Animal, to be released on November 13 via Loma Vista/Republic Records.
The band has also announced a commemorative poster art design contest for the tour, asking fans to use the album title as the theme to create a ferocious and primal design that embodies the untamed disposition of a “King Animal.” The deadline for submission is December 21st. For more information, go to http://www.creativeallies.com.
Soundgarden 2013 Tour Dates:
Jan 18 Washington, DC @ DAR Constitution Hall
Jan 19 Upper Darby, PA @ Tower Theatre
Jan 20 Boston, MA @ Orpheum Theatre
Jan 22 New York, NY @ Hammerstein Ballroom
Jan 23 New York, NY @ Hammerstein Ballroom
Jan 25 Toronto, ON @ Sound Academy
Jan 26 Toronto, ON @ Sound Academy
Jan 27 Detroit, MI @ The Fillmore
Jan 29 Chicago, IL @ Riviera Theater
Jan 30 Chicago, IL @ Riviera Theater
Feb 1 Milwaukee, WI @ Eagles Ballroom
Feb 2 Minneapolis, MN @ Orpheum Theatre
Feb 6 Portland, OR @ Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall
Feb 7 Seattle, WA @ Paramount Theater
Feb 8 Seattle, WA @ Paramount Theater
Feb 10 Vancouver, BC @ Queen Elizabeth Theatre
Feb 12 Oakland, CA @ Fox Theatre
Feb 13 Oakland, CA @ Fox Theatre
Feb 15 Los Angeles, CA @ The Wiltern
Feb 16 Los Angeles, CA @ The Wiltern
On Monday, November 12th, New York City's Bowery Ballroom will host a special acoustic evening with Chris Cornell, a benefit concert with all of the proceeds going to The Mayor’s Fund to Advance New York City to help victims of Hurricane Sandy. Doors are at 8:30pm. Tickets will be available to purchase on Friday, November 9 at 3pm EST at THIS LOCATION. Go HERE for more information about The Mayor’s Fund to Advance New York City.
Soundgarden are in New York City next week for events surrounding the release of King Animal, out November 13th (Loma Vista/Republic Records). Stream King Animal via iTunes (US/Canada) HERE or NME (international) HERE. More details at Soundgardenworld.com.
Ben Shepherd and Kim Thayil talk about the making of 'Eyelid's Mouth' from upcoming Soundgarden album King Animal. Click HERE.
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