SOUNDGARDEN dealt in stark brooding, hewn to the bone minimalist Metal, much of it tethered to unrelenting bass riffs. Vocalist Chris Cornell has made his mark in the rock annals by defining a genre of pain laden wails that accompanied the huge riffs perfectly. Of all the acts to benefit from the Grunge torrent SOUNDGARDEN is perhaps the act with the closest ties to a traditional Rock sound with hints of the 70's greats.

Coming together in Seattle, Washington during 1984 SOUNDGARDEN comprised of vocalist Chris Cornell, who at this point also played drums onstage, guitarist Kim Thayil, bassist Hiro Yamamoto. Added erstwhile FEEDBACK and SKIN YARD drummer Matt Cameron in 1986 and signed to influential label Sub Pop, the record company owing a debt of honour to Thayil as he had brought together founders Jonathon Poneman and Bruce Pavitt.

SOUNDGARDEN made their first steps with the 'Hunted Down' single. The 7" version coming in blue vinyl whilst the 12" EP being offered in a garish orange. Before signing to major label A&M Records, the first of Sub Pop's roster to do so, SOUNDGARDEN's last Sub Pop single was to be a bastardised variant of the OHIO PLAYERS 'Fopp', the EP also containing a rework of the RAMONES 'I Can't Give You Anything'.

In mid 1990 Yamamoto was supplanted by erstwhile NIRVANA bassist Jason Everman. Yamamoto would turn up some five years later with TRULY, an act conceived with SCREAMING TREES man Mark Pickerel.

This line up of SOUNDGARDEN cut only one track, a take on the BEATLES 'Come Together' prior to Everman making way for Ben Shepard. The band's new bassist had previously been a member of 600 SCHOOL, MARCH OF CRIMES (alongside PEARL JAM guitarist Stone Gossard) and EPISODE. Everman was to journey through SKUNK, NIRVANA and onto New York's MINDFUNK. (And then the army!)

Splinter group TEMPLE OF THE DOG created a useful diversion in 1991 as Cornel and Shepard united with their rehearsal studio friends Stone Gossard and Jeff Ament, both ex MOTHER LOVE BONE and future PEARL JAM frontman Eddie Vedder. As grunge grew the collective talent involved in TEMPLE OF THE DOG was enough to chalk up double platinum status for the album.

Cornell was also to Co-produce the SCREAMING TREES album 'Uncle Anaesthesia' the same year.

'Badmotorfinger' propelled the band into the American charts and with an invaluable support slot to GUNS N' ROSES 'Illusion' touring extravaganza SOUNDGARDEN were on their way, a headlining jaunt to Britain proving a sell out.

First single from 'Badmotorfinger' was 'Jesus Christ Pose', a controversial title featuring an instrumental version of BLACK SABBATH's 'Into The Void' as a B side.

The follow up 'Rusty Cage' single boasted a somewhat bizarre choice of cover versions on the B side of spoof act SPINAL TAP's 'Big Bottom' and legendary loons CHEECH & CHONG's 'Earache My Eye'.

single 'Outshined' carried on the obtuse B side tradition capturing a version of British metallers BUDGIE's 'Homocidial Suicide', punk merchants FEAR's 'I Don't Care About You' and JIMI HENDRIX's 'Can't You See Me'.

In October the band slotted in an appearance opening the California 'Day On The Green' festival in front of 50'000 Rock fans there to see headliners METALLICA, QUEENSRYCHE and FAITH NO MORE.

Cameron and Shepard created HATER in 1993 with ex MONSTER MAGNET guitarist John McBain, erstwhile 600 SCHOOL / EPISODE bassist John Waterman and FIRE ANTS vocalist Brian Wood releasing an eponymous album on A&M Records the same year.

and Cornell also united with PEARL JAM men bassist Jeff Ament and guitarist Mike McReady to forge M.A.C.C. the same year.

'Superunknown' was recorded at HEART's Bad Animals studio in Seattle and produced by Michael Beinhorn. As the American rock public fully embraced grunge SOUNDGARDEN, after completing a headline slot on the Far East festival package dubbed a 'Big Day Out' with the RAMONES and SMASHING PUMPKINS, were to find themselves in March 1994 with an uncomprimising 70 minute no holds barred hard rock album debuting at number 1 going on to suprass the triple platinum sales mark.

April SOUNDGARDEN were touring Britain once more but the media were quick to jump on the fact that the band seemed withdrawn and apoathetic. A planned headline spot at the Reading Festival was scrapped at the last minute the band citing reasons involving the recording schedule of their next album as rumours filtered through that SOUNDGARDEN were uninterested in touring.

1996's 'Down On The Upside' was recorded at PEARL JAM guitarist Stone Gossard's studio. A far more accessible affair it was to be the band's last record. Typically the album launched a succession of British hit singles with its parent easily breaking the platinum sales mark in America.

Sensationally the band was reported to have split that they were to split after twelve years as a going concern. A statement issued by A&M on April 9 1997 gave the news that they had mutually and amicably decided to disband. Rumours abounded that tension within the group had been at an all time high and that musical differences concerning the recording of 'Down And The Upside'. Shepherd had also been more interested in pursuing his side project, DEVILHEAD and the other solo offering, HATER, with Matt Cameron whose second album was due to be released in mid 1997.

Both Shepard and Cameron put in performances on ex MONSTER MAGNET guitarist John McBain's WELL WATER CONSPIRACY self titled '97 album. Shepard also put in further efforts on the 1998 DESERT SESSIONS album 'Volume I & II', an in the wilderness jam session convened by ex KYUSS men guitarist Josh Homme and drummer Brant Bjork.

Cameron was to guest sporadically on live work for Homme's post KYUSS act QUEENS OF THE STONE AGE and in late 1997 was confirmed as session drummer for THE SMASHING PUMPKINS. The drummer also deputized for PEARL JAM on their 1998 tour when Jack Irons left the band and appeared on RUSH vocalist GEDDY LEE's 2000 solo album.

2000 found Thayil as a key member of NO WTO COMBO, an alternative 'supergroup' alliance together with DEAD KENNEDYS frontman Jello Biafra, ex-NIRVANA bassist Krist Novoselic and erstwhile SWEET 75 drummer Gina Mainwal for the album 'Live From The Battle In Seattle'.

Thayil would also unite with Novoselic, ALICE IN CHAINS drummer Sean Kinney and Country legend JOHNNY CASH to cut a rendition of 'Time Of The Preacher' for the WILLIE NELSON tribute album 'Twisted Willie'.

Rumours emerged in late 2000 that Cornell was tipped to replace the departed Zack De La Rocha in RAGE AGAINST THE MACHINE. Whilst many cited an obvious conflict of as well as record company contractual obligations as being prime reasons this purported union could not transpire it was revealed by early summer 2001 the two parties had in fact been working in the studio for quite some time. Much to the band members annoyance demo recordings, cut at the Seattle Bad Animals studio, were leaked and widely circulated on the internet. By early 2002 the union with Chris Cornell was announced officially as CIVILIAN, the band also being scheduled for an appearance on the U.S. leg of the 'Ozzfest' tour but these plans were subsequently scrapped. The venture, having resolved behind the scenes management problems, would subsequently be resurrected as AUDIOSLAVE.

The Autumn of 2002 had news of yet another in the ongoing series of post SOUNDGARDEN band projects as Thayil hooked up ex-KYUSS drummer Alfredo Hernandez and former NIRVANA bassist Krist Novoselic in a new band venture. Susequent reports had Novoselic bowing out early on to concentrate on his own EYES ADRIFT act.

In early 2009 CHRIS CORNELL launched his new album 'Scream'. A controversial collaboration with Hip Hop producer Timabaland, 'Scream' generated heavy criticism and soon fell off the Billboard charts after release.

With ongoing rumours suggesting a SOUNDGARDEN reunion was being mooted, guitarist Kim Thayil, bassist Ben Shepherd, and drummer Matt Cameron performed together onstage for the first time in more than a decade on Tuesday 24th March 2009 at Seattle's Crocodile Cafe. The trio came out for a show on RAGE AGAINST THE MACHINE guitarist Tom Morello's 'Justice' tour, for which he invited musician friends in each city to perform. Singing in place of frontman Chris Cornell was Tad Doyle, former leader of Seattle cult band TAD. The foursome's three-song set included a rendition of early SOUNDGARDEN song 'Nothing To Say' as well as the band's 1994 hit 'Spoonman'.