While it would be one hell of a way to celebrate, it seems the unlikely that new music from Soundgarden‘s final studio album will emerge in time for the grunge legends’ upcoming induction into the Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame. That seventh studio album from the Seattle, WA natives features the final recordings the band’s late vocalist/guitarist Chris Cornell laid down for Soundgarden.
The saga to getting that album out to the masses since Cornell‘s 2017 suicide has been full of twists and turns, with the material having been the subject of a since resolved legal battle with Cornell’s estate. Those legal matters revealed the existence of a number of songs intended for the record, with track titles including:
“Road Less Traveled“
“Orphans“
“At Ophians Door“
“Cancer“
“Ahead Of The Dog“
“Mermas“
“Stone Age Mind“
Per a new interview with Billboard, drummer/vocalist Matt Cameron has offered some clarify at where the surviving members of the acclaimed quartet are currently at with that highly anticipated opus:
“There’s not a set release date or anything as of yet. There were a couple schools of thought, like, ‘Hey, let’s put out a single.’ I think 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 later went on to say that guitarist Kim Thayil and bassist/vocalist Ben Shepherd are still finishing up the eight songs destined for that record, offering:
“We’re definitely over halfway done with it. Kim is in the process of finishing his guitar parts; he wants to make sure they get exactly the way he wants them.”
Cameron went on to relay the toll of working on these tracks without Cornell physically present:
“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. Then I listen to his voice soloed up when I’m working on stuff, or if Kim or Ben 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.”
This year’s Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame-induction ceremony will be held in Los Angeles, CA on November 08th, with Soundgarden scheduled to perform. For now, the group have chosen to keep any potential guests under wraps for that set, with the identity of the individual set to induct them also remaining TBA.
However, the Seattle, WA natives have confirmed that former bassist/vocalist Hiro Yamamoto will be involved in the induction ceremony.
