Soundgarden: Superunknown
Some believe that grunge died along with Kurt Cobain. Others think it died when Soundgarden disbanded. Personally I never liked the ‘grunge’ label that was pinned to so many bands in the 90s but Soundgarden helped define the ‘Seattle sound’, and Superunknown is probably the finest example of what this band gave to the music world.
The album opens with Let me Drown, a powerful slab of alt-rock angst that perfectly demonstrates everything that makes Soundgarden so special: Kim Thayil’s Black Sabbath-esque guitar riffs, Ben Shepherd’s solid bass lines, the inventive jazz-style drumming from Matt Cameron and of course the raw brilliance of Chris Cornell’s unique vocals. My Wave is a little more upbeat but the whole album has the bleak and heavy vibe of their Seattle contemporaries. The difference is, Soundgarden did it better than most of them.
