Soundgarden was an American rock band formed in Seattle, Washington, in 1984 by singer and drummer Chris Cornell, lead guitarist Kim Thayil, and bassist Hiro Yamamoto. Cornell switched to rhythm guitar in 1985, replaced on drums initially by Scott Sundquist, and later by Matt Cameron in 1986. Yamamoto left in 1990 and was replaced initially by Jason Everman and shortly thereafter by Ben Shepherd. The band dissolved in 1997 and re-formed in 2010. Following Cornell's death in 2017 and a year of uncertainty regarding the band's future, Thayil declared in October 2018 that Soundgarden had disbanded once again, though they did reunite in January 2019 for a one-off concert in tribute to Cornell.
Ultramega OK is the debut studio album by American rock band Soundgarden, released on October 31, 1988 by SST Records. Following the release of the EPs Screaming Life (1987) and Fopp (1988), both for the Sub Pop record label, Soundgarden signed with SST and went to work on their debut full-length. The resulting album contained elements of heavy metal, psychedelic rock, and hardcore punk. The band supported the album with a tour of the United States, as well as its first overseas tour.
Superunknown is the fourth studio album by American rock band Soundgarden, released on March 8, 1994, through A&M Records. It is the band's second album with bassist Ben Shepherd, and features new producer Michael Beinhorn. Soundgarden began work on the album after touring in support of its previous album, Badmotorfinger (1991). Superunknown captured the heaviness of the band's earlier releases while displaying a more diverse range of influences.
Badmotorfinger is the third studio album by American rock band Soundgarden, released on October 8, 1991, through A&M Records. Soundgarden began the recording sessions for the album with new bassist Ben Shepherd in the spring of 1991. The album maintained the band's heavy metal sound, while featuring an increased focus on songwriting compared to the band's previous releases. AllMusic considered the album's music to be "surprisingly cerebral and arty"; alternative tunings and odd time signatures were present on several of the album's songs, and lyrics were intended to be ambiguous and evocative.
Down on the Upside is the fifth studio album by the American rock band Soundgarden, released on May 21, 1996, through A&M Records. Following a worldwide tour in support of its previous album, Superunknown (1994), Soundgarden commenced work on a new album. Self-produced by the band, the music on the album was notably less heavy and dark than the group's preceding albums and featured the band experimenting with new sounds.
Hunter Benedict Shepherd is an American musician best known as the bassist of rock band Soundgarden. Shepherd has won two Grammy Awards as a member of Soundgarden.
"Black Hole Sun" is a song by American rock band Soundgarden. Written by frontman Chris Cornell, the song was released in 1994 as the third single from the band's fourth studio album, Superunknown (1994). Considered to be the band's signature song, it topped the Billboard Album Rock Tracks chart, where it spent a total of seven weeks at number one. Despite peaking at number two on the Billboard Modern Rock Tracks chart, "Black Hole Sun" finished as the number-one track of 1994 for that listing. Worldwide, the single reached the top 10 in Australia, Canada, France, and Ireland, while in Iceland, it reached number one.
"Spoonman" is a song by the American band Soundgarden. Written by the band's frontman, Chris Cornell, "Spoonman" was released on February 14, 1994, as the first single from the band's fourth studio album Superunknown (1994). "Spoonman" is credited as one of the songs that launched Soundgarden's career into the mainstream. The song peaked at number three on the Billboard Mainstream Rock Tracks chart and number nine on the Modern Rock Tracks chart. A remixed version of the song by Steve Fisk appears on the "Black Hole Sun" and "My Wave" singles. The song was included on Soundgarden's 1997 greatest hits album A-Sides and the 2010 compilation album Telephantasm.
"Jesus Christ Pose" is a song by the American rock band Soundgarden, released in 1991 as the first single from the band's third studio album, Badmotorfinger (1991). The song was included on Soundgarden's 1997 greatest hits album, A-Sides.
"Outshined" is a song by American rock band Soundgarden. Written by frontman Chris Cornell, "Outshined" was released in 1991 as the second single from the band's third studio album, Badmotorfinger (1991). It became the band's first single to reach the U.S. Mainstream Rock charts, where it peaked at number 45. The song was included on Soundgarden's 1997 greatest hits album, A-Sides, the 2010 compilation album, Telephantasm and the live album Live on I-5.
"Pretty Noose" is a song by the American rock band Soundgarden. Written by the band's frontman, Chris Cornell, "Pretty Noose" was released in March 1996 as the first single from the band's fifth studio album, Down on the Upside (1996). The song reached number two on the Billboard Modern Rock Tracks chart. The song was included on Soundgarden's 1997 greatest hits album, A-Sides.
"Blow Up the Outside World" is a song by the American rock band Soundgarden. Written by frontman Chris Cornell, "Blow Up the Outside World" was released on November 18, 1996, as the third single from the band's fifth studio album, Down on the Upside (1996). The song topped the Billboard Mainstream Rock Tracks chart, where it spent a total of four weeks at number one. The song was included on Soundgarden's 1997 greatest hits album, A-Sides.
"My Wave" is a song by the American rock band Soundgarden. Featuring lyrics written by frontman Chris Cornell and music co-written by Cornell and guitarist Kim Thayil, "My Wave" was released in 1994 as the fourth single from the band's fourth studio album, Superunknown (1994). The song peaked at number 11 on the Billboard Mainstream Rock Tracks chart.
"Burden in My Hand" is a song by the American rock band Soundgarden. Written by frontman Chris Cornell, "Burden in My Hand" was released on September 18, 1996, as the second single from the band's fifth studio album, Down on the Upside (1996). The song topped the Billboard Mainstream Rock Tracks chart, where it spent five weeks at number one. The song was included on Soundgarden's 1997 greatest hits album, A-Sides.
"Bleed Together" is a song by the American rock band Soundgarden. Written by frontman Chris Cornell, "Bleed Together" was first released in the United States on Soundgarden's post-breakup greatest hits album, A-Sides (1997). It had previously appeared as a B-side on some foreign copies of the band's 1996 single, "Burden in My Hand". It was released as a single in November 1997 in support of A-Sides, and was the first single released by Soundgarden, after the band's breakup in April 1997. The song peaked at number 13 on the Billboard Mainstream Rock Tracks chart.
"Slaves & Bulldozers" is a song by the American rock band Soundgarden. It is the third track on the band's 1991 album Badmotorfinger.
"Rhinosaur" is a song by American rock band Soundgarden on their 1996 album Down on the Upside. Despite not being released as its own single it was released as a B-side to the song "Ty Cobb". While "Ty Cobb" itself did not chart, "Rhinosaur" charted at 19 on the Mainstream Rock Tracks.
"Black Rain" is a single by the American rock band Soundgarden, featuring lyrics written by frontman Chris Cornell and music written by bassist Ben Shepherd and guitarist Kim Thayil. The single debuted at number 24 and number 14 on the US Billboard Alternative Songs chart and the US Billboard Rock Songs chart respectively in August 2010. It is also Soundgarden's only song to chart on the Billboard Hot 100, peaking at #96. The song appears on the compilation album Telephantasm and on the music video game Guitar Hero: Warriors of Rock and Guitar Hero Live. It was the first single that Soundgarden had released since 1997.
King Animal is the sixth and final studio album by American rock band Soundgarden—their first in sixteen years. Produced by both the band and Adam Kasper, it was released on November 13, 2012, by Seven Four Entertainment and Republic Records in the United States, and by Vertigo Records in the rest of the world. It was the first of Soundgarden's albums not to be released on A&M Records since 1988's Ultramega OK, though Republic, Vertigo, and A&M are all owned by Universal Music Group. The album was the final studio album released by Soundgarden before the death of frontman Chris Cornell in 2017 and the subsequent dissolution of the band in 2018.
"Been Away Too Long" is a song by the American rock band Soundgarden, which is featured on their sixth studio album King Animal (2012) as its opening track. It was released as the album's first single. The song is featured in Sons of Anarchy, NHL 14 and Guitar Hero Live.
