Now that the 90s revival is in full swing (and given the attention span of most music consumers, likely to end soon), the heavyweights are finally starting to $ee the po$$ibilitie$ that exist in reuniting, touring, recording and breaking up once more, this time for good. For now.
Perhaps the biggest band bitten by the reunion bug is Soundgarden. One of the preeminent acts of the 90s, Soundgarden would without a doubt appear as one of the answers to the Family Feud clue, "Name a Rock Band From the 1990s."
(The answers, in order, would be Nirvana, Pearl Jam, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Smashing Pumpkins, Hootie & The Blowfish, Stone Temple Pilots and then Soundgarden.)
What's special about Soundgarden is that they were about the only band who had legitimacy in the Grunge Outbreak of the early 90s, but were also able to achieve mainstream success as an alternative rock band. Then, before it all had a chance to go to shit (and be Audioslave), they broke up.
But wait? Aren't grunge and alt rock the same thing? It's all coffee and flannel, right?
NO.
A friend asked me once what the difference was between grunge and alternative. So I made a mix CD outlining what was grunge (early Soundgarden, Nirvana's Bleach, Tad, Mudhoney, etc.) and what was alt rock (everything that came later, namely Smashing Pumpkins and Stone Temple Pilots). Had I made this in the 90s, it would no doubt have been on a Memorex 90 min cassette tape, one genre to a side. But this is now and even CDs are archaic, as said friend no longer has any way of playing a CD.
(Side note: Some people might argue that Smashing Pumpkins (not THE Smashing Pumpkins, which they were known by starting with Melon Collie) are in fact a grunge band, given their inclusion on the soundtrack to the 1992 Cameron Crowe film, Singles. This is true, however, Paul Westerberg is also on that soundtrack and Paul Westerberg is decidedly NOT grunge, and your argument is invalid. Though a case could be made for The Replacements inspiring the grunge culture in some weird way.)
Which brings us to now. After a decade of Audioslave - the Soundgarden/Rage Against the Machine supergroup that was neither Soundgarden, nor Rage, nor Super - and a handful of questionable Chris Cornell solo material, some great ("You Know My Name" from Casino Royale) and some just god-awful (his cover of "Billie Jean"), Soundgarden decided to reform. And after embarking on a handful of festivals and other dates, they recorded a new album, King Animal. They even had the theme song to the biggest movie of the year, The Avengers, a beast of a song that evokes the power-rock hero anthem of Chad Kroeger and Josey Scott's obtusely-titled "Hero" from 2002's Spider-Man. And then they went on tour again, which brings us to the Henry Fonda Theatre in Los Angeles, the night of November 27th, 2012.
Settle down, old-timers. It's not Lollapalooza '93 anymore.
Soundgarden was a band that I feel I never had a true appreciation for. In 1994, they were inescapable, as the 5 singles from Superunknown were ubiquitous that year, especially "Black Hole Sun." But while all of my friends bought this album, I was more discovering Beck, Smashing Pumpkins, Green Day and The Offspring. I'd always liked them, but found myself moving more in 120 Minutes territory during the mid-90s. However, when Down on the Upside was released, I had finally learned to appreciate the band for what it had become: a rock music powerhouse capable of bridging the gap between fans of guitars and fans of melody, as their songs had both in spades. I was ready to see them live.
And then they broke up.
Which brings us back to now. Despite being holders of balcony tickets for the Fonda, something that I wish upon approximately no one, this show was amazing. Save for "Black Hole Sun", there wasn't a dull moment all night as they tore through most of King Animal and almost all of their hits, save for my two favorite Soundgarden songs, "The Day I Tried to Live" and "Pretty Noose." What are you gonna do?
That might be them.
SETLIST:
Jesus Christ Pose
Flower
Outshined
Spoonman
Attrition
Gun
By Crooked Steps
Taree
Non-State Actor
Get on the Snake
Blow Up the Outside World
Eyelid’s Mouth
Ugly Truth
Fell On Black Days
Been Away Too Long
Worse Dreams
My Wave
Burden in My Hand
A Thousand Days Before
Rusty Cage
Bones of Birds
Rowing
Incessant Mace
Black Hole Sun
Slaves & Bulldozers
By far, the highlight of the night was the raucous rendition of "Rusty Cage", with a tempo around 20% faster than recorded. Given that this was always one of their most rockin' songs, this speedier version grabbed me by the nuts and said, "you're going for a ride, kid." Dear readers, I headbanged. I banged my head. At 33 years old. And had I been on the floor, I would have moshed with all the gray-templed 40 year old dudes who came out on a Tuesday night to see some good, old-fashioned grunge/alt rock. Because it's hard as hell to hear a live guitar tuned to "Dropped-D" anymore.
Whatever.
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