Kim Thayil gave an interview with Grunge is Dead author Greg Prato which appeared on Rolling Stone’s website this morning and it gives some great insight into where things currently stand in the Soundgarden camp. The entire interview is a good read and I suggest you give it a look, but in case you don’t want to click over to Rolling Stone here are some highlights:
On hearing Live on I5 from start to finish:
Ben and I were just talking about this last weekend – we’re both still in awe of this album, the performances and the songs. It’s kind of ridiculous how fast we’re playing “Jesus Christ Pose” or “Ty Cobb” – it’s much faster than the studio version. And there are some crazy fills in there from Ben, Matt and me. Guitar solo things, weird bass runs and drum stuff. I think everyone was listening to the recordings and were surprised by individual performances, flourishes, and collective performances.
The possibility of a tour:
I think we’re definitely interested in playing live again. It would be more satisfying if we were to get that momentum rolling. It’s never ultimately satisfying to play a one-off show here and there, because you don’t have the subsequent nights to redeem yourself if there is something that you feel went unsaid or something you feel went unexpressed or something you could do better. And the cool thing about being on a tour is there is always the next night. You have great nights, you have nights that aren’t so great. And when you’re on tour, you can build on that momentum.
The status of the B Sides record:
The B sides are still at the forefront of my mind. They’ve just been pushed slightly to the side, because of all the attention we’ve put on the live album. Once again, the live album was supervised by Matt and me, and I wrote the liner notes along with Adam Kasper. So that’s kind of the front and center of my mind, as well as the jamming … The only thing that could put the B sides album on hold now would be if we were to focus and concentrate on new material.
The status of new Soundgarden material:
Now, we are not currently recording, but we plan to – and will. The time we’ve been spending as a creative partnership playing music together and writing, with the definite objection to record and release new material. We’re not yet recording, we’re not yet releasing new material, we are writing –for that purpose.
Other quick notes:
- The possibility of a tour revolves around Matt Cameron’s Pearl Jam commitments (as figured).
- Soundgarden was asked to play MTV Unplugged several times in the past but had to decline due to other commitments
- The Lollapalooza performance was filmed but there is no word on whether it will be released as a standalone DVD, a series of single videos or even at all
- The band started working on the skeletons of new songs when the were rehearsing for the Showbox concert. No songs have working titles and are more onomatopoeic at the moment.
Like I said, the whole interview is a good read and there are some nuggets of Soundgarden news I left out so be sure to click over and give the interview a read when you have the chance.
