Chris Cornell gained fame as the lead singer to the grunge band Soundgarden and later with Audioslave.
Brian Bumbery, Cornell's representative, released a statement to NPR on the singer's death:
"Chris Cornell passed away late last night in Detroit, MI. His wife Vicky and family were shocked to learn of his sudden and unexpected passing, and they will be working closely with the medical examiner to determine the cause. They would like to thank his fans for their continuous love and loyalty and ask that their privacy be respected at this time."
Soundgarden was formed in 1984 by Cornell, guitarist Kim Thayil and bassist Hiro Yamamoto — it went on to become one of the biggest bands of the 1990s grunge movement.
While Nirvana will always be credited, and rightfully so, for popularizing the Seattle grunge sound and changing the musical landscape in general, it was really Soundgarden, for whom Chris Cornell was the lead singer, that must be credited for setting the stage.
It was them who initially signed with Seattle's Sub Pop label and influenced their direction and sound, inspiring Kurt Cobain to form Nirvana and sign as well, by his own admission. It was also them who were the first band from this Seattle scene to sign with a major label, in 1989. And it was them who were considered to be the most instrumentally and musically proficient among the bands in the scene, expanding their repertoire to much more than just grunge, not to mention it was Chris who had the amazing 4 octave vocal range that fellow grunge singers Kurt or Eddie Vedder could never match.
Rock music in general is dying off the mainstream pop charts, making it all the more vital to see such artists as Chris Cornell, Pearl Jam, the Foo Fighters, Springsteen, and Weezer still making records and influencing the creativity of new acts, even if no longer in the spotlight. So, while I was never really a fan of Soundgarden as much as Nirvana and Pearl Jam, it is still with great sadness to see one of its icons as no more.
This has always been my favorite of them. Which is an amazing musical convention-buster that somehow works wonderfully.
I liked him way back at the Temple of the Dogs days. Good stuff.
Sorry to hear about this. Not sure what happened, his family is now saying that script drugs might have had something to do with it. IDK, I heard he hung himself, but whatever.
I imagine there had to be some personal demons in there and I get that to a degree, I've got so of my own, but not enough to take it to that next level. Hard to get into that mindset. I'm not judging the guy, I'm just trying to see the humanity and all it's foibles.
I liked him way back at the Temple of the Dogs days. Good stuff.
Sorry to hear about this. Not sure what happened, his family is now saying that script drugs might have had something to do with it. IDK, I heard he hung himself, but whatever.
I imagine there had to be some personal demons in there and I get that to a degree, I've got so of my own, but not enough to take it to that next level. Hard to get into that mindset. I'm not judging the guy, I'm just trying to see the humanity and all it's foibles.
May 18, 2017 @ 12:33:49
Moderator
