Soundgarden — 鈥楰ing Animal鈥�
鈥淚鈥檝e been away for too long,鈥� roars Chris Cornell on the opening track to 鈥淜ing Animal.鈥� The first release since 1996鈥檚 鈥淒own on the Upside,鈥� and only the band鈥檚 sixth studio album, 鈥淜ing Animal鈥� is truly one beast of an effort from the Pacific Northwest rockers. They may have been collectively absent over the last several years, but each member remained heavily active with various bands and projects. The most fruitful recordings have been delivered from Cornell with three albums as a member of Audioslave and four solo releases. Cornell鈥檚 voice is easily one of the most distinct and engaging in rock music, and it鈥檚 nearly intoxicating to once again hear him perform with guitarist Kim Thayil, bassist Ben Shepherd and drummer Matt Cameron as they pound out 13 new tracks with plenty of muscle and brooding flair. Right out of gate with 鈥淏een Away Too Long,鈥� the band explodes into a thundering stampede fueled by Thayil鈥檚 heavy riffs, Shepherd鈥檚 resounding bass licks and Cameron鈥檚 volatile drumming as Cornell bellows, 鈥淵ou can鈥檛 go home.鈥� Cornell might be right, but Soundgarden鈥檚 menacing sound is a return to the glory days of 1991鈥檚 鈥淏admotorfinger.鈥� This album was my first exposure to the band as I searched for more of Seattle鈥檚 grunge sound after being mesmerized by Nirvana鈥檚 鈥淣evermind鈥� and Pearl Jam鈥檚 鈥淭en鈥� 鈥� all released the same year. I later discovered 1994鈥檚 鈥淪uperunknown鈥� and have been a fan ever since.
The Thayil-driven 鈥淣on-State Actor鈥� focuses on the dark and seedy aspects of political power, nourished by the guttural screams unleashed by Cornell. As satisfying as the band sounds on the harder numbers, they equally shine on the handful of slower arrangements. 鈥淏ones of Birds鈥� and 鈥淏lack Saturday鈥� are minor melodic masterpieces while the engaging 鈥淗alfway There鈥� sounds as if it came from Cornell鈥檚 first solo effort and is easily my favorite track. Yes, Soundgarden鈥檚 absence has been a noticeable one. 鈥淒on鈥檛 know where I鈥檓 going/I just keep on rowing,鈥� sings Cornell on the final cut. Fortunately, the band returns to power through and prove they are still an imposing force with the unbridled magnetism of 鈥淜ing Animal.鈥�