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album review
Soundgarden's finest hour, Superunknown is a sprawling, 70-minute magnum opus that pushes beyond any previous boundaries. Soundgarden had always loved replicating Led Zeppelin and Black Sabbath riffs, but Superunknown's debt is more to mid-period Zep's layered arrangements and sweeping epics. Their earlier punk influences are rarely detectable, replaced by surprisingly effective appropriations of pop and psychedelia. Badmotorfinger boasted more than its fair share of indelible riffs, but here the main hooks reside mostly in Chris Cornell's vocals; accordingly, he's mixed right up front, floating over the band instead of cutting through it. The rest of the production is just as crisp, with the band achieving a huge, robust sound that makes even the heaviest songs sound deceptively bright. But the most important reason Superunknown is such a rich listen is twofold: the band's embrace of psychedelia, and their rapidly progressing mastery of songcraft. Soundgarden had always been a little mind-bending, but the full-on experiments with psychedelia give them a much wider sonic palette, paving the way for less metallic sounds and instruments, more detailed arrangements, and a bridge into pop (which made the eerie ballad "Black Hole Sun" an inescapable hit). That blossoming melodic skill is apparent on most of the record, not just the poppier songs and Cornell-penned hits; though a couple of drummer Matt Cameron's contributions are pretty undistinguished, they're easy to overlook, given the overall consistency. The focused songwriting allows the band to stretch material out for grander effect, without sinking into the pointlessly drawn-out muck that cluttered their early records. The dissonance and odd time signatures are still in force, though not as jarring or immediately obvious, which means that the album reveals more subtleties with each listen. It's obvious that Superunknown was consciously styled as a masterwork, and it fulfills every ambition. ~ Steve Huey, All Music Guide
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listener reviews
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Awesome. Totally Awesome
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- By DaVe4343
- 12/21/2008 05:04:45
- This album is so inspiring and different, and its one of my favs of all time. Soundgarden is one of my fav bands and this is just another one of their awesome albums. Songs like "Limo Wreck" or "Fourth of July" give this ominous kind of feel, while "Let Me Drown, and My Wave are more upbeat and fast paced. Of course, one of their most popular songs ever, Black Hole Sun, is on this album, which speaks for itself. But i wudnt just buy that song. I wud buy the entire thing. Black Hole Sun is good, but in my opinion, they have better songs. This was the first Soundgarden album i owned, and it is probably the one of the best album purchases i have made. Go buy these 15 songs of pure gold.
- 1 out of 1 people
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Super Cool
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- By AXL 36O
- 10/14/2008 01:50:52
- The album that got me into Soundgarden (naturally), many a Garden fan
hates this album because it is their most known (like Nirvana fans with
Nevermind). But this album is really good. I thought this album killed
Soundgarden in my opinion, after this recording they became too
serious. And lost their comedic value. I miss that, but it isn't THAT
much of a problem. Afterall, with songs like "Half" you hear a new side
to one of the greatest Seattle bands ever. Buy this album, steal it, or
download it.
Either way... listen to it. - 2 out of 2 people
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top listeners
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