Kevin Winter/Getty ImagesSoundgarden guitarist Kim Thayil says he felt “uncomfortable” with aspects of the 2019 Chris Cornell memorial tribute show.
The concert, which was held in Los Angeles, featured a performance from Soundgarden’s surviving members, as well as guests including Foo Fighters, Metallica, The Pretty Reckless‘ Taylor Momsen, members of Cornell’s bands Temple of the Dog and Audioslave, Miley Cyrus, and Maroon 5‘s Adam Levine, among many more.
“The best thing about it was playing those songs again with [drummer] Matt [Cameron] and [bassist] Ben [Shepherd], and the next best thing was having our friends and guests join us,” Thayil tells Kerrang! “The rest was a little bit uncomfortable. It was sort of a clusterf***. It was picking at an open wound, emotionally, and nobody was that thrilled to do it.”
Ultimately, Thayil was glad to get the “Soundgarden family” together to honor “our beloved, departed member,” but he was not happy about the “celebrity nature” of the event.
“We knew it was bulls*** going into it,” Thayil says. “We did it for each other, to support Chris’ legacy. There was something awkward and un-intimate about it.”
He concludes, “It’s hard for me to wrap my head around it, but I’m glad we did it for our friends and family.”
By Josh Johnson
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