There have been plenty of rumors and innuendo regarding a Soundgarden reunion ever since the band’s last show in Honolulu, Hawaii on Feb. 9, 1997. And while that date still remains as the last time all four members the legendary grungesters shared a stage together, last night’s impromptu gathering of the band sans singer Chris Cornell at Seattle’s infamous Crocodile Café may be as good as it gets.
The crowd had initially gathered to see Tom Morello’s Nightwatchman, MC5’s Wayne Kramer and Steve Earle. But when guitarist Kim Thayil joined Morello and Kramer for some spontaneous guitar combustion, the crowd could sense something was up. Their suspicions were somewhat confirmed when drummer Matt Cameron’s head could be seen peeking out from behind the backstage area. Of course, all hell broke loose when bassist Ben Shepherd joined Cameron and Thayil on stage for the first time since 1997, launching into a short three-song set with Morello helping out on rhythm guitar, ripping through “Nothing To Say,” “Hunted Down” and a blistering take of “Spoonman” that left the capacity crowd in a frenzy.
The fact that Cornell was nowhere to be found didn’t seem to matter to anyone in attendance, as veteran Seattle crony Tad Doyle handled the vocals quite capably. But the focus of the night was obviously on the reunion of Thayil, Shepherd and Cameron, and they didn’t disappoint.
“I haven’t been this f@&#ing excited about something in a long time,” Morello told the screaming crowd as he readied to play rhythm guitar with the reunited trio. “It’s like I won some type of contest or something.”
So what was it like inside the Crocodile last night? See for yourself below.
We’ll be sure to keep you posted if we hear anything from Cornell.