Soundgarden: "For Whatever Reason, Our Music Transcended the '90s"

Reunited alt-rock legends Soundgarden sat down with Fuse to talk about their first album in 16 years, King Animal, and to look back on their remarkable career, which began 28 years ago in Seattle's underground rock scene.

"For whatever reason, our music transcended that brief period of time when we were selling millions of records," says frontman Chris Cornell, humbly underselling the band's impact and continued popularity. "We were a band much earlier than the '90s, so being able to be together now making new music is a great feeling. We're actually a band that has a legacy."

Cornell offers his take on why people still return to Soundgarden's catalog long after grunge has run its course: "We're an album-oriented band," he says. "We can actually draw you in and keep you there for an hour-plus. It's that escapism that I always love about music. You're being drawn into someone else's universe, someone else's atmosphere."

The grunge singer also tells us about how the band come up with their curious album titles (Ultramega OK, Superunknown, Down on the Upside, etc). "The title King Animal is more of a feeling. That's what's required for a Soundgarden album title," Cornell explains. "Because if it's anything specific, it's not going to encompass the meaning from song to song. So it can't mean anything."

In other words, don't ask what Soundgarden album titles mean, because, essentially, the answer is "nothing." But just because it's free of meaning doesn't mean it's meaningless. "There's something about it that's confident, which I like," Cornell adds.

For the full Soundgarden interview, check out the clip above.