Album Review: Soundgarden - Superunkown (20th Anniversary Reissue)

1994's Superunknown was Seattle band Soundgarden's fourth album, but it would be the album that defined the band, an apex point that the quartet – Chris Cornell, Kim Thayil, Ben Shepherd and Matt Cameron – would never replicate. The 15 tracks on the album are a masterclass in drop-D refined metal wizardry (Thayil continues to be feted as one of the world's best guitarists based on this album alone), peculiar yet devastating drumming from Cameron (whose inclusion in Pearl Jam seems like a no-brainer but has never been as perfect a fit), anchored down by Shepherd's deceptively insidious bass lines and Cornell's Robert Plant-supplanting vocal reach. Black Hole Sun may have been their money-maker, but it was also an aberration – tracks like Let Me Drown, 4th  Of July, Limo Wreck and The Day I Tried To Live were seductively visceral, revelling in an attractive melody before wrapping it all in black. Closer, Like Suicide is perfectly tempered, with Thayil's solo one for the ages.

It's the brilliance of Superunknown that makes this four-disc reissue so redundant. With no “new” B-sides on display, but rather, perfunctory live takes, terrible remixes of Spoonman and redundant rehearsal takes, it's an obvious cash-grab. The only disc of interest is the demo sessions, where it can be noted that Cornell is playing with harmony, feeling out the songs with that impressive voice. Black Hole Sun comes out almost fully formed, whilst the demos of Let Me Drown and Spoonman illuminate the interesting left-turns the band were about to take.

Avoid this special edition then but delve nevertheless into the Superunknown, an album that surprisingly stands the test of time on its own.