Kim Thayil had confirmed in a new Forbes interview that the surviving members of Soundgarden will reunite to perform together at the Chris Cornell tribute show on January 16, 2019 at the Forum in Los Angeles. It will be their first time performing together since May 17, 2017 in Detroit. While ‘members of Soundgarden’ were previously announced for the show, it was unclear if Kim Thayil, Matt Cameron, and Ben Shepherd would perform Soundgarden songs together. Thayil also confirmed that MC50 singer Marcus Durant will be one of the guest singers, in a performance that could be similar to Nirvana’s 2014 and 2018 performances.
“I think Matt [Cameron], Ben [Shepherd] and I will collectively decide which songs we’ll throw our best fist forward. The lineup was put together by Vicky [Cornell, management and the booking agents all with our approval. The only people on the bill are people that Soundgarden members approved of.”
When asked if there was ‘excitement’ about getting to perform Soundgarden material again, Thayil said there was.
“Yeah, there will be. I’m looking forward to doing some of these songs with Marcus Durant, who is the singer with this MC50 project we’re doing.”
He also said regarding the rest of the show’s lineup, which includes Foo Fighters, Metallica, Ryan Adams, and members of Audioslave and Temple of the Dog, “They were looking for people the band had a history with, Chris had a history with and people who were supportive of us over our careers and fans of ours who could do some of this material justice.”
Thayil has ruled out Soundgarden reuniting on a permanent basis with a new singer, so this appears like it will be a one off, until hopefully Soundgarden are inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame someday.
