On Wednesday (Sept. 9th), Soundgarden joined forces with Pearl Jam guitarist Mike McCready and The Pretty Reckless frontwoman Taylor Momsen for a halftime performance at the Seattle Seahawks’ season opener.
Speaking with Seahawks .com in the days leading up to the game, McCready reflected on what it means to perform with Soundgarden.
“I’m kind of like Soundgarden’s biggest fan,” he said, adding that he used to drop in on the band’s rehearsals in Seattle. “I went down there and brought them pizzas just so I could hang out. I love those guys, I love all of them. So being asked to do this by [Soundgarden and former Pearl Jam drummer] Matt [Cameron], I love playing with those guys, and Taylor kills it, she’s got a great voice. You’re going to see something cool at halftime.”
Momsen has performed with Soundgarden several times since the death of frontman Chris Cornell in 2017, taking on vocal duties.
McCready continued: “It’s incredibly special, it’s incredibly poignant. It’s intense, you want to do it right. It’s Seattle, we want to play as well as we can for Seattle, because we’re from here, this is our home. It’s a big deal, and that’s an exciting pressure to be part of. And I know how good it’s going to sound because of our over rehearsing. Hopefully people will love it, we’re looking forward to it. I can’t wait. I’ll play with those guys anywhere on the planet.”
McCready also performed the national anthem before the game. Despite having played the anthem at several sporting events over the years, including Seahawks and Mariners games, the guitarist admitted that he still gets nervous every time he takes on the “Star-Spangled Banner.”
“It’s way scary in a way, because I want to do it right and I don’t want to mess it up, so that’s going through my head every time,” he said. “I’ve done it a bunch of times, I just want to do it how I do it, and hopefully it means something and I do it right, so there’s pressure there.”
