Soundgarden Hints At Possible Live Return As New Album Nears Completion

Fresh off their powerful and emotional induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame this past weekend, Soundgarden drummer Matt Cameron has addressed the possibility of the band touring again in the future.

The grunge pioneers—Kim Thayil, Ben Shepherd, Matt Cameron, and original bassist Hiro Yamamoto—were inducted by actor Jim Carrey. The ceremony concluded with the surviving members performing “Rusty Cage” and “Black Hole Sun,” joined by Taylor Momsen of The Pretty Reckless, Brandi Carlile, Jerry Cantrell of Alice In Chains, and Mike McCready of Pearl Jam.

That performance, featuring a rotating cast of vocalists, fueled speculation about the band’s future, especially as they are deep into work on their final album using vocal tracks recorded by Chris Cornell.

In a new interview with The Seattle Times conducted just before the induction, Matt Cameron confirmed that while the album is the priority, the idea of live shows is not off the table.

“We haven’t really gotten there yet,” Cameron said regarding a potential tour. “We’re just trying to get the music together. But I think there might be some situations where it would be really cool to do that.”

Cameron elaborated, noting that the positive collaborations they’ve already had—like those seen at the Hall of Fame—have opened the door to future possibilities.

“It’s just a matter of getting the right people together and we’ve got some amazing people that we’ve been working with, some singers that have expressed interest. So, we’re really, really excited about what that could potentially look like.”

The music Cameron is referring to is the band’s long-awaited seventh album. In a separate, recent interview with Bass Magazine, Ben Shepherd confirmed the album’s progress and the “mighty” sound of the new material, while also detailing the emotional weight of the project.

“We’re making good progress and have a big portion of the album completed,” Shepherd said, before admitting, “Finishing this album totally makes me miss Chris more.”

Shepherd also shared the band’s internal conflict about the finality of the album, a sentiment that extends to the idea of Soundgarden’s identity moving forward.

“The other day it dawned on me again, on a deeper level, that the minute we’re done with this record and the minute I play my final note on it, does that mean we’re never going to do it again? What does this mean?” Shepherd continued. “Without Chris we aren’t Soundgarden. Who knows, maybe selfishly we’ll just keep tracking the record so that we can keep working on it and preserving the moment in time.”

Since Chris Cornell‘s passing in 2017, the surviving members, Kim Thayil, Ben Shepherd, and Matt Cameron, have engaged in several collaborative performances under the Soundgarden name with various vocalists, including Taylor Momsen and Brandi Carlile. They also performed a benefit show in December 2024 as Nudedragons, featuring Seattle vocalist Shaina Shepherd. It remains uncertain which vocalist Cameron was referencing in his discussion with The Seattle Times, and speculation regarding a potential touring singer for the group is premature.