Soundgarden guitarist Kim Thayil recently opened up about the massive 1990s Seattle rock explosion, the origins of the “grunge” label, and the band’s current plans to release a final studio album featuring the late Chris Cornell.
Appearing on “Talk Is Jericho“, the podcast hosted by wrestling superstar and Fozzy frontman Chris Jericho, the legendary guitarist discussed his brand-new memoir, “A Screaming Life: Into The Superunknown With Soundgarden And Beyond“. Released on June 9, 2026, via the HarperCollins imprint William Morrow, the book chronicles Thayil‘s journey through an era that redefined alternative rock, offering an authentic, raw antidote to the glossy pop and hair metal that dominated the late 1980s.
During the interview, it was pointed out the historic moment when Nirvana, Pearl Jam, Soundgarden, and Alice in Chains all simultaneously dominated the Billboard 200 charts. Thayil admitted that the monumental achievement didn’t fully register with him until a journalist put it into perspective.
“Oh, yeah. I was unaware of that. That was brought to my attention then by a journalist — I think it was a British journalist, and I could be wrong. The reason why I think it was a British journalist is they said, ‘Hey, Kim, now that your record’s number one, this past year has seen number one records from Alice and Nirvana and Pearl Jam and you guys, all from Seattle.’ And I go, ‘Wow, very cool.’ And he goes, ‘That makes you guys the biggest and hottest scene since Liverpool.’ And that spun my head around, put it in a different context. For me to understand that, I had to go back to being, like, six or seven years old. But I didn’t get that until that had been pointed out to me,” he said.
When asked if the Seattle musicians actively referred to themselves as “grunge” at the time, the guitarist explained that the term was strictly an outside label that the bands eventually adopted out of sheer convenience.
Thayil explained: “No. I think none of us used the term ‘grunge’… Now we all do, and the reason why we all do is as you get bigger, you’re now answering questions and addressing your parents, your uncles, your aunts, your doctor or your lawyer, the person who works at the store or whatever. So you’re talking to your friends, and your scene is just your friends or your girlfriends and the person who owns the club and the bartender or whatever, it’s one thing. But then when your scene becomes your aunt and uncle, it’s, like, ‘Well, what do you do?’ ‘I play in a band.’ ‘What kind of music do you do?’ ‘Uh, grunge?’ And he’s, like, ‘Oh, I’ve heard of that. What’s the name of your band?’ ‘Oh, Soundgarden.’ They shake their head. Then you say Pearl Jam and Nirvana, and they’re, like, ‘Oh, yeah.’ … So then that becomes a reference, so grunge becomes a way to communicate with the outside world or the world that is only casually interested in what you’re doing.”
Jericho noted that retroactively applied genre tags are incredibly common in heavy music, comparing it to the New Wave of British Heavy Metal. Thayil strongly agreed with the comparison.
“I think you’re right, to give references to distinguish these different pockets of what was going on and stuff. Yeah, I don’t remember hearing the [term] New Wave Of British Heavy Metal back in the early ’80s. I started seeing that initialization sometime in the 2000s. It’s, like, ‘What’s that?’ It’s, like, ‘Oh. You mean like Iron Maiden and Judas Priest,'” he concluded.
Aside from promoting his new memoir, Thayil continues to work diligently alongside drummer Matt Cameron and bassist Ben Shepherd on a highly anticipated archival album. The project will feature unreleased vocal recordings captured by Chris Cornell prior to his tragic passing in 2017. To help finalize the record, the surviving members have enlisted the expertise of legendary producer Terry Date, who previously engineered Soundgarden‘s classic foundational albums, 1989’s Louder Than Love and 1991’s Badmotorfinger.
The ongoing archival work follows Soundgarden‘s long-overdue induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in November 2025. After initially being nominated in 2020 and again in 2023, the pioneering act was officially enshrined in the Performer category last year.
The induction honored Kim Thayil, Matt Cameron, Ben Shepherd, and Chris Cornell, alongside original bassist Hiro Yamamoto, who performed on the group’s first two EPs and albums between 1984 and 1989. To celebrate the massive milestone, the surviving members took the stage for a special tribute performance, utilizing guest vocalists Taylor Momsen and Brandi Carlile to honor Cornell. The historic set also featured surprise appearances from Pearl Jam guitarist Mike McCready and Alice in Chains guitarist Jerry Cantrell.
