Chris Cornell, Jeff Ament and Mike McCready all believe there’s a chance Temple Of The Dog could record new material, they’ve said.
The band that consists of Pearl Jam and Soundgarden members will tour for the first time next month in support of the re-release of their self-titled album, first launched in 1991. It was designed as a tribute to Mother Love Bone frontman Andrew Wood, who’d died of a heroin overdose the previous year.
Pearl Jam guitarist McCready last month told Classic Rock that he was in favour of a studio return, saying: “I’d love to – I’m there. I hope we can do new songs.”
Now Soundgarden singer Cornell tells Rolling Stone: “There’s always a chance. Just from my perspective, it would have to feel great.
“I don’t want to say it would have to live up to the album, but I wouldn’t want to take away from it. I don’t want to detract from what happened before.”
Pearl Jam’s Ament says: “That record is so unique in terms of what initiated it – but I love recording, so I’d always be up for it, I think.”
McCready adds to his previous comments by saying: “I would record new songs in a minute. There hasn’t been any talk of it, but if Chris is into it and so are the rest of the guys, I’m totally into that.”
Meanwhile, bassist Ament has recalled how Wood’s death shook his belief in music, before Pearl Jam achieved success with debut album Ten.
He says: “I thought I might be done with music, at least at that level of playing the game and trying to be on a major label.
“I was feeling the pressure of being a 26-year-old that hadn’t finished college. There was unfinished business with school, getting my art degree. That summer I went to Western Washington University and kind of looked at the campus and the art facilities.”
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Cornell recalls writing the songs Say Hello 2 Heaven and Reach Down for Wood, which involved taking on a creative style he’d never previously used.
“I remember the ideas because they involved a real person,” he says. “I’d normally write a character that was part me and part fictional. But these lyrics specifically reflected Andy and my feeling about him. It was precious.”
The band are also considering the possibility of touring further afield in the future. Ament reports: “If everyone is excited, it might become a thing we do every once in a while.
“We can call each other up and say, ‘Hey, we just got an offer to play London,’ or something. That would be fun.”
Temple Of The Dog was re-released on September 30. Soundgarden and Pearl Jam are featured in the current edition of Classic Rock, on sale now in print and via TeamRock+.
Temple Of The Dog: The Return Of The Great Lost Grunge Band
Temple Of The Dog 2016 tour dates
Nov 04: Philadelphia Tower Theatre, PA
Nov 07: New York Madison Square Garden, NY
Nov 11: San Francisco Bill Graham Civic Center, CA
Nov 14: Los Angeles The Forum, CA
Nov 20: Seattle Paramount Theater, WA
