SOUNDGARDEN –
OUTSHINED (A&M RECORDS)
“Outshined” does not
necessarily spring to mind when you think of great Soundgarden songs or indeed
their tracks worthy of being singles.
In fact it’s something of a slog, tasting like a bulldozer stuck in the
mud. Who made this decision?
That said this is my
favourite era of Soundgarden. On the
cusp of fully going overground the songs from/on Batmotorfinger are lengthy,
measured pieces of work that see the band in anything but a hurry. They know what’s coming and it’s going to be
kept on their terms.
From that perspective
“Outshined” perfectly fits such a mindset and criteria. It’s a song bathed in apprehension and any
necessary recovery. It is not the sound
of an outfit enjoying themselves.
However by the time Cornell is questioning “who gets mystified?” the
resolution is pointing towards something almost calm. Indeed, the lyrics are nonsense.
If I’m being honest I
do not really like this song. Its slow,
it’s overblown and it’s lumbering. The
apparent sentiments of the track are what often made grunge wide open to
mockery. And on top of that there are
two versions of the track on this CD single (“Edit” and “LP Version”).
On this occasion
perhaps more interesting are the b-sides that were taken from a BBC session. “I Can’t Give You Anything” is a Ramones
cover that sees Cornell sounding like Mark Arm while “Homicidal Suicidal” is a
meandering cover of a Budgie song that all gets very denim and does not sound a
million miles away from earlier Soundgarden songs such as “Louder Than Love”
and “Nothing To Say”. Is this them
revealing their sources or are they stamping their mark on the metal that came
before them?
Releasing their song
as a single stunted their growth.
Thesaurus moment:
blip.
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