While Soundgarden only charted one Hot 100 hit (“Black Rain” peaked at No. Melding RATM’s blistering punk-metal attack with his nearly four-octave range, Audioslave netted Cornell a new generation of rock fans.Īudioslave also fared better on the Billboard Hot 100 than Soundgarden had. But Cornell’s career got a massive second wind when he joined forces with members of Rage Against the Machine to create Audioslave in 2001. While Soundgarden’s output was warmly received by Gen X and positively reviewed by critics, Cornell’s solo output – save his 1999 solo debut Euphoria Morning – was less so. After a 1996 Lollapalooza tour and an ensuing world tour, internal tensions lead to the band calling it quits in 1997 (they would reunite for 2012’s well-received King Animal and continue to tour until Cornell’s death). On 1996’s Down on the Upside, the band moved away from their heaviness of their previous releases and began experimenting with a more psychedelic sound. 1994’s Superunknown took Soundgarden to even greater heights: The album became their only studio LP to top the Billboard 200, and all five singles charted on the Alternative Songs chart – of those songs, “Black Hole Sun” and “Spoonman” are all-time rock classics.
