Soundgarden still love debut EP

Soundgarden guitarist Kim Thayil says the band still love their first official release, 1987's Screaming Life EP.

He believes it’s one of their best two works to date – but he doesn’t take 1988 follow-up Fopp seriously.

Thayil tells Songfacts: “There’s a cool sound with the songs. There’s a freedom that’s not present on Down On The Upside or even parts of Superunknown. There’s a kind of looseness and freedom to it that’s a lot of fun to play live and fun to listen to for us. I love the album Superunknown, as well.

“We consider Screaming Life to be our debut album. Even though it wasn’t a full length, it was a collection of our original songs – it’s our album, it’s our original material.”

By contrast, Thayil thinks of Fopp as a maxi-single. He says: “We got Steve Fisk to do a little humorous club remix of the song Fopp. We threw in one original for the fuck of it. We threw in a cover of our buddies Green River.

“The Fopp EP is not piece of serious or creative work by Soundgarden. It has a novelty component; it’s definitely for humour’s sake.”

He reflects: “Screaming Life will always in our hearts be our first record, our first album. It has a different sound than all the others. It’s the first collection of our original stuff. So as far as we’re concerned, it’s a mini album.”

Soundgarden return to the UK to play the opening night of this year’s British Summer Time festival in Hyde Park, London on July 4.

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Not only is one-time online news editor Martin an established rock journalist and drummer, but he’s also penned several books on music history, including SAHB Story: The Tale of the Sensational Alex Harvey Band, a band he once managed, and the best-selling Apollo Memories about the history of the legendary and infamous Glasgow Apollo. Martin has written for Classic Rock and Prog and at one time had written more articles for Louder than anyone else (we think he's second now). He’s appeared on TV and when not delving intro all things music, can be found travelling along the UK’s vast canal network.