Sun, 19 Jun 2011 6:00p.m.
I've always enjoyed the music of Chris Cornell, for a variety of reasons. For one thing - it's just my kind of music: I enjoy loud, and I enjoy grunge. I suppose there's also the aspect that his music played a big part in my life when I was, for want of a better word, finding myself. You know - new city, new friends, that sort of rot. So in my current job as a "journalist" (I prefer to think of it as "getting to meet interesting people"), I've always wanted to meet the man; to sit down and chat about his music and his life.
I feel very fortunate doing what I do: Being able to sit down with people I often admire, and get to ask them questions. With people like Trent Reznor of Nine Inch Nails, and Danny Carey of Tool, it's incredible rewarding.
But for seven years, Chris Cornell has avoided me. I've found myself in the same place as him a few times now, but an interview has never come off. A few years ago he cancelled our slot in Auckland due to a sore voice, five minutes beforehand.
So I suppose in the back of my head I've been worried that he's would be an unpleasant person; full of his own importance. Interestingly Scott Kara over at the Herald tells a similar story - a cancelled interview overseas.
But last week in Los Angeles, Cornell said "yes". There was no great discussion about the length of our interview, or what we'd talk about: He'd simply meet me at midday at a Beverly Hills hotel. So I went to the location at 11am with my cameraman Grant Findlay and we set up the shoot. And at 12:15pm (yes, I was worried for a bit there) in walked Chris Cornell.
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He'd grown his hair back, and his beard, too. It was looking into the face of Soundgarden, not Audioslave... or Scream.* He politely introduced himself, Grant mic'd him up, and we started our interview. What unfolded was an absolute pleasure: A man openly speaking about his career, from his humble beginnings recording in a dodgy neighbourhood, to Soundgarden, Temple of the Dog, Audioslave, his solo career... and his current Song Book tour. He was earnest, hilarious, and thoughtfelt.
He spoke for 30 minutes, and I was the one who wrapped it up - not him. He had kids at home, it was a Saturday, and to be honest, I felt sort of bad keeping him. Hell, he's in the studio recording a new Soundgarden record - he shouldn't be stuck talking to a bloody New Zealander!
A few things that we weren't rolling on that I found interesting: Going on his knowledge and enthusiasm, he's a huge Lord of the Rings fan. He read the books as a kid, and had some interesting things to say about the movies, including the use of "blocking" in the film to make Gandalf/Frodo the correct sizes.
He's also a fan of birds, apparently - asking questions about my tee shirt which featured a beautiful kereru. He also talked about his experience playing a big Activision gig at last year's E3 (a gig I will always be annoyed at missing, instead opting for an early night during E3), and what a bizarre scenario it was (a who's who of music, with Eminem, Rihanna, Eminem, NERD and a host of other musicians - including himself - performing).
But I digress: Here's our full 30-minute chat. I've cut about four minutes out (hey - some of it's just for me, okay?!). Hope you enjoy it.
David.
*I should mention that I don't hate Scream (his solo album with Timbaland) like many do: I understand why it's not his most popular record, but I kinda enjoy hearing his voice over processed pop beats and weird little vocal tics ("Ground Zero"). "Climbing Up The Walls" and "Scream" are favourites of mine. I don't mind them a bit.
Chris Cornell is playing two shows in Auckland in early October, tickets and information are available from The Edge.