Kim Thayil
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Kim Anand Thayil (born September 4, 1960)Kim Thayil Biography
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is an American musician best known as the
lead guitar Lead guitar (also known as solo guitar) is a musical part for a guitar in which the guitarist plays melody lines, instrumental fill passages, guitar solos, and occasionally, some riffs and chords within a song structure. The lead is the featur ...
ist of the
Seattle Seattle ( ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Washington and in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. With a population of 780,995 in 2024, it is the 18th-most populous city in the United States. The city is the cou ...
-based rock band
Soundgarden Soundgarden was an American rock band formed in Seattle, Washington, in 1984 by singer and drummer Chris Cornell, lead guitarist Kim Thayil, and bassist Hiro Yamamoto. Cornell switched to rhythm guitar in 1985, replaced on drums initially ...
, which he co-founded with singer Chris Cornell and bassist Hiro Yamamoto in 1984. Cornell and Thayil remained as the original members of the band until Cornell's death in 2017, and the band's subsequent split in 2018. Thayil was named the 100th greatest guitarist of all time by ''
Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. The magazine was first known fo ...
'' in 2010, and the 67th greatest guitarist of all time by SPIN in 2012. Thayil has won two
Grammy Awards The Grammy Awards, stylized as GRAMMY, and often referred to as The Grammys, are awards presented by The Recording Academy of the United States to recognize outstanding achievements in music. They are regarded by many as the most prestigious a ...
as a member of Soundgarden.


Biography


Childhood and early life

Born in
Seattle, Washington Seattle ( ) is the List of municipalities in Washington, most populous city in the U.S. state of Washington (state), Washington and in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. With a population of 780,995 in 2024, it is the List of Unit ...
in 1960, Thayil grew up in the
Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...
suburb of Park Forest. His parents came from the state of
Kerala Kerala ( , ) is a States and union territories of India, state on the Malabar Coast of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, following the passage of the States Reorganisation Act, by combining Malayalam-speaking regions of the erstwhile ...
in India to Seattle. His mother was a music teacher who studied to be a concert pianist at the
Royal Academy of Music The Royal Academy of Music (RAM) in London, England, is one of the oldest music schools in the UK, founded in 1822 by John Fane and Nicolas-Charles Bochsa. It received its royal charter in 1830 from King George IV with the support of the firs ...
. His father earned a degree in chemical engineering, received employment in Chicago and moved there with his family. Thayil started writing lyrics at 12 years old. In 1977, he formed his first band in Chicago, Bozo and the Pinheads, a
punk rock Punk rock (also known as simply punk) is a rock music genre that emerged in the mid-1970s. Rooted in 1950s rock and roll and 1960s garage rock, punk bands rejected the corporate nature of mainstream 1970s rock music. They typically produced sh ...
band. They did both original songs (written by Thayil and inspired by his punk music tastes) and cover tunes (mostly
Sex Pistols The Sex Pistols are an English punk rock band formed in London in 1975. Although their initial career lasted just two and a half years, they became culturally influential in popular music. The band initiated the punk movement in the United Ki ...
, Devo, and
Ramones The Ramones were an American punk rock band formed in the New York City neighborhood Forest Hills, Queens in 1974. Known for helping establish the punk movement in the United States and elsewhere, the Ramones are often recognized as one of th ...
). Their first gig was at a school talent show for an audience of about 500 people. He played guitar in a
post-punk Post-punk (originally called new musick) is a broad genre of music that emerged in late 1977 in the wake of punk rock. Post-punk musicians departed from punk's fundamental elements and raw simplicity, instead adopting a broader, more experiment ...
band called Identity Crisis in 1980 and released a 7-inch EP called ''Pretty Feet''. Thayil met Hiro Yamamoto at Rich East High School in Park Forest. He graduated, along with Hiro Yamamoto, from the Active Learning Process School (ALPS) at Rich East High School in 1979, the same school Bruce Pavitt graduated from two years earlier, in 1977. He and Yamamoto decided to move to Olympia, Washington, to study at
The Evergreen State College The Evergreen State College is a public liberal arts college in Olympia, Washington. Founded in 1967, it offers a non-traditional undergraduate curriculum in which students have the option to design their own study towards a degree or follow a ...
, but they were unable to find jobs and decided to move to Seattle. There, Thayil earned money as a DJ for KCMU and earned a degree in philosophy at the
University of Washington The University of Washington (UW and informally U-Dub or U Dub) is a public research university in Seattle, Washington, United States. Founded in 1861, the University of Washington is one of the oldest universities on the West Coast of the Uni ...
. In Seattle they also met Chris Cornell, a roommate, and the three formed
Soundgarden Soundgarden was an American rock band formed in Seattle, Washington, in 1984 by singer and drummer Chris Cornell, lead guitarist Kim Thayil, and bassist Hiro Yamamoto. Cornell switched to rhythm guitar in 1985, replaced on drums initially ...
in 1984.


Soundgarden (1984–1997)

Soundgarden became the first of Seattle's grunge bands to sign with a major label (
A&M Records A&M Records is an American record label owned by Universal Music Group and functions as a branch of Interscope Geffen A&M Records, Interscope-Geffen-A&M. Established in 1962 by Herb Alpert and Jerry Moss, the label initially operated independent ...
). They went on to release five albums, including three which went
platinum Platinum is a chemical element; it has Symbol (chemistry), symbol Pt and atomic number 78. It is a density, dense, malleable, ductility, ductile, highly unreactive, precious metal, precious, silverish-white transition metal. Its name origina ...
at least once, and won two
Grammys The Grammy Awards, stylized as GRAMMY, and often referred to as The Grammys, are awards presented by The Recording Academy of the United States to recognize outstanding achievements in music. They are regarded by many as the most prestigious ...
. Thayil became acclaimed for his guitar work, which was typically characterized by heavy
riff A riff is a short, repeated motif or figure in the melody or accompaniment of a musical composition. Riffs are most often found in rock music, punk, heavy metal music, Latin, funk, and jazz, although classical music is also sometimes based ...
ing, and was cited among other grunge guitarists as an influence and a pioneer of the " Seattle Sound." In 1994, Thayil commented, "I think Soundgarden is a pretty good band and I'm a fine guitarist. I'm not God, but I'm certainly not average. I feel very comfortable with the fact that not many other people can do what I do on guitar. I think my guitar is happy with the way I play it." Originally one of Soundgarden's main songwriters, Thayil's contributions as a writer eventually dwindled to just one song on '' Down on the Upside'', "Never the Machine Forever", although he contributed to details in every song, as did every band member. Thayil explained that "Collaboration was paramount in our early music, especially right at the beginning when it was me on guitar, Hiro on bass and Chris on drums", but eventually all four members became songwriters of their own, "all writing guitar parts that I had to learn." This led him to do "Never the Machine Forever" all on his own, as Thayil thought "Well, if I'm going to have a song on this fucking record, I'm going to have to write lyrics." While a member of Soundgarden, he wrote the following songs for the band: * " Hunted Down" (''
Screaming Life ''Screaming Life'' is the debut EP by American Rock music, rock band Soundgarden, released in November 1987 by Sub Pop. It was later combined with the band's next EP, ''Fopp (EP), Fopp'' (1988), and released as the ''Screaming Life/Fopp'' compil ...
'') ''... music'' * "Nothing to Say" (''Screaming Life'') ''... music'' * "Tears To Forget" (''Screaming Life'') ''... music (co-written)'' * "Little Joe" (''Screaming Life'') ''... music'' * "Hand of God" (''Screaming Life'') ''... music'' * "Kingdom of Come" ('' Fopp'') ''... credited to Soundgarden'' * "
Flower Flowers, also known as blooms and blossoms, are the reproductive structures of flowering plants ( angiosperms). Typically, they are structured in four circular levels, called whorls, around the end of a stalk. These whorls include: calyx, m ...
" ('' Ultramega OK'') ''... music'' * "All Your Lies" (''Ultramega OK'') ''... music (co-written)'' * "Circle of Power" (''Ultramega OK'') ''... music'' * "Incessant Mace" (''Ultramega OK'') ''... music'' * " Hands All Over" ('' Louder Than Love'') ''... music'' * "Get on the Snake" (''Louder Than Love'') ''... music'' * "Heretic" ('' Loudest Love'') ''... music'' * " Jesus Christ Pose" ('' Badmotorfinger'') ''... music (co-written)'' * " Room a Thousand Years Wide" (''Badmotorfinger'') ''... lyrics'' * "New Damage" (''Badmotorfinger'') ''... music (co-written)'' * " My Wave" ('' Superunknown'') ''... music (co-written)'' * "Superunknown" (''Superunknown'') ''... music (co-written)'' * "Limo Wreck" (''Superunknown'') ''... music (co-written)'' * "Kickstand" (''Superunknown'') ''... music'' * "Never the Machine Forever" ('' Down on the Upside'') ''... music and lyrics'' * "Black Rain" (''
Telephantasm ''Telephantasm'' is a compilation album by the American Rock music, rock band Soundgarden. Featuring songs that span 23 years of the band's career, it was released on September 28, 2010, through A&M Records. The album was certified platinum by th ...
'') ''...music (co-written)'' * "Non-State Actor" ('' King Animal'') ''...lyrics (co-written)'' * "By Crooked Steps" (''King Animal'') ''...music (co-written)'' * "A Thousand Days Before" (''King Animal'') ''...music'' * "Blood on the Valley Floor" (''King Animal'') ''...music''


Post-Soundgarden (1997–2010)

Thayil joined singer
Johnny Cash John R. Cash (born J. R. Cash; February 26, 1932 – September 12, 2003) was an American singer-songwriter. Most of his music contains themes of sorrow, moral tribulation, and redemption, especially songs from the later stages of his career. ...
, bassist
Krist Novoselic Krist Anthony Novoselic (; ; born May 16, 1965) is an American musician, politician and activist. Novoselic co-founded and played bass on every album for the rock music, rock band Nirvana (band), Nirvana. Novoselic and Kurt Cobain formed the ban ...
of
Nirvana Nirvana, in the Indian religions (Jainism, Hinduism, Buddhism, and Sikhism), is the concept of an individual's passions being extinguished as the ultimate state of salvation, release, or liberation from suffering ('' duḥkha'') and from the ...
and drummer Sean Kinney of
Alice in Chains Alice in Chains (often abbreviated as AiC) is an American rock band formed in Seattle in 1987. Since 2006, the band's lineup has comprised vocalist/guitarists Jerry Cantrell and William DuVall, bassist Mike Inez, and drummer Sean Kinney. Voca ...
for a cover of
Willie Nelson Willie Hugh Nelson (born April 29, 1933) is an American singer, guitarist, songwriter, actor and activist. He was one of the main figures of the outlaw country subgenre that developed in the late 1960s as a reaction to the conservative restr ...
's " Time of the Preacher", featured on the tribute album ''Twisted Willie'', released in January 1996. After the 1997 breakup of Soundgarden, Thayil went on to contribute guitar to work by Pigeonhed and Presidents of the United States of America. More recently, he contributed guitar to the track "Blood Swamp" from the 2006
Sunn O))) Sunn O))) (pronounced "sun") is an American drone metal band formed in 1998 in Seattle, Washington (state), Washington. The band is known for its distinctive visual style and slow, heavy sound, which blends diverse genres including doom metal, ...
/ Boris album
Altar An altar is a table or platform for the presentation of religion, religious offerings, for sacrifices, or for other ritualistic purposes. Altars are found at shrines, temples, Church (building), churches, and other places of worship. They are use ...
, for which he also wrote liner notes. Thayil also plays lead guitar on a track called "V.O.G." by Ascend, which features Gentry Densley ( Iceburn, Eagle Twin) and Greg Anderson (Sunn O))), Engine Kid, Goatsnake). Ascend's record, titled Ample Fire Within, was released in 2008 by
Southern Lord Records Southern Lord is an American heavy metal record label that was founded in 1998 by Greg Anderson. It initially specialized in experimental metal: particularly doom metal, stoner rock, and drone metal. The label later expanded its line-up to ...
. In 1999, Thayil formed a punk band, the No WTO Combo, with Jello Biafra (formerly of Dead Kennedys),
Krist Novoselic Krist Anthony Novoselic (; ; born May 16, 1965) is an American musician, politician and activist. Novoselic co-founded and played bass on every album for the rock music, rock band Nirvana (band), Nirvana. Novoselic and Kurt Cobain formed the ban ...
(formerly of
Nirvana Nirvana, in the Indian religions (Jainism, Hinduism, Buddhism, and Sikhism), is the concept of an individual's passions being extinguished as the ultimate state of salvation, release, or liberation from suffering ('' duḥkha'') and from the ...
, at the time a member of Sweet 75), and Gina Mainwal (also of Sweet 75). The band was formed to celebrate and further the rampant protest activity against the WTO Ministerial Conference of 1999, which was held on November 30, 1999. Originally scheduled to play at The Showbox on that same evening, police prevented the band from doing so, forcing the show to be rescheduled for the following night. This was Thayil's first live concert since the breakup of Soundgarden. The show was recorded by Mark Cavener and mixed by Soundgarden producer
Jack Endino Jack Endino (born Michael M. Giacondino; 1964) is an American producer and musician based in Seattle, Washington. Long associated with Seattle label Sub Pop and the grunge movement, Endino worked on seminal albums from bands including Mudhoney, ...
; it was released as the album '' Live from the Battle in Seattle'' in May 2000. In 2003, ''
Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. The magazine was first known fo ...
'' magazine named Thayil #100 on the list of the "100 greatest guitarists of all time". In 2004, Thayil played guitar for Probot,
Dave Grohl David Eric Grohl (; born January 14, 1969) is an American musician. He founded the rock band Foo Fighters, of which he is the lead singer, guitarist, principal songwriter, and only consistent member. From 1990 to 1994, he was the drummer of th ...
's heavy metal side-project; he was featured on the songs "Ice Cold Man" and "Sweet Dreams". Thayil was a recurring participant on the '' Almost Live!'' sketch comedy show, calling things "lame" during "The Lame List" segments. In 2009, Thayil played with Soundgarden's Matt Cameron and Ben Shepherd at a show in Seattle on March 24, 2009, at the Crocodile Cafe that was headlined by Tom Morello's The Nightwatchman. It was the first time the three had played together in public since the band's 1997 breakup. The three were joined by Tad Doyle of fellow 1990s Seattle band TAD, and performed three Soundgarden songs. For the last song ( Spoonman) they were joined by Tom Morello (Morello had played the song before with
Audioslave Audioslave was an American Rock music, rock supergroup (music), supergroup formed in Glendale, California, in 2001. The four-piece band consisted of Soundgarden's lead singer and rhythm guitarist Chris Cornell with Rage Against the Machine memb ...
). Thayil has also played with Greg Gilmore of Mother Love Bone and Danny Kelly of Heliotroupe in the group Set & Setting. Their debut performance was October 31, 2009, above the famed K Records warehouse now known as the Cherry Street Loft ("The Loft on Cherry") in Olympia, Washington.


Soundgarden reunion (2010–2018)

On January 1, 2010, it was announced through Facebook and Twitter posts by Chris Cornell that the official Soundgarden fanclub had been restarted. On April 15, 2010, it was announced that Soundgarden would play its first show since 1997 the following day at the Showbox at the Market in its Seattle hometown. The band played under the name 'Nudedragons', an anagram for Soundgarden. On August 5, 2010, the band played their first reunion show under the Soundgarden name at The Vic Theatre in Chicago. Three days later, they headlined the final night of
Lollapalooza Lollapalooza () is an annual American four-day music festival held in Grant Park (Chicago), Grant Park in Chicago. It originally started as a touring event in 1991, with Chicago becoming its permanent location beginning in 2005. Music genres i ...
in Grant Park. In September 2010, the band released the compilation album ''
Telephantasm ''Telephantasm'' is a compilation album by the American Rock music, rock band Soundgarden. Featuring songs that span 23 years of the band's career, it was released on September 28, 2010, through A&M Records. The album was certified platinum by th ...
''. November 2012 saw the release of '' King Animal'', their first studio album since 1996. In 2012, Thayil voiced a character in Season IV: Church of the Black Klok's "Dethcamp" in the
Adult Swim Adult Swim (stylized as dult swimand s is an American adult-oriented television programming block that airs on Cartoon Network which broadcasts during the evening, prime time, and Late-night television, late-night Dayparting, dayparts. T ...
original series '' Metalocalypse''. On May 18, 2017, Chris Cornell was found dead in his hotel room, cancelling the rest of their tour and the band was disbanded again in 2018, with the exception of their one-off show of Tribute to Chris Cornell in January 2019.


Projects outside Soundgarden

In March 2018, it was announced that original member of the proto punk band
MC5 MC5 was an American rock music, rock band formed in Lincoln Park, Michigan, in 1963. The classic lineup consisted of vocalist Rob Tyner, guitarists Wayne Kramer and Fred "Sonic" Smith, bassist Michael Davis (bassist), Michael Davis, and drummer ...
,
Wayne Kramer Wayne Stanley Kramer (''né'' Kambes; April 30, 1948 – February 2, 2024) was an American guitarist, singer, songwriter, producer, and Film score, film and television composer. Kramer came to prominence in the 1960s as the lead guitarist of t ...
would embark on a 35 date tour of North America for their 50th anniversary of the band's debut '' Kick Out the Jams'', recruiting Thayil to play guitar along with Brendan Canty of
Fugazi Fugazi (; ) is an American post-hardcore band formed in Washington, D.C., in 1986. The band consists of guitarists and vocalists Ian MacKaye and Guy Picciotto, bassist Joe Lally, and drummer Brendan Canty. They were noted for their style-transc ...
, Doug Pinnick of King's X, and Marcus Durant of Zen Guerrilla. In 2020, Thayil played guitar solos on the song "The Firebird" for the jazz fusion band, the Barret Martin Group. In 2021, he played lead guitar and Matt Cameron played drums for a track, "Only Love Can Save Me Now", on the new The Pretty Reckless album. The Pretty Reckless frontwoman Taylor Momsen said that without Thayil, recording the track would have been impossible, as "Kim is a master – there's no-one else like him." In December 2020, Thayil,
Krist Novoselic Krist Anthony Novoselic (; ; born May 16, 1965) is an American musician, politician and activist. Novoselic co-founded and played bass on every album for the rock music, rock band Nirvana (band), Nirvana. Novoselic and Kurt Cobain formed the ban ...
, Jennifer Johnson, Jillian Raye, Jeff Fielder and Ben Smith performed the song "Drone" at the Seattle Museum of Pop Culture's tribute to
Alice in Chains Alice in Chains (often abbreviated as AiC) is an American rock band formed in Seattle in 1987. Since 2006, the band's lineup has comprised vocalist/guitarists Jerry Cantrell and William DuVall, bassist Mike Inez, and drummer Sean Kinney. Voca ...
. In 2021, Thayil appeared on
Mastodon A mastodon, from Ancient Greek μαστός (''mastós''), meaning "breast", and ὀδούς (''odoús'') "tooth", is a member of the genus ''Mammut'' (German for 'mammoth'), which was endemic to North America and lived from the late Miocene to ...
's double album '' Hushed and Grim'', playing lead guitar on the track "Had It All". In 2021, Thayil, along with drummer Matt Cameron, bassist Krist Novoselic, guitarist Bubba Dupree, and vocalists Jennifer Johnson and Jillian Raye, formed the group 3rd Secret. Their self-titled debut album, which they recorded at The Bait Shop in Bellevue, Washington with producer
Jack Endino Jack Endino (born Michael M. Giacondino; 1964) is an American producer and musician based in Seattle, Washington. Long associated with Seattle label Sub Pop and the grunge movement, Endino worked on seminal albums from bands including Mudhoney, ...
, was released in April 2022. The group also performed at the Museum of Pop Culture in Seattle. In 2024, Thayil appeared on
Bear McCreary Bear McCreary (born February 17, 1979) is an American composer of film, television, and video game scores. His work includes the scores of the television series '' Battlestar Galactica'' (2004), '' Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.'', '' Black Sails'', '' ...
's epic rock concept album, graphic novel, and concert experience - ''"The Singularity"''.


Discography

Soundgarden No WTO Combo * '' Live from the Battle in Seattle'' (2000) Probot * '' Probot'' (2004) Sunn O))) and Boris * ''
Altar An altar is a table or platform for the presentation of religion, religious offerings, for sacrifices, or for other ritualistic purposes. Altars are found at shrines, temples, Church (building), churches, and other places of worship. They are use ...
'' (2006) 3rd Secret * '' 3rd Secret'' (2022) * '' The 2nd 3rd Secret'' (2023)


References


External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Thayil, Kim 1960 births Living people Grunge musicians Musicians from Seattle Soundgarden members American alternative rock guitarists Sub Pop artists American male musicians of Indian descent American musicians of Indian descent University of Washington College of Arts and Sciences alumni American people of Malayali descent American lead guitarists Alternative metal guitarists American heavy metal guitarists People from Park Forest, Illinois 20th-century American guitarists 21st-century American guitarists American male guitarists 3rd Secret members