Soundgarden guitarist updates fans on final album

Kim Thayil said on May 24 that Soundgarden is still working toward releasing the band’s final album with late singer Chris Cornell, extending a project that has been delayed for years by grief, legal disputes and the challenge of finishing material recorded before Cornell’s 2017 death. In a new interview with LifeMinute editor-in-chief Joann Butler, Thayil said the surviving members remain focused on completing unreleased recordings made with Cornell. He did not announce a release date. His comments circulated Sunday in music coverage and on social platforms. ### What exactly did Kim Thayil say this weekend? Kim Thayil told LifeMinute that Soundgarden is “still in the process” of finishing its last album with Cornell and said the work remains “very, very important to all of us,” according to reports summarizing the interview. The project centers on unreleased recordings the band made with Cornell before his death in May 2017. (blabbermouth.net) Sunday’s reports identified the surviving members involved in the effort as Thayil, drummer Matt Cameron and bassist Ben Shepherd. The material has been described in multiple recent accounts as Soundgarden’s final studio album featuring Cornell’s vocals. ### Why has this album taken so long? Chris Cornell died on May 18, 2017, at age 52, leaving behind unfinished Soundgarden material recorded after the band’s 2012 comeback album “King Animal.” Since then, the band’s plans for the recordings have been slowed by a legal fight involving Cornell’s estate over access to files, royalties and related issues, according to prior coverage cited in later reports. (blabbermouth.net) (chaoszine.net) May 2025 interviews with Thayil had already made clear that the band wanted to complete the record rather than leave it unfinished. In those comments, reported by outlets citing Rolling Stone, Thayil said the objective had “always” been to finish the album and release it properly. (msn.com) ### How close is Soundgarden to finishing it? May 23 and May 24 reports did not give a percentage or timeline for completion, but they said the band remains actively working on the material. Several outlets summarizing the new interview said only that the record is still being completed and that the process continues. (blabbermouth.net) Earlier reporting offered a somewhat fuller picture. In 2025 and 2026, Cameron and Thayil said the album was underway and emotionally significant, while other reports citing band interviews said the material was more than halfway done or “pretty close,” though those descriptions came in separate accounts and not in Sunday’s update itself. (blabbermouth.net) ### Is there now an agreement with Chris Cornell’s family? Recent coverage tied the project’s progress to the resolution of a prolonged dispute with Cornell’s estate, but the May 24 interview reports reviewed here did not publish fresh details of any new agreement announced Sunday by Thayil himself. What they did say is that the band is continuing work on the album after that earlier legal impasse. (metalinjection.net) Social posts circulating on May 24 framed the update as a breakthrough with Cornell’s family, but the more firmly sourced reporting available Sunday supports the narrower point that Thayil publicly confirmed the album remains in progress. ### What happens next for fans waiting for the record? No label, track list or release date was announced in the latest round of reports. (ourmusicworld.com) The next concrete milestone will be a formal announcement from Soundgarden, the surviving members, Cornell’s estate or a record label identifying when the unreleased recordings will be issued. (msn.com) May 24’s update leaves the project where it has stood in recent interviews: Kim Thayil, Matt Cameron and Ben Shepherd say they are still finishing Soundgarden’s final album with Chris Cornell, but they have not yet said when listeners will hear it. (blabbermouth.net)