Can't believe it.
Just can't.
For me, especially as someone whose teenage years were dominated by Louder Than Love and then decimated by Badmotorfinger, there was no other voice that rang in my ears and shaped my sensibilities like his.
Yes, Layne Staley had a spectral aura (both literally and figuratively), but it was Cornell who took what I loved about Zep and Sabbath and melodicized his and Thayil's angular, bruising and offtime riffs, whispering under them and soaring, sometimes screaming above them. I got to see Soundgarden live, only once, and meet with them before the gig. I remember the handshake I had with Chris in that it was much lighter than I expected, and a juxtaposition to a guy I had watched in music videos with ripped torso and flowing locks I assumed must be the heaviest guy in all of alt-metal.
I wish I had something else to write that could express the shock and quiet devastation I'm feeling right now, but all I can add is my genuine prayers for his wife and family, for Kim, Ben and Matt, and all those his voice, his music and his presence touched.
With very real sadness,
853guy
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