Badmotorfinger
Soundgarden
Soundgarden make being difficult sound remarkably enjoyable on Badmotorfinger. The riffs turn in unusual places, Chris Cornell pushes his voice to extraordinary heights, and the rhythm section never seems interested in taking the easiest route. Somehow, the songs remain strong enough to hold all that activity together.
Rusty Cage is the perfect introduction. Its opening guitar part has a tight, restless movement before the song changes into something much slower and heavier. The shift could easily feel awkward. Instead, it makes the final section seem even larger. Outshined follows with a riff that is easy to recognise but less straightforward to move along with than it first appears. Cornell gives it a chorus with enough melody to make the odd shape feel natural.
Jesus Christ Pose is more relentless. Matt Cameron's drums and the circling guitar parts create a constant sense of motion, while Cornell sounds as if he is trying to push through the noise. It is an intense performance from everyone involved. Slaves & Bulldozers takes a slower pace but creates just as much pressure, with the vocal stretching across a huge guitar sound.
The record's character also comes from Kim Thayil's refusal to make every lead sound neat. His guitar can scrape, twist and spill outside the main riff, adding something unsettling to music that already has plenty of weight. Searching with My Good Eye Closed uses that side of the band particularly well, moving into a stranger, more psychedelic space without losing its focus.
This is heavy music that asks for some attention. The songs aren't always built around the easiest chorus or the most comfortable rhythm, and the full-force singing is a lot to take in. But those choices give the album its identity. The band sound completely committed to the peculiar shapes they are making.
Badmotorfinger is a great record for anyone who enjoys following a riff somewhere unexpected. It has the physical force of metal, the roughness of alternative rock and a singer who can make both sound larger. There is plenty to get your teeth into here.
