Soundgarden
Badmotorfinger

THE REVIEW

"Badmotorfinger," the third official album by Soundgarden, was born in the shadow of the most celebrated four chords of the '90s, those of Nirvana's "Smells Like Teen Spirit," as well as simultaneously with the striking debut of Pearl Jam ("Ten"). It was the grace year 1991.

In 1967, the most diverse musical experiences, the result of an unprecedentedly fertile cultural context, converged in a series of albums that changed the history of rock forever; 1991 is somewhat the grandchild of the year of "Sgt. Pepper" or Hendrix's debut, partly because of the importance of the albums released (importance that sometimes surpasses the objective value, as in the case of "Nevermind"), partly because of the socio-cultural ferment that produced them. It is, primarily, the year of the global consecration of grunge.

The use of the term grunge encompasses a whole series of musical realities differently influenced by the stereotypes of rock, but united by a furious and nihilistic poetic. Soundgarden absorb rebellion and blasphemy into their titanism, blending, with much more calculation than the energetic arrangements of "Badmotorfinger" might suggest, Zeppelin-like echoes (Chris Cornell's voice reaches chilling heights, albeit with a bit of self-indulgence) and noisy intrusions, heavy metal solutions as well as "high" cameos from that progressive rock that occasionally peeks into the more ambitious projects of the '90s (the irregular breaks in "Face Pollution" recall, in their admirable gratuity, those of "Surprise, You're Dead!" by Faith No More).

Despite often excessive lengths, "Badmotorfinger" has the merit of literally shattering the minutes. The fillers that here and there loom over the entire listening experience are then compensated for, besides the singles "Rusty Cage" and "Outshined", by the splendid and powerful "Jesus Christ Pose", a demonstration of how the clichés of rock, appropriately renewed, can still give rise to a masterpiece.