Soundgarden broke up before the Millennium even hit, and while the world has changed dramatically, in reuniting for the brand new album King Animal; Soundgarden really haven't. King Animal is a classic rock album and despite not having deviated much from their '90s form, it still sounds relevant. 

The band spoke to Rolling Stone about reuniting, their past and their future. Front man Chris Cornell agrees that the music they're making is worth while for the contemporary audience. "After 15 years, we can reassemble and again prove that we are a vital band that has something to say about rock music that other people don't and we deserve to be making music that's heard on an international stage," he said. Of course, to be found on an international stage after a 15 year hiatus, you've got to have some loyal fans, and that they do. Cornell, in fact, gives their music to the fans. "The interpretations belong to the people who listen to them. The fans own the records and listen to them and love them. It becomes the soundtrack to some part of their lives and we don't control that." He said, "To me that's what's exciting about what we do. You create this little Frankenstein monster of a song or an album and then it wanders off around the world, going "Arrrrgggh, fire," and does whatever it's gonna do - murders the townspeople, whatever. I can't stop it."

Consequence of Sound also interviewed Soundgarden guitarist Kim Thayil, whose musical ethos mirrors Cornell. "[When we broke up] what I failed to recognize was that individually we might be showing interest in other subgenres of popular music, but there is a collective way that we respond and communicate musically that is probably always going to be Soundgarden."