Soundgarden Singer Chris Cornell Explains Making of 'Black Hole Sun' Video

Soundgarden Singer Chris Cornell Explains Making of ‘Black Hole Sun’ Video

2012-12-17

Story by Charles Ken

Soundgarden singer Chris Cornell ‘didn’t really want to make videos’ at the time of filming ‘Black Hole Sun’

Soundgarden unleashed their latest studio album, “King Animal,” last month, and the set already has a bona fide rock hit in lead single “Been Away Too Long.” While the new Soundgarden tracks are certainly killer, fans still hold Soundgarden’s big breakout hit, “Black Hole Sun,” close to their hearts. Frontman Chris Cornell recently dished about his thoughts on the trippy video behind “Black Hole Sun,” and he says that at the time of the filming, he didn’t even want to put out music videos anymore.

“By the time ‘Black Hole Sun’ came around, I was really disillusioned with the whole process and didn’t really want to make videos,” Cornell told Artist Direct. “We just read treatments for it, and Howard Greenhalgh’s treatment just read weird as the video turned out. I suggested we just pick one that we want, try to find a great one, and let the guy do whatever he wants. We should just be there and not emote, not pretend to be excited to play the song, deadpan, stand there, and do absolutely nothing.

“We chose his treatment because it seemed interesting. I told him on the phone, ‘We’re not going to do anything. You’re not going to get anything out of us. We’re just going to stand there because we don’t want to do this anymore.’ Somehow, for whatever reason, he loved that. I love the video because it worked… If you get out of somebody’s way, or collaborate in the right way, a good thing can come out of it.” Watch Soundgarden’s legendary “Black Hole Sun” video via Vevo.

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Charles Ken

Meet the expert - Charles Ken is a graduate of Michigan State University where he studied writing and history. He's a longtime music buff and covers classic rock for Audio Ink Radio. Contact him at ken@audioinkradio.com.