Temple Of The Dog Reunion To Include Tour And New Music [Video]

In 1991, artists from Soundgarden and Pearl Jam came together to form the supergroup Temple of the Dog. It was a limited event with the group releasing just one album, the self-titled Temple of the Dog, but that one offering gifted fans with some memorable additions to the rock/grunge genre with songs like “Say Hello 2 Heaven,” “Hunger Strike,” and “Times of Trouble.” Now, the 25th anniversary of that first album will be celebrated by a Temple of the Dog reunion, which is to include a tour and a re-release of that first and only album. What may be even more exciting for fans is that Temple of the Dog members Chris Cornell of Soundgarden and Temple of the Dog, along with drummer Matt Cameron, who also plays with Pearl Jam, have promised to include previously unreleased tracks on the anniversary re-release of that album.

Temple Of The Dog To Hit The Road For A Limited Tour

When members of Soundgarden came together with members of Pearl Jam to form Temple of the Dog, it was for a limited side project, but the Wall Street Journal reveals that the band is coming together once again to celebrate 25 years since the release of their Temple of the Dog album. It has been a long while since Temple of the Dog was on everyone’s playlist, so, as a refresher, here’s an offering of the band’s album as it was released in 1991.

https://youtu.be/CcmuWUCkfH8

Temple of the Dog brings Soundgarden lead singer Chris Cornell together with Pearl Jam bassist Jeff Ament, and Matt Cameron, who plays drums for both Pearl Jam and Soundgarden. Completing the Temple of the Dog line-up are Mike McCready and Stone Gossard, both of whom play guitar for Pearl Jam. Temple of the Dog will launch a short November tour, which will make stops in Philadelphia, New York, San Francisco, Los Angeles, and back home to Seattle.

“We wanted to do the one thing we never got to do…play shows and see what it feels like to be the band that we walked away from 25 years ago,” says Mr. Cornell in a statement on the Temple of the Dog website. “This is something no one has ever seen. We wanted to stop and recognize that we did this and pay homage.”

In the 1991 original line-up, Pearl Jam’s Eddie Vedder joined Temple of the Dog, adding his distinctive voice to the hit “Hunger Strike,” but the band reveals that Vedder won’t be joining the reunion tour.

Temple of the Dog tour dates are as follows.

• Nov. 4 — Tower Theatre, Philadelphia
• Nov. 7 — Madison Square Garden, New York
• Nov. 11 — Bill Graham Civic Center, San Francisco
• Nov. 14 — The Forum, Los Angeles
• Nov. 20 — Paramount Theater, Seattle

Temple Of The Dog Re-Release May Mean Previously Unreleased Material

It’s not set in stone as of yet, but Blabbermouth reports that drummer Matt Cameron feels confident that the 25th anniversary re-release of Temple of the Dog will include previously unreleased material. Cameron didn’t specify new material, but did say he was hopeful that demos and alternate versions of some tracks would be included.

“I think there’s probably alternate takes, and I think Chris [Cornell] made demos. But his demos are pretty freaking cool. Some of his demos are amazing. I think that would be okay. But I guess it depends on the quality. But as a musician, I like people to hear the finished product. It’s not a dealbreaker for me, it’s more of a philosophical difference, I guess. The process of creating music is fantastic, as an artist, but there’s got to be some privacy there.”

https://www.facebook.com/TempleofTheDog/posts/508364782701149

That statement made by Cameron may make it seem as though he’s contradicting himself and there’s a good reason for that: he is. While he feels that including these alternate tracks would be of interest to Temple of the Dog fans, Matt adds that he doesn’t really like to share the entire creative process with fans. Instead, the Temple of the Dog drummer would rather let fans be amazed by the final product.

Even so, Cameron does give fans a glimpse of just how this strange mix of Soundgarden and Pearl Jam members came to develop a creative process, which ultimately gives Temple of the Dog their distinctive sound.

“The way we’ve always written is four guys in a room just slamming it out. A lot of times Chris would write complete songs and he would record a demo and we’d learn his demos, and then sort of add our own spice to it, so to speak,” says the Temple of the Dog musician. “But you know, everyone writes music in this group and that’s been a pretty huge benefit for us as a band over the years.”

[Image via Temple of the Dog Facebook]