Metal, Hardcore, Indie, Rock
In tribute to Chris Cornell, King Ultramega presents a high octane interpretation of Soundgarden’s “Loud Love” joined by Lzzy Hale (Halestorm) leading on vocals, Alex Skolnick (Testament / Metal Allegiance) on guitars and drum performance by Dave Krusen (Pearl Jam). King Ultramega are raising funds and awareness for MusiCares, the Recording Academy’s nonprofit that provides mental health services, addiction recovery support, and emergency assistance to members of the music community.
“Loud Love” appears on Soundgarden’s 1989 full length Louder Than Love and remains a fan favorite that showcases Chris Cornell’s incredible range. Wanting to honor Cornell and the iconic track, and evoke the spirit of this era, Mark Menghi’s process for this release saw him take an old school approach in order to achieve the analogue warmth of the original recording.
On the new release, Lzzy Hale shares: “If there was ever a time to be spreading a message of LOUD LOVE, It’s now.”
Produced by Mark Menghi, “Loud Love” was mixed and mastered by Josh Wilbur. The cover artwork design is by Mark Menghi and the accompanying video is by Tom Flynn.
Lzzy Hale comments on her approach for tackling vocal duties on “Loud Love”, “I don’t think I’ve ever been a good imitator, but I did try to put myself in Chris’ shoes. It’s more about placing yourself inside the song so you can steal its soul. I like to imagine I am the writer and then go about making it my own whilst honoring the original.”
On drawing inspiration from Chris, Hale continues, “I feel like I’m always learning something from Chris. Every few years I’ll discover something deeper in his lyrics, or higher in his range. But there is an authenticity that comes with Chris that can’t be taught or trained for. I believe every word he writes. I’m inspired by his control over his animalistic vocal range, and his poetry, but also how honestly he sings.”
Alex Skolnick explains his process on preserving Kim Thayil’s guitar style, “Kim’s playing has a strong sense of groove as well as a rawness and honesty that was especially refreshing when this song first came out (a time of much overproduction & perfection in hard rock). I tried to strike a good balance between referencing and respecting Kim‘s original parts, while also bringing some of my own flavor and ideas, without getting in the way.”
Skolnick reveals what it was like working with Menghi outside of Metal Allegiance: “For the most part, Mark and I have recorded originals in Metal Allegiance, songs that started with a blank page. This time we had a solid road map. In the past, once we had drum tracks, it didn’t matter which of us followed up or whether we tracked separately or simultaneously. This time, we were very dependent on capturing a live performance together in the studio, which was a fun challenge. This tune seemed to require the bass and guitar being locked in while going to tape, I think it’s probably true of most of the Soundgarden catalogue.”
Mark Menghi discusses his choice of line-up for “Loud Love“: “I knew I wanted Dave to play drums on this tune from the jump. Who better than the dude that played drums on arguably one of the greatest records of all-time and whom also helped lay the groundwork for the Seattle explosion in the late 80’s/early 90’s? I was already in the studio with my Metal Allegiance bro Alex Skolnick putting this finishing touches on a then new Metal Allegiance tune (which turned out to be Black Horizon) when I asked ‘Hey would you wanna play on this King Ultramega track?’ I just off-the-cuff asked him… what makes it better is I said, “see that old school tape machine over there in the corner? We are going to record our parts together, live, at the same time, the old school way on reel-to-reel!'”
He continues, “The last piece of the ‘Loud Love’ puzzle was the amazing Lzzy Hale. Having her complete the lineup for this tune is truly humbling. If you listen to the OG version of ‘Loud Love’, Chris’ vocals are just absolute insanity and who better than Lzzy to tackle this? Lzzy has complete vocal dominance, carries such a strong presence and quite frankly is one of the best vocalists in modern rock today.”
A key component of this cover is the analogue production. On taking this creative decision Menghi explains, “It was very important to me to keep this particular song as old school as possible. I wanted to catch the warmth, vibe and feel of the original track which meant (to me) recording to tape, in the same room together and live. Imagine that? A world where you record with other humans in the same room and in analog no less! Reel-to-reel tape recording is a lost art form and was very excited to go back to the recording days of the past for this track. Alex and I are no strangers in recording together; but this was the first time we have ever recorded live together, with real amps blasting and the tape machine running. Truly was a special feel, to capture that live energy.”
Dave Krusen of Pearl Jam, who was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2017, opens up about revisiting this classic Soundgarden track. “Seattle was a very turbulent place in the late 80s / early 90s and I think the best thing to come out of it was all the great music. I was a huge Soundgarden fan. I got to meet Chris and Matt when we (Pearl Jam) were working on 10 and they were working on Temple Of the Dog. It was a huge thrill for me. The fact that I was asked to be a part of this King Ultramega record was a huge honor. I was very intimidated to try and tackle the drum parts in ‘Loud Love’, but the guys I was recording with made it no pressure and a lot of fun.”
Krusen shares a personal memory of Chris, “I’ll never forget in 1993 backstage at a Pearl Jam show, Chris came up and said ‘Hey Dave, it’s Chris. Do you remember me?’ every time I talked to him, he was always such a sweet guy to me. I miss him and his music. Plus Matt has always been so gracious and cool to me, letting me share his drum throne, was also a huge honor.”
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