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Most live records don’t capture the primal, poetic power that Soundgarden’s Live on I5 does.
In fact, most studio records don’t either, but that’s another story. Recorded over various dates during the west coast leg of Soundgarden’s 1996 tour, Live on I5 is the legendary band’s very first proper live release, and it stands alongside their classic albums Louder Than Love, Badmotorfinger, superunknown, and Down on the Upside proudly. There’s an urgency to the recording, and you can practically hear guitar god Kim Thayil picking the meandering riff during opener, “Spoonman.” An older gem, “Searching with my Good Eye Closed,” builds with a rhythmic darkness from drummer Matt Cameron’s polyrhythmic pummeling and Ben Shepherd’s brooding bass lines. At the heart of the sonic maelstrom, Chris Cornell bleeds every inch of his soul into each into each note of “Let Me Drown” and the psychedelically invasive Superunknown standout “Head Down.” There’s a paranoid sensitivity pulsating through these live renditions that takes hold of the record and doesn’t let go—just like everything the band’s done. –AD
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Dead Kennedys, Give Me Convenience Or Give Me Death
Defeater, Empty Days & Sleepless Nights
Yeallowcard, When You’re Through Thinking Say Yes