Louder Than Love is the second studio album and major label debut by Soundgarden. It was released on September 5, 1989, by A&M Records. After touring in support of their debut album, Ultramega OK (1988), Soundgarden left SST, signed with A&M and began work on its first album for a major label. The songs on the album featured a metal leaning grunge sound with some songs featuring unusual or unorthodox time signatures.
Due to the nature of some of the lyrics (particularly Big Dumb Sex), a Parental Advisory sticker was placed on the album packaging. Louder Than Love would become the band’s first album to chart on the Billboard 200, peaking at No. 108. The band supported the album with tours of North America and Europe. It was the last Soundgarden album to feature the band’s original bassist, Hiro Yamamoto. It was later reissued on January 25, 2002. The album’s recording sessions took place from December 1988 to January 1989 at London Bridge Studios in Seattle, Washington. The band worked with producer Terry Date. The album was mixed by Steve Thompson and Michael Barbiero at both Mediasound, New York, and House of Music, West Orange, New Jersey.
Regarding the sessions, frontman Chris Cornell said:
“At the time Hiro (Yamamoto) had excommunicated himself from the band and there wasn’t a free flowing system as far as music went, so I ended up writing a lot of it.”
Cornell would end up solely writing seven out of the album’s twelve tracks. Cornell stated that there “was plenty of angst, anger, frustration and hell … but none of it had anything to do with Terry.
He was very supportive”. He said that the sessions as a whole were a “positive experience.” Bassist Hiro Yamamoto left the band once the sessions were over and went back to college, frustrated that he was not contributing much.
Regarding the album’s production, Cornell said that the band tried to avoid 1980s production techniques. On the album’s sound as a whole, Cornell stated that the album “was just a few degrees too produced and too clean, although I wouldn’t want to change any of it”.
Tracklist:
- Ugly Truth
- Hands All Over
- Gun
- Power Trip
- Get on the Snake
- Full on Kevin’s Mom
- Loud Love
- I Awake
- No Wrong No Right
- Uncovered
- Big Dumb Sex
- Full On (Reprise)
Soundgarden
Chris Cornell: lead vocals, rhythm guitar
Kim Thayil: lead guitar
Hiro Yamamoto: bass
Matt Cameron: drums
Production
Terry Date: production with Soundgarden, engineering
Nelson Ayres, Jack Endino, Stuart Hallerman: studio assistance
Michael Barbiero, Steve Thompson: mixing
Howie Weinberg: mastering
Art Chantry: design & art execution
Charles Peterson: photography (front cover)
Michael Lavine: photography (back cover)
Bruce Pavitt: Third Eye/front cover
Susan Silver: management
Chris Cornell (July 20, 1964 – May 18, 2017).
