chris cornell: euphoria morning

If albums are supposed to sound like their covers look, then Soundgarden's Su-perunknown is the desperate scream of a creep, his tainted soul casually tossed into a mysterious abyss. On the other hand, Chris Cornell's Euphoria Morning is the meditation of a sullen rocker, his anger and sorrow partially subdued by deep thought. Here, Cornell puts the Ralph Nader on with some truth in advertising.

On Cornell's first album since Soundgarden's 1997 break-up, remnants of his former band's sound surface but are somewhat difficult to locate. With help from longtime pals from the band Eleven—keyboardist Natasha Shneider and guitarist Alain Johannes—Cornell has stripped away the visceral wham and much of Soundgarden's characteristic thickness without sacrificing the emotion. Euphoria Morning features greater harmonic and melodic complexity amid fewer vocal roars, more subdued percussion, and less emphasis on rhythm.

The only obvious similarity between Euphoria Morning and Soundgarden's albums is in the lyrics. Cornell's new writing is very like his Soundgarden efforts—bleak, self-deprecating, depressed. But his lyrics affect a certain control and contemplation when sung over a lilting major-key melody, like that of "Preaching the End of the World," a lovely tune with brief sections of background buzzing that evoke Radiohead's "Lucky." This equilibrium between raging lyrics and light melodies occurs in several other songs as well, tempering Cornell's anger with gentler tunes.

The real line, though, is that Cornell demonstrates a refreshing versatility that was much less noticeable in his writing for Soundgarden. "Follow My Way" is a five-minute epic that soars with some of the most interesting chord changes on the album. With "When I'm Down," Cornell actually goes gospel, and not unsuccessfully. Other songs, such as "Mission," with its punchy, half-enraged howls, recall Cornell's former band more obviously. The singer's newfound flexibility keeps Euphoria Morning fresh throughout, a feat never fully accomplished on any Soundgarden album. And its cover tells you all you need to know, to boot. (A&M)

—John Chin

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