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It seems the burdens of stardom weigh lightly on Chris Cornell. The impending September 21 release of his debut solo album, "Euphoria Morning," finds the former Soundgarden frontman a bit less than anxious. As he sees it, his job is to "make music that inspires me. Whether what I do is accepted or not, I have no control over, so I don't worry about it."Be that as it may, few recent solo releases have been as anticipated as Cornell's. But that's not surprising, really; few bands in recent memory have commanded as loyal a following as Soundgarden. Once-synonymous with "grunge," the Seattle quartet broke through in a big way, after years of increasing popularity, with 1994's triple-platinum "Superunknown." But Soundgarden was hardly another plodding neo-metal band from the Northwest. The band's tight-knit rhythm section of Ben Shepherd and Matt Cameron perfectly matched the double-barreled attack of Kim Thayil's guitar and Cornell's voice. Cornell's singing style -- a deep, jaded groan that in a heartbeat could rise to a primal screech -- was crazed white-boy blues by way of the Ramones. But by 1997, after the release of the emotionally raw and musically ambitious "Down on the Upside," the band was history. Cornell contributed to the occasional soundtrack ("Singles," "Great Expectations") and slowly geared up for "Euphoria Morning." By all accounts, it was worth the wait. Eclectic, moody, and more introspective than his previous work, the new album was recorded in L.A. at the home studio of Eleven's Alain Johannes, who, along with bandmate Natasha Shneider, helped produce the record and played on all the tracks. Cornell recently sat down with MTV News' Chris Connelly and yammered about his rock star past, his solo present, and his uncertain, but seemingly rosy, future. Listen up.
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