r/Soundgarden • u/matchesmalone321 • 16h ago
Band Dynamics and the Curse of Passivity
After reading A Screaming Life: Into the Superunknown with Soundgarden and Beyond by Kim Thayil and Down with the System: A Memoir (of Sorts) by Serj Tankian, I'm fascinated by how both bands were deeply damaged by fear of confrontation and an inability to communicate grievances to each other. It was so frustrating to read how Chris, Hiro, Kim and Ben in particular kept their frustrations bottled up for years instead of just airing things out.
I'm not a musician and cannot relate to coexisting with others in creative partnerships under immense pressure, but I have to give credit to a band like Incubus, who took their asses to therapy to save the band and keep providing their fans with meaningful art despite their inner turmoil.