Kim Thayil

Verified Timeline

Lore & Background

Thayil started writing lyrics at 12 years old. In 1977, he formed his first band in Chicago, Bozo and the Pinheads, a punk rock band that played original songs written by Thayil and covers of Sex Pistols, Devo, and Ramones. Their first gig was at a school talent show for an audience of about 500 people. He played guitar in a post-punk band called Identity Crisis in 1980 and released a 7-inch EP called Pretty Feet. Thayil met Hiro Yamamoto at Rich East High School in Park Forest, and they graduated from the Active Learning Process School (ALPS) at Rich East High School in 1979. He and Yamamoto moved to Olympia, Washington, to study at The Evergreen State College, but unable to find jobs, they moved to Seattle. There, Thayil was a DJ for KCMU and earned a degree in philosophy at the University of Washington. In Seattle they met Chris Cornell, a roommate, and the three formed Soundgarden in 1984.

In Their Own Story

Soundgarden became the first of Seattle's grunge bands to sign with a major label (A&M Records). They released five albums, including three which went platinum at least once, and won two Grammys. In 1994, Thayil commented, 'I think Soundgarden is a pretty good band and I'm a fine guitarist. I'm not God, but I'm certainly not average. I feel very comfortable with the fact that not many other people can do what I do on guitar. I think my guitar is happy with the way I play it.' Originally one of Soundgarden's main songwriters, Thayil's contributions as a writer eventually dwindled to just one song on Down on the Upside, 'Never the Machine Forever', though he contributed to details in every song. He explained that 'Collaboration was paramount in our early music, especially right at the beginning when it was me on guitar, Hiro on bass and Chris on drums', but eventually all four members became songwriters. He cowrote many songs including 'Hunted Down', 'Flower', 'Hands All Over', 'Jesus Christ Pose', 'Room a Thousand Years Wide', and 'My Wave'.

Reader's Guide

After Soundgarden's 1997 breakup, Thayil contributed guitar to work by Pigeonhed and Presidents of the United States of America. He contributed guitar to the track 'Blood Swamp' from the 2006 Sunn O)))/Boris album Altar, for which he also wrote liner notes. He plays lead guitar on a track called 'V.O.G.' by Ascend, released in 2008. In 1999, Thayil formed a punk band, the No WTO Combo, with Jello Biafra, Krist Novoselic, and Gina Mainwal. The band was formed to protest the WTO Ministerial Conference of 1999. Police prevented the band from playing on November 30, 1999, forcing the show to be rescheduled. The show was recorded and released as Live from the Battle in Seattle in May 2000. In 2004, Thayil played guitar for Probot, Dave Grohl's heavy metal side-project, on the songs 'Ice Cold Man' and 'Sweet Dreams'. In 2009, Thayil played with Soundgarden's Matt Cameron and Ben Shepherd at a show in Seattle on March 24, 2009, at the Crocodile Cafe, the first time the three had played together in public since the band's 1997 breakup. They were joined by Tad Doyle and performed three Soundgarden songs. Soundgarden reunited in 2010, releasing Telephantasm in September 2010 and King Animal in November 2012. After Chris Cornell's death on May 18, 2017, the band disbanded again in 2018, with the exception of a one-off tribute show in January 2019. In 2021, Thayil formed the group 3rd Secret with Matt Cameron, Krist Novoselic, Bubba Dupree, Jennifer Johnson, and Jillian Raye. Their self-titled debut album was released in April 2022. In 2025, Thayil was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a member of Soundgarden. In June 2026, Thayil published his autobiography entitled A Screaming Life: Into the Superunknown With Soundgarden and Beyond, co-authored with Seattle writer Adem Tepedelen.

Did You Know?

• Thayil was a DJ for KCMU and earned a degree in philosophy at the University of Washington.
• He formed his first band, Bozo and the Pinheads, in Chicago in 1977, playing punk covers of Sex Pistols, Devo, and Ramones.
• Thayil played guitar for Probot, Dave Grohl's heavy metal side-project, on the songs 'Ice Cold Man' and 'Sweet Dreams'.
• In 1999, Thayil formed the No WTO Combo with Jello Biafra and Krist Novoselic to protest the WTO Ministerial Conference.
• Thayil published his autobiography A Screaming Life: Into the Superunknown With Soundgarden and Beyond in June 2026.