Black Hole Sun demo: Hear an unreleased version of Soundgarden's classic song. (Audio.)

Hear Soundgarden's Gritty Demo Version of "Black Hole Sun"

Hear Soundgarden's Gritty Demo Version of "Black Hole Sun"

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Slate's Culture Blog
April 16 2014 5:41 PM

Hear Soundgarden's Gritty Demo Version of "Black Hole Sun"

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Chris Cornell of Soundgarden performs in Brazil.

Photo by Buda Mendes/Getty Images

Soundgarden is celebrating the 20th anniversary of their breakthrough album Superunknown this year with a “Super Deluxe” reissue this summer. Included among the B-sides and other additional extras is a demo version of “Black Hole Sun” recorded by Chris Cornell in 1994, which the band has just shared.

We haven’t noticed a lot of variation here from the version you’re familiar with, though it is notably rougher and grittier-sounding than the final version. Have a listen and decide for yourself which one you prefer.

Aisha Harris is a Slate culture writer and host of the Slate podcast Represent.