LISTEN: Soundgarden Releases First Single In 15 Years For 'The Avengers'

by UInterviewMarch 27, 2012, 12:00 amNews >

Not just anything could get iconic Grunge band Soundgarden to return to the studio after a 15 year hiatus, but Joss Whedon's highly anticipated upcoming flick, The Avengers, did the trick. Soundgarden frontman Chris Cornell penned the tune, "Live to Rise," which will be featured on The Avengers soundtrack and play during the end credits of the film, which stars Robert Downey Jr., Chris Evans, Mark Ruffalo, Chris Hemsworth, Scarlett Johansson, and Jeremy Renner as iconic Marvel Comics superheroes.

"We've been hard at work on our new album, which will come out this fall," Soundgarden said in a statement via Billboard. "When the opportunity arose to write an original song for Marvel's The Avengers film … we thought it could be a cool match. We are excited to release our new song 'Live to Rise,' which is also the only new song in the film."

Cornell reunited with other Soundgarden members Matt Cameron, Kim Thayil, and Ben Shepherd in 2010, and the band released a retrospective entitled Telephantasm soon after, featuring the song, "Black Rain." This was followed by the group's first live album, Live on the I-5. Soundgarden is slated to release a new studio album by the end of the year, reports USA Today.

Whedon's The Avengers hits theaters May 4. The movie's soundtrack compilation, Avengers Assemble, which also features beloved bands like Rise Against, Buckcherry, Bush, and Evanescence, drops on May 1.

Read the full track list for Avengers Assemble here:

1. "Live to Rise" – Soundgarden
2. "I'm Alive" – Shinedown
3. "Dirt and Roses" – Rise Against
4. "Even If I Could" – Papa Roach
5. "Unbroken" – Black Veil Brides
6. "Breath" – Scott Weiland
7. "Comeback" – Redlight King
8. "Into the Blue" – Bush
9. "A New Way to Bleed (Photek Remix)" – Evanescence
10. "Count Me Out" – PUSHERJONES
11. "Shoot to Thrill" – Theory of a Deadman
12. "Wherever I Go" – Buckcherry
13. "From Out of Nowhere" – Five Finger Death Punch
14. "Shake the Ground" – Cherri Bomb
Additional track on the international release:
15. "Pistols At Dawn" – Kasabian

Listen to "a taste" of "Live to Rise" here: