My Wave
"My Wave" is a song by the American rock band Soundgarden, featuring lyrics written by frontman Chris Cornell and music co-written by Cornell and guitarist Kim Thayil. Released in October 1994 as the fourth single from the band's fourth studio album, Superunknown, the track is notable for its complex 5/4 time signature, which drives its rolling, swelling rhythm, and for Cornell's spontaneous creation during rehearsals as one of the album's final compositions.[1][2] The song peaked at number 11 on the Billboard Mainstream Rock Tracks chart and number 18 on the Billboard Modern Rock Tracks chart, along with positions of number 50 in Australia, number 46 in New Zealand, and number 66 in Canada.[1] Its music video, co-directed by bassist Ben Shepherd's brother Henry Shepherd and Doug Pray, draws visual inspiration from surfing culture, aligning with lyrical nods to the 1979 Surf Punks song "My Beach," which influenced the refrain "keep it off my wave."[1][3] Musically, "My Wave" exemplifies Soundgarden's grunge-era innovation, with drummer Matt Cameron navigating the irregular meter through intricate grooves and Cornell delivering a raw, dynamic vocal performance that shifts from introspective verses to explosive choruses. The track's unorthodox guitar tuning—EEBBBB from low to high—further contributes to its heavy, dissonant tone, making it a fan favorite and a staple in the band's live sets, including a 2014 performance on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon.[2][4][5]Production
Background
Soundgarden transitioned to the major label A&M Records in 1988 after their debut album Ultramega OK on the independent Sub Pop label, a move that positioned the band for broader commercial exposure amid the burgeoning Seattle music scene.[6] By the time they prepared Superunknown, their fourth studio album and third for A&M, the band faced considerable pressure to deliver a breakthrough record that would solidify their status beyond regional fame, especially as grunge gained national prominence following the success of peers like Nirvana.[7] This expectation intensified the creative process, pushing Soundgarden to expand their sound while maintaining artistic integrity.[8] The recording sessions for Superunknown occurred from July to September 1993 at Bad Animals Studio in Seattle, where the band refined material under producer Michael Beinhorn.[9] "My Wave" was one of the final tracks composed for the album, emerging in 1993 during late-stage rehearsals. It began as a spontaneous jam session, with frontman Chris Cornell later recounting in a 2014 appearance on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon that the song "just kind of came out of nowhere" while the band was experimenting without a specific plan.[10] This impromptu origin reflected Soundgarden's collaborative songwriting approach, where riffs and ideas often crystallized in the moment, contributing to the album's diverse and innovative tracklist.[11]Composition
"My Wave" features lyrics written by Chris Cornell and music co-written by Cornell and guitarist Kim Thayil, reflecting Soundgarden's collaborative songwriting process where contributions are credited linearly based on sections like verses and choruses.[12][11] The track employs an unorthodox guitar tuning of E-E-B-B-B-B from low to high strings, which originated from a riff Cornell played during a rehearsal for another song and was adapted to create a heavy, resonant tone.[13] It maintains a predominant 5/4 time signature throughout much of its groove, an irregular meter for rock music that contributes to its propulsive yet disorienting feel, at a tempo of 127 beats per minute.[14][15] The song blends elements of alternative metal and grunge with influences from surf rock and psychedelia, evident in its riff-driven aggression and layered guitar textures that evoke a sense of territorial urgency.[16][17] Thayil's low-end guitar focus combines with Cornell's brighter tones, often doubled for density, while the rhythm section supports the odd-time pulse with driving bass and intricate drum patterns reminiscent of psychedelic experimentation, such as Beatles-inspired breaks.[12][16] Structurally, "My Wave" follows a verse-chorus form, opening with sparse verses that build tension through Cornell's vocal delivery before exploding into anthemic choruses, and it extends into prolonged instrumental sections toward the end, allowing the guitars to swell and fade in a hypnotic outro.[1] This arrangement, born from a spontaneous jam session riff, emphasizes dynamic shifts that highlight the band's ability to merge accessibility with complexity.[13] Lyrically, the song explores themes of personal space, irritation, and emotional boundaries, using surfing metaphors to convey a desire for autonomy amid intrusion, as in the repeated refrain "Don't come around here / Pissing on my gate / Save it, just keep it off my wave."[18] Cornell drew inspiration from the punk band Surf Punks' territorial chants in "My Beach," distilling the idea into a simple yet pointed expression of "live-and-let-live" frustration with overreach.[18]Release
Formats and track listing
"My Wave" was released on October 31, 1994, as the fourth single from Soundgarden's album Superunknown.[19] The single had limited commercial availability, primarily in Australia and broader Australasia via A&M Records and Polydor, with promotional versions distributed in the United States.[19] No widespread international retail single was issued, though additional promotional formats were produced for industry use.[19] The primary commercial format was a CD single housed in a card sleeve (catalogue number 580 849-2), alongside a cassette single (580 849-4).[20] In the US, promotional releases included a digipak CD (31458 8335 2) and a card sleeve CD promo (SOUND2).[19] The CD single track listing is as follows:| No. | Title | Version | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | "My Wave" | Album version | 5:12 |
| 2 | "Spoonman" | Steve Fisk remix | 6:55 |
| 3 | "Birth Ritual" | Demo | 5:50 |
| 4 | "My Wave" | Live at Fox Theatre | 4:34 |