Hiro Yamamoto
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| Hiro Yamamoto | |
|---|---|
| Birth name | Hiro Yamamoto |
| Born | April 17, 1961 |
| Origin | Seattle, Washington, United States |
| Genre(s) | Grunge, alternative metal, |
| Occupation(s) | songwriter, bassist |
| Instrument(s) | bass |
| Years active | 1984–present |
| Label(s) | Sub Pop, A&M, SST |
| Associated acts | Soundgarden Truly |
Hiro Yamamoto (ヒロ・ヤマモト?) (born April 13, 1961 [1]) is a bassist who was a founding member of grunge band Soundgarden, along with Kim Thayil and Chris Cornell. In 1989, he left the band; in 1991, he joined the independent rock band Truly.
[edit] Soundgarden
Yamamoto was a founding member of Soundgarden as its original bassist. He appears with the lineup of Cornell, Thayil, and drummer Scott Sundquist on the Deep Six compilation, and with the lineup of Cornell, Thayil, and drummer Matt Cameron on the EPs Screaming Life, Fopp, and Loudest Love, as well as on the albums Ultramega OK and Louder Than Love. In 1989, he left the band to finish his Master's degree in Physical Chemistry at Western Washington University. His last gig with the band was in the Melkweg in Amsterdam, after which they got into an argument and Yamamoto subsequently left. He was replaced on the bass by Jason Everman, formerly of Nirvana, for a brief period of time after which Ben Shepherd was tapped as the permanent replacement.
Like Cornell, Thayil, Cameron, and Shepherd, Yamamoto was active in songwriting for Soundgarden. While a member of Soundgarden, he wrote the following songs for the band:
- "Tears To Forget" (Screaming Life) ... music (co-written)
- "Kingdom of Come" (Fopp) ... credited to Soundgarden
- "All Your Lies" (Ultramega OK) ... music (co-written)
- "665" (Ultramega OK) ... music
- "667" (Ultramega OK) ... music
- "Circle of Power" (Ultramega OK) ... lyrics
- "Nazi Driver" (Ultramega OK) ... music
- "Power Trip" (Louder Than Love) ... music
- "I Awake" (Louder Than Love) ... music
- "No Wrong No Right" (Louder Than Love) ... music
- "Heretic" (Loudest Love) ... lyrics
[edit] Truly
In 1991, Yamamoto formed a three-piece indie band, Truly, with a sound not entirely unlike that of Soundgarden; the other members were former Screaming Trees drummer Mark Pickerel and singer Robert Roth. They released two studio albums and a compilation of unreleased material before breaking up in 2000.
[edit] Trivia
- "Circle of Power" is notable as the only Soundgarden song on which Yamamoto, not Cornell, was the lead vocalist.
- The lyrics of the Soundgarden song "I Awake" were originally part of a note by Yamamoto's then-girlfriend Kate McDonald.
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