‘It Was a Struggle’: Soundgarden Producer Reveals the Album He Was Sure He Would Get Fired Over
· Vice
Producer Michael Beinhorn has a lengthy and impressive resume, star-studded with the likes of David Byrne, Brian Eno, Hole, Ozzy Osbourne, Korn, and many more. But there was one album that gave him so much trouble he almost feared for his job.
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Around December 2025, Beinhorn participated in an Ask Me Anything session on the grunge subreddit. There, he took questions from fans about his work, creative process, collaborations, and anything else in between. But many questions and praises centered around Soundgarden’s 1994 album Superunknown. This album process, according to Beinhorn, caused seemingly endless grief for everyone involved.
“It was… quite an experience,” Beinhorn recalled when asked about the process. “One of the most difficult recording sessions I’ve ever done. The band and I didn’t see eye to eye on the overall approach, so there was a lot of tension throughout. In a way, I’m surprised they didn’t fire me early on!”
Producer Michael Beinhorn Recalls Frustrating Work on Soundgarden’s 1994 Album ‘Superunknown’
“It was a struggle,” Beinhorn continued. “The main issue was how I was producing the record, in terms of getting instrument sounds, etc. I think they were expecting a relatively quick recording and all of a sudden here’s this guy they barely know, spending a week hunting for a drum sound.”
He added, “They got pretty surly about it—especially Matt [Cameron]. I understood their irritation, but from my point of view, they’d hired me to do a job for them, and that’s how I was going to do it. I knew this was an important record for them—and for me too, and if we just slacked in any way, it would reflect in the end result, and I wasn’t going to let that happen. If they were going to fire me for doing my job, I reasoned, it would be my tough s***.”
Beinhorn also mentioned that if he were producing that album today, he would approach it in the same way. “In hindsight, I wouldn’t have done a single thing differently,” he admitted. However, when asked whether he thought a band like Soundgarden could release an album today, he wasn’t sure if he had an answer.
“I don’t think I can answer this for a few reasons,” he began. “First, the way it sounds is inalienable from the personality of the record itself. I couldn’t imagine it sounding any different than it does.”
Additionally, he noted that the music industry has changed dramatically since Soundgarden was in its heyday. “It’s unlikely that anyone would be able to make a record like Superunknown now, given the state of the music industry,” he said. “Major labels don’t really invest in rock bands anymore.”
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