The Soundgarden frontman is back in solo territory with his new single, “Nearly Forgot My Broken Heart.” Produced by Brendan O’Brien, this is the first song on Cornell’s forthcoming album, Higher Truth, and it’s paired with an excellent lyric video by Josh Graham.
On the first listen, this song’s arrangement reminded me of Cornell’s first solo album, 1999’s Euphoria Morning, which was remastered and reissued earlier this month as Euphoria Mourning. In this Kerrang! interview, Cornell discusses his solo career and new album. What’s most interesting to me is that “Nearly Forgot My Broken Heart” originally began as a country song! How interesting is that? I’m always fascinated by the way songs evolve from their early demos to the finished product.
When you came along, the time was right / Pulled me like an apple red and ripe / Wasn’t very long, you took a bite / And did me wrong, and it serves me right
These are the lyrics that stand out the most to me in the song. In music and storytelling, apples often symbolize good vs. evil or something desirable but forbidden. As it seems Higher Truth will explore the nature of the universe and deeper subject matter, I’m curious to see if similar metaphors and symbolism appear in other songs.
I’m very eager to hear the entire album. September 18th can’t arrive soon enough!
Between the Notes 