SOUNDGARDEN releases its first album in 16 years, titled "King Animal", on Tuesday (November 13). The disc is the first collection of all-new studio material since 1996's "Down On The Upside" and the first fresh recordings by the legendary Seattle grunge act since they reunited in 2010. Drummer Matt Cameron told The Pulse Of Radio that the band deliberately stayed away from anything that would put pressure on the group — like a record label — and just had fun recording. "You know, it was kind of cool just to go in there and just record for ourselves, basically," he said. "We knew that our fans would like it, and we just wanted to try to make a record that would stand up with the rest of our catalog. I think the only pressure we put was on ourselves, or from ourselves, and yeah, it was kind of nice, like, not having that added pressure of any kind of label interference."

In a review posted on Monday (November 12), Loudwire said that "King Animal" "settles in nicely, picking up right where the band left off so many years ago and taking care of a lot of unfinished business."

The review added that the disc "offers up an eclectic mix of visual imagery, thought provoking prose, all set to a timeless soundscape of flourishing rock with a reminiscent feel."

Earlier this week the band unveiled the details of a winter 2013 North American tour that will kick off on January 18 in Washington DC and feature a number of two-night stops in cities like New York, Toronto, Chicago, San Francisco, Los Angeles and the group's hometown of Seattle.

SOUNDGARDEN will also play three "intimate" North American shows this month to celebrate the release of "King Animal", in New York City on Tuesday, in Toronto on November 16 and in Los Angeles on November 27.

The band also performed on Monday night (November 12) on CBS-TV's "Late Show With David Letterman", with a longer performance on his "Live From Letterman" webcast.