Kim Anand Thayil (born September 4, 1960) is an American musician best known as the lead guitarist of the Seattle-based rock band Soundgarden, which he co-founded with singer Chris Cornell and bassist Hiro Yamamoto in 1984. Cornell and Thayil remained as the original members of the band until Cornell's death in 2017, and the band's subsequent split in 2018. Thayil was named the 100th greatest guitarist of all time by Rolling Stone in 2010, and the 67th greatest guitarist of all time by SPIN in 2012. Thayil has won two Grammy Awards as a member of Soundgarden. Biography Childhood and early life Born in Seattle in 1960, Thayil grew up in the Chicago suburb of Park Forest. His parents came from the state of Kerala in India to Seattle. His mother Shanti Thayil was a music teacher who studied to be a concert pianist at the Royal Academy of Music. His father Boniface Thayil earned a degree in chemical engineering, received employment in Chicago and moved there with his family. Thayil started writing lyrics at 12 years old. In 1977, he formed his first band in Chicago, Bozo And The Pinheads, a punk rock band. They did both original songs (written by Thayil and inspired by his punk music tastes) and cover tunes (mostly the Sex Pistols, Devo and the Ramones). Their first gig was at a school talent show for an audience of about 500 people. He played guitar in a post-punk band called Identity Crisis in 1980, and released a 7" inch EP called "Pretty Feet". Thayil met Hiro Yamamoto at Rich East High School in Park Forest. He graduated, along with Hiro Yamamoto, from the Active Learning Process School (ALPS) at Rich East High School in 1979, the same school Bruce Pavitt graduated from 2 years earlier, in 1977. He and Yamamoto decided to move to Olympia, Washington, to study at The Evergreen State College, but they were unable to find jobs and decided to move to Seattle. There, Thayil earned money as a DJ for KCMU and earned a degree in philosophy at the University of Washington. In Seattle they also met Chris Cornell, a roommate, and the three formed Soundgarden in 1984. Soundgarden (1984–1997) Soundgarden became the first of Seattle's grunge bands to sign with a major label (A&M Records). They went on to release five albums, including three which went platinum at least once,