Long before there was such a thing known as "grunge," Soundgarden were playing chaotic, thunderously heavy rock and it just so happened that by the '90s the music world caught up to them. These grunge pioneers were not ones to follow a trend, though a musical trend did help to propel their career. But Soundgarden have always done things on their own terms, surprising many when they called it quits after supporting their 1996 album and equally surprising many more when they announced plans to return a decade-and-a-half later.

During their career, their output has been fairly minimal, but what Soundgarden did put out has been quality, making for some tough decisions when it comes to ranking their albums. Where do you place albums like Ultramega OK and Louder Than Love, discs that were ahead of the curve musically and paved the path to future commercial success? What do you do with an album like King Animal that picked up where the legacy left off? And what of the impressive three album stretch of Badmotorfinger, Superunknown and Down on the Upside that took them to new commercial heights?

Take a look at our rankings of Soundgarden's studio albums in the gallery below and see if you agree.

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