Tectonic Theater Project
On 6 October 1998 Matthew Shepard was beaten and left to die tied to a fence in the outskirts of Laramie, Wyoming. He died 6 days later. His torture and murder became a watershed historical moment in America that highlighted many of the fault lines in our culture.
A month after the murder the members of Tectonic Theater Project traveled to Laramie and conducted interviews with the people of the town. From these interviews they wrote the play "The Laramie Project". The piece has been seen by more than 30 million people around the country.
Ben Shepherd
The group released the compilation album "Telephantasm" in September 2010, followed by "King Animal" in November 2012, their first studio album since 1996. Shepherd's contributions included two songs which he had written years before and recorded in the eventually stolen demos, "Taree" and "Attrition", and two collaborations with Cornell, "Been Away Too Long" and "Rowing".
The band continued to tour frequently, arranging time around Matt Cameron's schedule in Pearl Jam, and Chris Cornell's acoustic tours. In 2014 the band released a reissue of their 1994 album "Superunknown" as part of its twentieth anniversary and has toured with drummer Matt Chamberlain filling in for Cameron. On May 17, 2017, Chris Cornell was found dead in his hotel room, cancelling the rest of their tour.