Alice in Chains, also known as the band’s self-titled album, was released Oct. 31st, 1995. This album has been double certified by the RIAA and has sold over three million copies. This would also be the last studio album that Alice in Chains would record with Layne Stanley.
The band is a traditional four-piece band from Seattle, Wash., that formed in 1987. They started as a glam band but later turned into a grunge band during the Seattle grunge movement that overthrew music in the 90s. But this band had more of a sludgelike metal sound to inspire it, unlike other grunge bands at this time. Layne Staley, the lead vocalist for the band, is the everlasting voice of grunge. Many people think of his voice as something that will never be replicated again, with the heartwrenching performances to the notes he could hold forever. Some music that inspired him was Black Sabbath, Deep Purple, Van Halen, and Twisted Sister, and this music definitely influenced the sound of the band. He would be born on the 22nd of August in 1967 and die on the 5th of April 2002 in his apartment after a drug overdose from a mix of heroin and cocaine. Jerry Cantrell is the lead guitarist and backup vocalist for the band. He fit this band as a jack of all trades; he would write heavy metal-like riffs, amazing acoustic melodies, beautiful backup vocals with Layne, and would write most of the songs for the band. Cantrell’s sound is so unique and special, with the Wha pedal to make his guitar sing to the blues and rock/metal sound that he has acquired. To this day, at the age of 59, he is still touring, doing his solo stuff and Alice In Chains with the same passion and dedication to music he has always had. He has to be one of my top five favorite guitarists for so many reasons. Mike Inez is the former bassist for Ozzy Osbourne and fit the band’s sound very well. Overall, both of the bassists have awesome tones, bass lines, and sound perfect for the band. Sean Kinney, the drummer of Alice in Chains, first played the instrument at just the age of five, and at 9, he played for his grandfather’s band. Sean had an amazing groove that was perfectly fitting for the band. After Layne died in 2002, the band would perform again in 2005, and to this day, the band is still touring with all original members except Layne, who was replaced by William DuVall. Nobody will ever be able to replicate Layne’s voice, but William does a very good job in the band.
The self-titled album would be the perfect way to send off Alice in Chains, with Staley at least. Released October 31st of 1995, the album would have 12 different songs with multiple sounds, which Alice in Chains is known for. The album has some very dark sounding sludge influenced songs, some acoustic songs with a sad sound to them, and some of the high energy rock/grunge sound like from the early days of Facelift and Dirt. This album reflects on all of the ways I think of Alice in Chains, the sad acoustic songs, sludge-influenced songs, and their old sound from the first albums. The album cover is a photo of a three-legged dog that the drummer would see delivering papers growing up. A professional photographer would take the photo, but the band decided to fax the picture for a more grainy look. The first track on the album is Grind with the sludge metal sound thats super eerie and dark sounding. All the instruments give the song a very eerie sound, but especially the guitar with a heavy riff and what sounds like a few bends. And especially the lead parts are very slow, but fit well in the song. The drums and bass complement the guitar well, with the drums being very repetitive, but it works well anyway, with the guitar and lyrics taking up most of the attention in the song. The lyrics are all based on the rumors that were spreading throughout the media about Stanley’s death from drug abuse, which was not true. The media thought this because the band hadn’t done anything in a while, and Staley’s drug addiction was becoming more obvious. So this first song would prove the rumors at this time wrong. Sludge Factory has even more of the sludge metal influence and is even more eerie than grind. This is the third track on the album, and personally, I think it’s one of the best off the album. The whole band made this song extremely eerie-sounding with each instrument. The guitar had a heavy but very slow riff and very eerie lead parts; the drums and bass were also just slow, heavy, and fit perfectly all together in the mix. But the vocals had a unique sound with effects like layering vocals, pitch shifting, a little bit of distortion, and certain microphone choices. The lyrics, in my opinion, were focused on the music industry, drug addiction, and his father, from what I have noticed. Head Creeps, the fifth track on the album, has a little bit more of the rock sound from the early days of the band. All the instruments are playing at a fairly fast tempo, but the vocals stand out especially at the beginning with more of an unclear sound and then clearing up a little more later in the song. This song is definitely Staley expressing how he feels about the media and everything they were saying and supposing about him at the time. Again is the sixth track, and it was released as a single before the album was released. This song has a perfect mix of a sludge metal sound with their rock sound, with some parts being slower chugs and others with a sped-up tempo, with the other riff. And the very last song on the album is over now, I like this song because it was written with emotion and had a strong meaning behind it. It’s one of Alice in Chains‘ acoustic songs, with some electric guitar for another layer of rhythm and lead. The song sounds fairly upbeat, other than the vocals, of course. Jerry Cantrell, the guitarist, would write and sing this song while Staley would join in here and there to synchronize vocals with Cantrell. He would write this song about the band breaking up, taking everything both he and the band experienced and make a song out of it. And to help him with this tragedy that was bound to happen, this song would be created. As Cantrell noticed the band’s tension increasing and disagreements becoming more common, he knew it was just a matter of time. Thats why Cantrell is one of my favorite guitarists, he has amazing guitar skills, and can take anything happening in his life and right an emotional, meaningful song about it. Over Now was the perfect song to end off the album, and Cantrell couldn’t have done better making the song.
I think this is the most underrated album Alice in Chains released because there are so many good songs with different meanings and the different sounds/tones the band is well known for. It is also important to me because it’s the last Alice in Chains studio album Layne Staley was on before his death. This album has music for a little bit of everyone with rock, metal, and acoustic songs. Definitely check out this album, surely there will be a song you will like.
