Devil Music A-Z: Alice in Chains

Then


Now


Grunge. I hate that word. It means nothing other then to somehow be relateable to the heroin fueled scene that was Seattle in the late 80's to early 90's. Alice in Chains were not a grunge band by the media's definition but a metal band with depressive overtones. Early on I had a hard time getting into these guys because as I've stated before I wasn't as open to things as I am now. They didn't fall into any real genre and every song was different so it was hard for me to really "get it". Not to mention the tracks where Layne Staley sung in this droning monotone was a bit aggravating.

I loved the album Dirt though. It was probably the catchiest of all of AIC's albums. I did pick up the self titled 3rd album though but didn't give it to many spins because it was too depressive and I was in a upturn in life at the time. Unbeknownst to me this was going to be the end of AIC for a long time due to Layne Staley's increased drug use and eventual death. I went back and checked out the cd's I had missed out on after his death and is frequently the case I realized what I missed out on. What a great original band.

Fast forward to last year and Jerry Cantrell decides to make a comeback with a new singer and what a pleasant surprise Black Gives Way to Blue is. It's an AIC album but updated.So many times bands try and make a comeback with a new lineup in hopes that they will receive some sort of success and it fails but not this time.It probably helps that this time around they're not lumped in with the likes of Pearl Jam and Soundgarden.You know....that whole grunge scene.