When I got “Black Gives Way to Blue,” Alice in Chains’ first album in 14 years, I was hesitant to listen to it. After the death of lead vocalist Layne Staley in 2002, many fans were shocked to hear he had been replaced. After all, Staley’s idiosyncratic, snarling vocals and tumultuous private life were in many ways key to AIC’s success.
With Staley, AIC only recorded three studio albums, yet still produced 21 top-40 singles. Its 1992 album “Dirt” went quadruple platinum and was one of the founding works of grunge, holding its own alongside other genre classics like Nirvana’s “Nevermind” and Pearl Jam’s “Ten.”
AIC’s last record was a 1996 “MTV Unplugged” release. It featured a ghostly Staley on the mike, hinting at years of heavy drug abuse and showing just how true to his life his lyrics were. It was his emotional openness that pushed AIC to the forefront from the beginning, and, perhaps inevitably, it couldn’t be sustained: Staley had a fatal heroin and cocaine overdose in 2002.
Three years later, the hiring of singer William DuVall sent fans into overdrive: Could he possibly hope to fill Staley’s shoes? During the recording of the new album, the band frequently posted videos on its Myspace page, promising the “authentic” AIC sound with songs that would be “like a horseshoe to the brain.” Would it live up to such claims?
Immediately, the grungy opening riff to “All Secrets Known,” followed by drummer Sean Kinney’s chops, undoubtedly heralds AIC’s return. Guitarist Jerry Cantrell, perhaps the most overlooked rock vocalist in history, solemnly delivers the first words AIC has recorded in over a decade: “Hope / A new beginning.” And indeed it is.
The highly anticipated new album is undoubtedly one of the best of 2009. It flows effortlessly from sparse, acoustic songs like “When the Sun Rose Again” to hard, melodic rockers like “A Looking in View” without ever losing the integrity of the signature AIC sound.
In an interview for FMQB Productions, James Hetfield and Lars Ulrich of Metallica asked AIC about the title song. "It's facing up to… all the good and all the bad and moving forward together,” Cantrell said, “It speaks to [the fact that] things were pretty black for us. It's pretty literal, and things are starting to get a little lighter."
The title song is a tribute to Layne Staley and features Elton John on piano. That may sound like an unlikely collaboration, but John is actually the musician who inspired Cantrell to start playing music in the first place. With its haunting melody and heartfelt lyrics, the track is arguably the most arresting song yet recorded by AIC.
DuVall comes in with lead vocals on track three, the sludgy “Last of My Kind,” which showcases his uniquely angsty style. The pounding chorus will definitely have you singing before it’s over. Songs like “Your Decision” and “Lesson Learned” are filled with the poignant two-singer harmonization vital to the AIC sound, proving that the DuVall-Cantrell combo works well.
The band shows its lighter side in a few tracks. “Check My Brain”, a song about the irony of coming from the grunge capital Seattle and ending up in Los Angeles, has a seasick groove to which you can’t help but bob your head. The acoustic “When the Sun Rose Again,” meanwhile, has Indian tablas as the only percussion, giving it an almost tribal feel.
It’s great to hear the band’s token grunge, metal, and acoustic sound still intact despite tragedy and such a long period of inactivity. The lyrics and passionate singing hint at the darkness of loss but also at a glimmer of hope for the band’s future. Though the album is not as groundbreaking as “Dirt,” AIC still sounds like music means the world to it.
PROS: This is indeed the true Alice In Chains. The songs are amazing, and you will be singing and thinking of them long after listening to the album.
CONS: AIC continues to be heartfelt in its songwriting, but bleakness has remained the overtone of their music. I wonder if the band will ever grow out of its depression.
Rating: 5/5
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