Alice in Chains...Then and Now

One of the most influential bands that came out of the Seattle grunge scene was Alice in Chains. The band had more of a heavy metal influence than the other Seatlle bands that had more of a punk rock influence.

Alice and Chains was formed in 1987 when vocalist Layne Staley met guitarist and song writer Jerry Cantrell at a party. At the time, Cantrell was playing in a band called Diamond Lie and Cantrell soon invited Staley to join the band. Bassist Mike Starr and drummer Sean Kinney were the next to join the lineup.

The band began writing original material taking the name " Alice in Chains" which was derived from one of Staley's former bands named " Alice N' Chainz " though some sources claim that the name was derived from porn star " Allyson Chains "

 Alice in Chains was signed to Columbia Records in 1989 and they released their first EP " We Die Young " in July of 1990. Later in the same year, the band released their first full LP " Facelift " which spawned the unexpected hit single " Man in the Box "  The album went Gold by the end of the year after Alice in Chains went on tour opening for Van Halen and Iggy Pop.

 Alice in Chains next released the acoustic EP " Sap "  which featured guest guitarist Ann Wilson of Heart as well as Mark Arm of Mudhoney and Chris Cornell of Soundgarden. In 1992, one of their new songs " Would " appeared on te soundtrack for the movie " Singles "  Alice in Chains also appeared in the movie performing the songs " Would " and " It Ain't Like That "

The album " Dirt " was released in the fall of 1992 going Platinum by the end of the year. The album exemplified the bands heavy metal influence while still leaving room for Staley and Cantrell's unique vocal harmonies. However, the dark lyrics increased speculation the Staley was fighting an addiction to heroin.

During the Dirt tour, bassist Mike Starr left the band due to the grueling schedule. Starr was soon replaced by former Ozzy Osborne bassist Mike Inez. The band returned to the studio in 1993 where they recorded the songs " What the Hell Have I? " and " A Little Bitter " for the soundtrack of the film " Last Action Hero"  Alice in Chains joined the Lollapalooza tour during the summer of 1993 where they were well received, however this would be the last time the band would take on a major tour with Staley at the helm.

Alice in Chains released the EP " Jar of Flies " in January of 1994, which was a return to their more mellow acoustic arrangements. The band was scheduled to tour during the summer of 1994 with Metallica and Suicidal Tendencies , however they withdrew prior to the start of the tour further fueling the rumors of Staley's heroin addiction.

The band would stay off the road for the remainder of their run. Nonetheless, Staley performed a few shows with Gacy Bunch as well as Mike McCready of Pearl Jam and Barrett Martin of Screaming trees. They named the supergroup " Mad Season " and they released a single LP " Above "

In 1995, Alice in Chains returned to the studio where they recorded the self-titled album " Alice in Chains" which debuted at number one on the charts, however the band failed to support the album with a tour, sparking further discussion about Staley's heroin addiction. This would be the last album officially produced by Alice in Chains.

The band surfaced again in 1996 where they performed on MTV Unplugged, however Staley was obviously weak and his mind wasn't in the game. Cantrell found himself filling in many of the verses that Staley would normally sing. Later in the year, the band opened four shows on the KISS reunion tour, however their Kansas City show would be their last concert with Layne Staley as the lead vocalist.

Staley fell deeper into depression after his girlfriend died later in 1996. He then became a recluse, rarely leaving his Seattle condo.

On April of 20, 2002 , Staley was found dead in his Seattle condo from a lethal overdose of heroin and cocaine. The coroner approximated Staley's day of death as April 5 wich was the same approximate date of Kurt Cobain's death 8 years earlier. Cobain and Staley once shared a room in a rehabilitation center where both were in for cocain and heroin addiction.

Though Cantrell was shaken by the death of his longtime friend, he didn't give up. In 2005, Cantrell, Inez and Kinney reunited to perform a benifit concert for the victims of the Tsunami that struck south Asia.

The band has now added William Du Vall to sing lead vocals. It is reported that the band has been writing new material, though it is not known whether Du Vall is working on the material with the band. Alice in Chains has announced that they will be joining Velvet Revolver on tour later this summer. Looks like we haven't seen the last of Alice in Chains!

For those of you who aren't familiar with the music of the great band Alice in Chains, you can sample several of their most popular songs on their official website listed below.

http://www.aliceinchains.com/lyrics/default.aspx