Alice in Chains were grunge's darkest band. Jerry Cantrell's sludgy riffs and Layne Staley's haunted harmonies created a sound closer to Black Sabbath than to the Pixies. The vocal interplay between Staley and Cantrell was their most distinctive feature: two voices that blended into an eerie, almost spectral third voice.
Dirt is their definitive statement, an album about addiction so unflinching it's almost painful to listen to. Staley's increasing withdrawal and eventual death from an overdose in 2002 cast a long shadow.
Key Albums
Addiction as subject matter, played with crushing heaviness and haunting beauty.
'Man in the Box' broke them out of Seattle before grunge had a name.
An acoustic EP that debuted at number one. Delicate and devastating.
Why They Matter
Alice in Chains brought genuine heaviness to grunge and proved that darkness and vulnerability could coexist with mainstream appeal.