Alice In Chains
Dirt

THE REVIEW

Alice In Chains are not just a simple grunge band, they are the best group of the '90s and "Dirt" represents their absolute masterpiece: a record that, as soon as you listen to it, conquers you and penetrates your veins with a virulence that "Nevermind" and "Ten" (and I'm talking about two albums that I really appreciate, especially the first one) can't even dream of. Thanks to the heavier metal attitude compared to other bands from the Seattle scene and especially the always intense, harsh, anguished, and emotional voice of the unforgettable Layne Staley.

It's precisely Layne's cry, accompanied by Jerry Cantrell's distorted guitar, that kicks off "Them Bones": fast, electrifying, and desperate: a worthy heir to "We Die Young". Equally beautiful and angry is "Dam That River", marked by a truly overwhelming refrain (Thanks, Layne) "Rain When I Die" is more psychedelic, distorted, and reverberated, an authentic gem with a spine-chilling chorus, which leads us to one of the most intense, poignant, and desperate ballads ever composed in the history of rock. "Down In A Hole" leaves you breathless for the perfect intertwining of Jerry's and Layne's voices, PURE POETRY. Just enough time to open your eyes, and a tribal drum riff throws us into the hell of "Sickman", where anger, reflection, and awareness of one's impotence against heroin merge. Then everything changes, a slight arpeggio takes us back in time, up to the Vietnam War, narrated from the perspective of Jerry's father, nicknamed "Rooster". The performance of the Jerry-Layne duo is masterful, gifting rock one of the most intense tracks in its entire history.

Closing the poetic parenthesis, we abruptly return to drugs, with one of the darkest and most difficult songs on the album: "Sickman" is the outing of a desperate man who knows he can do nothing to free himself from the addiction that will lead him to death. We then reach "Dirt", which is the very essence of heroin translated into music by Jerry's annoying and distorted riff and the impressive chorus where the voices of the singer and the guitarist merge again, creating an atmosphere absolutely impossible to replicate. In my opinion, the best track on the album. "God Smack" is nice, but quite far from the album's standards, while "Hate To Feel" is a sort of twisted blues vaguely Nirvana-like. "Angry Chair", which tells Layne's sad past, begins with a bass line that makes it resemble a more distorted and echoing "Come As You Are": absolutely hypnotic is the flow of the song, with a chorus that shakes you to the core.

The last track, the legendary "Would?" is dedicated to another huge protagonist of the Seattle Scene, Andrew Wood of Mother Love Bone: it's a true generational anthem that closes the most beautiful, intense, and desperate album at levels unreachable not only by today's bands but also by various Pearl Jam, Soundgarden, and Stone Temple Pilots. Perhaps only Nirvana's "In Utero" comes close to this, despite having a totally different style.