A look inside Alice in Chains ‘Dirt’

Mariah O’Brien photographed on cover art covered in dirt (June 14, 1992 Rocky Schenck)

Released 31 years ago, (September 29, 1992) Alice In Chains released their second studio album Dirt from Columbia Records. Nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Hard Rock Performance. The album is a major artistic statement that represents the true reality of frontman Layne Staley’s depths of despair and harrowing concept of his battles. Making this album a masterpiece as the song-writing is deep and intrigues the listener as Jerry Cantrell and Layne Staley harmonize behind intuitive rhythm and melodies they write. The album conveys their sludgy melancholic frustrations, anger and anti-social behavior which almost completely dominated the 90s grunge scene along with other bands that emerged from the independent record label Sub Pop signed (like Nirvana, Soundgarden, and Mudhoney). The album has sold 5 million copies worldwide, was certified 5 times platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) and peaked at No.6 on the Billboard 200 chart. Also in 2022 returning to the Billboard 200 at No.9 following the release of it’s 30th anniversary. Recorded with the 4 original members Layne Staley (frontman and lead vocalist), Jerry Cantrell (lead guitarist, and background vocalist) Mike Starr (bassists), and Sean Kinney (drummer).

The album features 13 tracks: “Them Bones”, “Dam That River”, “Rain When I Die”, “Down In A Hole”, “Sickman”, “Rooster”, “Junkhead”, “Dirt”, “God Smack”, “Iron Gland (Untitled)”, “Hate To Feel”, “Angry Chair”, and “Would?”. The most popular songs of the album include “Would?”, “Rooster”, and “Them Bones”. “Would?” is arguably the most famous hit on the album as Alice In Chains had a unique introduction associated with the song. “From the band that gave you Would?” The music video was nominated for a MTV Video Music Award for Best Video from a Film since it was featured on Cameron Crowe’s 1992 film “Singles”. Overall the album is exceptionally well written with no songs being boring. All songs give off different levels of emotion and even though it circulates around feelings of pain, anger, and melancholy, its very diverse. My favorite tracks from the album incude “Sickman”, “Down In A Hole”, and “Hate to Feel”.

“Sickman” is my current favorite off the album because of the weary melody is follows and the ending bridge that harmonizes beautifully where he sings “Can you see the end? Choke on me, my friend. Must drown these thoughts. Purity over rot“. Staley wrote this to to express the horrific thoughts that can come with addiction and the struggles that can be over whelming (from personal experience). Cantrell recalls Staley asking him to “… write him the sickest tune, the sickest darkest … and heaviest thing (Cantrell) could write.”

“Down In A Hole” is one of the 5 singles that was released in preparation of Dirt. The song unlike others on the track has a “slow strummed acoustic guitar sturn and bad morose singing” and is written by Jerry Cantrell for the love of his life Courtney Clarke. “[“Down in a Hole]’s in my top three personally. It’s to my long-time love. It’s the reality of my life, the path I’ve chosen and in a weird way it kind of foretold where we are right now. It’s hard for us both to understand… that success with long-term relationships.”

“Hate to Feel” is an intresting track considering it was soley written by Layne Staley and featured him on guitar (which he was not known to play). “Again, a lot of pride in seeing Layne grow as a guitarist and songwriter to create something so heavy…”. The song describes Laynes unhealthy relationship with his father where he swears “… I’d never be like my old man“. Even though he sweared never to be like his father, he eventually let him come back into his life after 22 years to change up his lifestyle. Unfortunely it did not end well for Layne.

Overall this album is a flat out masterpiece that has changed the music industry in multiple ways and has opened up new realities of music for people to enjoy. Definitley one of my favorite albums of all time, a 10/10 for sure.