Dirt

The vocals let this down really. Droney American grunge type. Lame. Listened with my rabbit and she fell asleep

I'd listen to Down in a Hole and Rooster again. The rest are pretty rough.

Dark, sludgy, heavy, dreary. Definitely on the more metal side of grunge. Solid riffs and rhythms throughout, though a few songs overstay their welcome (Sickman). There’s a definite style and mood that the album commits to and executes well, though it’s not one I especially enjoy. Best song: Rain When I Die

grungeeeee

Some greate tunes, outstandings songs with some plain good ones

I was never the biggest AiC fan, but this was pretty enjoyable.

It’s fine - I get why people would be into it but I’m just not. I’m also not in this type of mood right now.

Interesting

Grungey, greasy and… dirty

Just a really solid grunge album that fit firmly into the 90s. Lot of good guitar work here and I do agree with one comment I read about the disorientated, queasy nature of this album and the way the the reverbed, disorted guitars sound contributing a ton to the overall atmosphere here. A lot of the songs did blend into each other and sound similar, but it was an enjoyable listen on the whole.

Some decent songs on here, but you've got to be serious into the metal to truly appreciate this. Still better than a lot of other things on this list.

Nirvana if they were good

Better than I expected. It was interesting to read about the history of this band and of course it was heroin.

MERRY DIRTMAS EVERYONE!!! https://youtu.be/gRcj6CAhe7s 'them bones' is slam poetry about jerry cantrells hatred for dry bones from mario kart (that little dry bastard) 'rain when i die' grew on me, that riff is alright. 'rooster' is classic. leo showed me that when i was like 12. i felt too c o o l listening. these are songs that rock. the rest doesnt really do it for me but has a real consistency in its grit and rhythmic punch. this is music to grind your teeth too. this is music to rock too. you never know, on facelift 'man in a box' did nothing for me then it hit me - how did i miss this fucking belter of a tune?

Just not my style

3+

I should like this album a lot more than I do. It's supposed to be one of the best grunge albums. I love the singles but a lot of the songs in the middle of it just don't really grab me. I think it's aged a little bit poorly. The singing gets on my nerves sometimes. I can tell why people love it and that it's a good album but I just can't get super into it. Sorry to all the dirt lovers out there. Score: 70 Art: 70

It’s just not my sound. Apart from nirvana I never really liked grunge.

Not my thing

Ah! A chance to reappraise DIRT by Alice in Chains. A band that I disliked on principle alone at the time they arrived on the scene. Early 90s I'm in punk mode in the Northwest and certainly grungy bands start getting some attention but the ones that appealed to me were the least commercial, the weirder more indie and punker of the cohort. Even Nirvana for a brief moment wasn't the international sensation that shook the music industry. So when Alice in Chains and a few others started to also rise in popularity I (and I wasn't alone) saw this as a land grab for cash and record industry attention that was uncool. They seemed like a glammy hard rock/metal band trying to change their sound for fame and fortune and AS A PUNK I WAS AGAINST IT. Full stop. There certainly are some stylistic tells or trappings of their hard rock heritage on this record: slower beats, tremolo dives, wah effects, bombastic solos with deep bends and impressive runs, ballads with oohs, chorus effects, etc. And, this record is also long, too long for me personally. By now I guess they knew what their fans wanted and felt a confidence delivering it over and over and over again. If you are still reading this you might expect me to rate this at two stars, but I'll say there are also some songs on this record that are recognizably great. They seem to have integrated some of their influences and aspirations into a better version of themselves. Is it necessarily my thing that I'll go back to? Nope. But is it better than I initially gave it credit for? Yes.

Solid album.

In my memory this album was better. Most songs are longer than they should be. Some are great, some just drag along. I don’t like the vocal harmonies most of the time. Favorite song: would

I think I was expecting something a birt "dirtier" but maybe I was thinking of Nine Inch Nails. This album definitely doesn't sound like my kind of stuff, it's too mellow and just sounds like...well, just, music. That's all. Nothing remarkable.

Mukana pari entuudesta tuttua jonkin tason hittiä ja loput uusia tuttavuuksia. Varsin mukava pläjäys.

6/10. This was pretty good, and kind of nostalgic, but not exactly my thing either.

Has that very distinct 90s hard rock/grunge sound, still enjoyed this album.

First time listening to this album in full since about 2003. Forgot how heavy it opens. Significantly better than a lot of crap immitators it spawned. 3.5/5

It's got consistent tone throughout, and they definitely know when to jam, but I think it's carried by Them Bones and Would?

Le son, la voix me plaisent, mais je trouve l'ensemble un peu trop uniforme.

I've recently revised my stance on Alice In Chains. Back when I was younger, I couldn't escape them from the radio, and I was oversaturated. Now, listening in isolation, I've developed an appreciation for them. Still not my favorite, but Would? has made it onto various playlists.

Cock a doodle doo

Dirt is the second album by the American rock band Alice in Chains. This critically acclaimed album is certified 5x platinum (the band's best-selling) and is considered a classic of the grunge genre. The themes on this album are emotionally focused on depression, pain/anger, relationships, drug use, war, and ultimately death. This was my first time actually listening to any songs by Alice in Chains (I've heard lots about the band) and I loved the album. I can definitely see this being one of their best albums, because how can you get better than this? The tracks were the perfect amount of grunge while still maintaining a mainstream vibe that everyone can appreciate. I'll have to check out more songs from Alice in Chains.

Feeling lots of emotions listening to this album. These songs came to me during some tough times in my life. "Would" is a top-10 90s track for me; the first time I heard it was actually on the "Singles" soundtrack, which I think is a very underrated soundtrack. 13yr old Jesse would have given this album a 5/5, but hearing it again after all these years doesn't stir the same feelings.

Dark. Depressing. Heavy. Emotional. Beautiful.

The grungiest of the grunge. Not really my style of grunge, but Rooster is cool.

I can see the appeal even though I'm not sure I'd go out of my way to listen to any besides Them Bones in the future

Enjoyed more than expected on first listen. The opener is really good. Will give it another listen.

This one is sort of hard to rate. I feel like I’d probably really like it after re-listening, but I just haven’t yet. Favorite song: “Angry Chair”.

Solid album, pretty great riffs. Didn't completely grip me, maybe due to the topics of the lyrics or I could have just been too distracted while listening?

Certainly not the best grunge band (are they even grunge?) but they still have some bangers. I have always loved Would? but it is interesting that I prefer the unplugged versions of a lot of these tracks. 3.5/5

Como mierda vas a poner 15 temas de un disco de grunge que dura casi 1 hora al menos yes lo hacía con gracia(? Igual tiene muy buenos temas pero a la vez hay como 3 o 4 que para mí suenan exactamente igual ante mi oido inexperto no-grungy.

The soundtrack for every movie set in the 90s. I wasn't super into them then and I'm still not now. It sounds like every song is going to culminate in the Rooster chorus. Best track: Them Bones

A good grunge album but didn't give me that feeling that Pearl Jam or Janes addiction does so it falls a bit short of the mark for me.

Nice songs, with some great guitar riffs. Songs were a little too heavy and album lacked a bit of variation.

A lot heavier than expected for a grunge album. It has some sludge/stoner metal grooves which I liked.

Bit generic at times but not too bad

Very typical grunge album. Always feels like just a single emotion exists with this music which makes it a bit flat but it's nice for a few songs.

Maybe the darkest and, um, dirtiest grunge band/album? I'm not a fan of their blend of stoner/metal and hard rock that would eventually lead to an army of annoying post-grunge bands, but I have to admit that these guys done it right.

I think its good for what it is but just not my taste very heavy rock, bordering on metal

3,5

I didn't mind this album, it's not really something I would normally gravitate towards and I did think the songs sounded quite samey. But overall it was a decent album.

Brings back memories of the first day of high school, lookin so cool and jamming on my Nano. Even though there are aspects about it that aren’t really my taste anymore like the vocals (sorry, Lane!!), I still think some of the songs slap.

My dad went to high school with the lead singer and I’ve heard the story 137 times at this point…trying not to be biased. I actually like the grungy vocal style. You can feel the crushing heroin addiction seeping through your headphones. The guitars get old quickly on this album though. Too much nostalgia to not give it a 3

Decent heavy rock but I like others better

Alice is Chains is one of the bands I expected to fully appreciate from this list as I hadn’t really dove into them before. I liked some some songs on this but mostly just couldn’t vibe with the singer.

I listened to some of this album then forgot to listen to the rest. It's my birthday though, so I can do what I want. Most of the songs sounded too similar, except for Sickman, which I honestly thought was White Zombie, so that was weird. Actually, that was as far as I got. My friends got me drunk on my birthday, and I just want to see what my next album is.

Quite a generic rock album. May have to be judged more hermeneutically, but I wasn't invested enough to do so.

Brutalno

With each of their albums AiC seemed to slip further and further in to darkness and depression. Dirt finds them beyond their catchiest and most accessible, but not quite at their darkest yet, as that would come on the self-titled third (and imho their best) album. Still, there is plenty of top notch content here, and I could see the reason for choosing Dirt for this list, for nothing else than being their most critically and commercially successful work. A different album selection would have garnered a higher rating from me though. 3 empty, bottomless pits of despair out of 5

Not really my thing but still quite enjoyable

Listened to half was ok from what I heard personally not my taste but good from what I heard light 5

A good 90s grunge album. Hadn't listened to all of this, but had heard Jar of Flies before so had an idea what to expect. Don't think it has particularly aged well and since I wasn't a big AIC fan at the time (was big into Nirvana, Pumpkins, Pearl Jam and more besides however so unclear why not) I don't have the nostalgia factor. It's decent enough, but barring a couple of tracks I can't see me ever coming back to this. I have my favourites when it comes to grunge, nothing old/new is going to break into that now.

The big radio hits (Them Bones, Angry Chair, Would) are excellent, but so much of the rest is quite forgettable.

Man, this album is dark. No surprise about how Layne Staley's story ended, listening to this. The big songs were great, but a lot still felt like filler.

Not much notable.

-S Tier- Rooster Would? -A Tier- Them Bones Down in a Hole Junkhead -B Tier- Rain When I Die Dirt -C Tier- Dam That River Angry Chair -D Tier- Sickman God Smack Hate to Feel AVG SCORE: 2.9

Sometimes a bit flashy for my liking but undeniably groovy and heavy. Amazing tones. Gives me a dirty southern vibe. The vocal layers are great too. Good songwriting, kinda doomy.

I feel like this was executed well, the riffs were grabbing, production was top tier. But it seems a bit too one-dimensional. I really enjoyed some slower and more melodic songs like Down in a Hole. But most of the album went the angry violent way and I just couldn't really differentiate the songs looking back and I am unable to see them fitting for any mood.

why was it not just called Grunge

This is my first time listening to Alice In Chains. The songs fall on a spectrum of styles from thrashy heavy metal to more radio-friendly grunge. There are also some beautiful, slower moments. A number of songs made me think of Queens of the Stone Age. They’re one of my favorite current bands and I enjoyed listening to this album and hearing the influence Alice In Chains clearly had on QOTSA. By the end of the album, I was a little exhausted though. I respect the music but can’t fully embrace it — the songs are pretty bleak and tortured. Maybe not the best music to listen to on a sunny Friday afternoon 😂

This genre isn't for me but I didn't hate it, so they must have done it well! I could have done with a shorter album though

This one was weird for me. I tend to think I like Alice In Chains but I think what I learned is like them in small doses. Individual songs I liked but as a whole, I was sick of them by the end. It was still a good album but the vocals started to become a drag by the end.

A couple of good songs. The choruses tend to get good in most tracks, but verses and everything else is soooooo slow, and makes the vocals sound whiny.

Much more enjoyable, than I expected!

Not much of a Alice in Chains fan. I think this was probably their most popular album.

I always found this a bit dull. It's grown on me a bit but is still not that exciting. It's all a bit one dimensional. The best band of the era and the genre were the Afghan Whigs, so I wonder if anything ('Gentlemen'?) from them will pop up.

Always left me cold. Mad Season was much better.

A few good so gs

Not a huge fan. Better than I was expecting. Probably would like it more if I grew up during this time.

I loved this album when it came out. Listening to it years later, it kind drags on. There are a few songs that really sound great and others that are just sort of ok.

Good album Liked song where the vocal melody matched guitar Title track good too

i mean it was good for what it is, I'm just not a huge fan of what it is. I didn't really give it a proper listen if I'm honest

This album gave me road rage when I was driving to pick my lunch up from McDonalds. 3 stars.

One again, I'll ce back to it.

A classic of an era. A bit whiney in modern context.

Overall— pretty alright

there were low points and high points, i really enjoyed some of the songs whereas others became hard to listen to. i would give this album a solid 7/10, but it’s not a 4/5.

90s mild grunge rock

I consider this album too edgy for its own good. In my opinion, Alice in Chains peaked in the more toned down and far more melodic Jar of Flies a couple of years later.

1st August 2022 Listened throughout the day while working from home. Life admin and chill in the evening. I was initially gutted to see this as I thought it was going to be way heavier than it was, but I enjoyed it. Walks a fine line between grunge and metal.

I really like the a-side and have listened to it occasionally, but, as with so many other rock albums, it can get rather monotonous as a whole. I do like the vocal harmonies (a bit rare for grunge songs), occasional contrasts within a song (e.g. Sickman) and the fact that there's memorable melodies (in contrast to some other grunge songs that are basically made up of screams and meandering wailing and nothing else). Them Bones and Would are probably my favorites of the bunch.

Nice

There are several Alice in Chains songs in which the combination of melody and vocal quality are very compelling and I would say almost beautiful. These are qualities that offset the despair and hopelessness in the lyrics. With this album though, I got all the despair and hopelessness but very little of the beauty. I liked Rooster and Junkhead.

Here is yet another band and album from the 90s that I never got into. I like the vocal harmonies. The metal isn’t a dealbreaker for me. But the tempo and feel of these songs is really ponderous. Maybe appropriate for a lot of the lyrics. I’m ready for the next song well before the current one ends. I think I like my metal a little brighter with a bit more cheese. This album felt exhausting. Really made me want to take a nap. Even if I were in depression there are a lot of other things I would much rather wallow in than this. I can appreciate the quality of this music. Unfortunately I didn't appreciate the music itself.

Pretty good. Super heavy rock that reminds me of nirvana, soundgarden, pearl jam. You could have had me guess the decade and i could have told you within 5 seconds of the first song. Not that its a bad thing, but it doesnt sound like it could come out today. Rooster bangs. 6/10

3.5

nirvana mais animado

Okay, so I've never heard this album before apart from "Rooster." I'm immediately struck by the interesting timing of "Them Bones," which has this kind of syncopated rhythm on both the guitar and the drums. It's almost kind of funky. Quickly we've moved onto "Dam That River," which has some great vocal harmonies. Again, some really fascinating rhythmic choices all over the place that almost evoke old blues tunes. "Rain When I Die" -- again, really incredible rhythms going on. Some reverby, tonal explorations on the guitar. Impressed with the lyrics on this track -- this song could totally be covered and done in different styles. This album seems to be a personal reflection on a rough emotional situation (considering most of it is about drugs). Moving to "Down in a Hole," which sounds a lot like a straight Metallica ballad. A lot of the songs on this record are confessional pieces from a powerless and downtrodden individual. This track is essentially the thesis statement of the record, painting for us the sordid portrait of our narrator. "Sickman" --another funky situation with some tempo changes. At this point in the record, I'm starting to get a stomach ache. I feel as if I can only hear so much about a guy wanting to die. What's tethering me (somewhat) is the interesting musical changes that sound almost bluesy in origin. I can see why folks loved this record even if the content is a bit rough around the edges and in the center. Let's see what Jerry Cantrell, the primary songwriter on this album, has been through. Alright so AIC is from Washington (no doubt), and Cantrell is often called "the Riff Lord." His dad was a veteran and his mother was a musician. He liked Gregorian chants. His parents seemed to be divorced and he lost in mother at a young age. I suppose that's pretty rough. "Rooster" - speaking of Cantrell, this song is about his dad, and happens to be the only one on this record that I know. Let's be real, the main riff on this song is really tasty, and yet it's used so sparingly. Didn't realize this but Layne Staley, the singer, was already in a band called Alice 'N' Chains when Cantrell heard him play one of his last concerts with them. "Junkhead" - gosh I'm getting tired of the drug stuff, but the music is nice! It seems that Staley passed of an overdose in 2002. That makes this album even more haunting. There's about 5 songs left. There's a great excerpt of a review that says: "It's all in the music." My stomach ache, fatigue, and haunting feeling is all in the weird time signatures and dissonant harmonies. "Dirt" -- the eponymous track. Struck by his incredible voice but that's all. "God Smack" -- starting to get a bit bored by these last few tracks. There's some fun energy in the chorus (?) of this one. I like how he's experimenting with some vocal acrobatics in this (the falling-down-the-steps vibrato thing he has going on), but that's the end of the intrigue on this one. Again, the lyrics get a bit depressing and samey. "Untitled" - just a little "Iron Man" interlude thing. "Hate to Feel" - Feeling bored by this point. Not so much by the music, again, but by the content. I'm out!

Rock alternativo con 3 canciones que me gustan. El resto, demasiado iguales y agobiantes.

Grunge,heavy metal,alternative metal,alternative rock[

Grungy sameness, not my thing

Some good tracks in this. But not generally my vibe.

A grungy slice of rock - Didn't really know what to expect and in the first few seconds my heart sank, thinking I was going to get an incomprehensible shouty racket - but was quickly shown to be wrong. This has some great tones and musicality, and a soulful voice. Decent.

Pure, unadulterated grunge. It tends to start to fall into all the same tempo, but I suppose for smackheads it feels like it's blasting along. Best Tracks: Them Bones; Junkhead God Smack;

Fuera de Would? y de lo ponchado que suena al principio, la verdad es que tampoco me emocionó demasiado. El estilo vocal me llega a saturar a ratos. Por otro lado, lo que establecieron con este disco dentro del sonido del grunge tiene efectos en todo lo que oímos desde entonces.

Alice In Chains were a marginal influence on the future of alternative metal.... Quite a fine piece of hard rockery. (6/10) FT: Them Bones, Would?

Jak mi źle, jak mi smutno. Napisałem piosenkę, może trochę przynudną.

Not generally into this shade of the rockified mostly-metal and it really wasn’t what I was looking for when I listened to this. Just all the portentous, self-important singing and preponderance of heavy-handed chunka-chunka guitar.

Overall a decent grunge/metal album by Alice in Chains. It's a very emotional album that deals with some heavy subjects including depression, pain, anger and war that are played out with such raw emotion. Best: Dirt Worst: Would?

3/5 not good enough

Quality heavy grunge album

Pretty good. I still prefer Nirvana and Pearl Jam, but I can respect this album a lot. I'll have to listen to it again to form a stronger opinion, but a 3/5 for now.

It's good, and you can easily see what kind of music it comes from and where that genre's headed since, but it's not particularly remarkable on its own. Bottom end of a 3 for me.

Rock

Rhcp je je jučer izbacio jeben album sori navarro, ispo si davno. Edit: prije 6-7 godina sigurno 4, sad bas i ne

Verrassend dat dit album me nu wat meer aanspreekt dan toen het uitkwam. The Rooster en het verhaal erachter vind ik toch nog wel het mooiste nummer.

Melodic heavy heavy. Good riff times

This rocks hard, but not thrashy. Solid and sensible. Epic feel to the songs. Good. A high 3.

Some good guitar playing but it also felt a bit detached from the songs themselves, which mostly feature unexceptional lyrics and so-so melodies. Decent production but the tracks do tend to plod in places.

First time I have listened closely to AIC, haven't heard this album before and somewhat surprised. The mix of Heavy metal/Grunge was not as disturbing as I thought it would be probably because of the quality of the vocal harmonies of Layne Staley and Jerry Cantrell that , at times, to my ears had a Steely Dan type quality to them. Some good songs on this album, my favourites are "Rain When I Die" "Junkhead", "Angry Chair" and "Would" which to me is reminiscent of Nirvana at their height. Not a great Heavy Metal/Grunge enthusiast but I can see the positives in this Album

I don't consider myself a huge grunge fan, but this is pretty solid. Consistent record overall.

I’ve always been a bit afraid of Alice In Chains. (Rightfully so.) 3.5

Ehh it's okay. I don't think I can remember which song is which since they all sound identical. The production reeks of the 90s and the album is 15 minutes too long. Not for me. 2.5/5

- Capa feia - Repetitivo - Os singles são bons

3.5/5 Dark, distorted, and depressing but a good listen if you’re in the mood for it. Knowing the background of “Rooster” breathes some life into a song heard way to many times on the radio, though it doesn’t exactly fit thematically with the rest of the album. The story of drug addiction and it’s consequences told through the series of tracks from “Junkhead” to “Angry Chair” is powerful. Staley’s vocals, while a bit nasally at times, are strong and fit the album. Fav Tracks: Them Bones, Down In A Hole, Would?

Interesting. Not a huge fan, but this was much more listenable than expected. Enjoyed the slower songs, cringed a bit on the harder. Seems they never quite reached heavy metal, but we're still raw and a bit unrefined. I want to give 3.5 stars, but thought "will I listen to this again"? 3 stars.

Went hard, but not extremely enjoyable. Cohesive for sure, vocals were a bit grating at times.

This is the definitive Grunge album. AiC had a tap into the teen angst, anger and lostiness that came to be associated with Gen-X and the 90s. 3.5/5

Not unbearable heavy rock. Will never listen to again.

A strong sophmore album from one of the main architects of 90's grunge. The songs have a visceral tone and rhythm anchored by charged vocals from Layne Staley. Although it moves the genre forward, there aren't any major singles that really stick with you as a listener, and those that do are among the final tracks.

First time listening to this album in full. Very dark and heavy grunge album. Enjoyable and deserves to be on the list but don’t think it’s one I would come back to, more likely to play Nirvana or Pearl Jam.

It's not really my thing but it's enjoyable

Dark, intense, unsettling. A masterfully made album by an incredibly talented band. I need to be in the right mood to listen to it, but it's really good. Fave Songs: Would?, Them Bones, Rain When I Die, Down in a Hole

It’s Alice In Chains!

Alice In Chains is somewhere in the ballpark of Metallica or Tool, but not quite as good as either of them. Rooster is the standout track, but they’re all absolutely fine and I’m not mad or excited or anything.

Enjoyed this, especially Rooster!! But I will listen to more of their albums, so hopefully they will grow on me more.

Rock alternativo con 3 canciones que me gustan. El resto, demasiado iguales y agobiantes.

Album

5/10

Expected to not like it but actually liked it. Reminded me of some bands I liked in the early 2000's, like Fuel.

Never had this one back in the day but it was in the air. They have a very recognizable and consistent sound. Brings me back to that era but that's about it.

definitely heavy metal

eh, it’s impressive, I guess I’ll give it a 5/10, certainly not anything I want to listen to again but I can appreciate the effort put into it

Sounds like some more modern stuff so probably ahead of its time?

they did not get enough attention as some of the other seattle bands, but just as giid

Layne Staley’s voice is amazing in this album and a staple in rock and roll. Got bored of their sound about halfway through. Prolly from SOR rehearsal 5/10

I remember vaguely this time, my older sister and my youngest aunt use to be heavily into grunge (is this grunge? Is this metal?) and I did not liked it that much (I was 6 tho). I like it now better but I get tired of it quickly

Love the singles from this, always have. As a whole album it's all a bit one-note and very druggy. You could see why Layne Staney went the way he did, the guy was obsessed!

More of a mix between hard rock and and metal than grunge to me but rocks in any case. Definitely built around the lead singer's vocals and lyrics, rest of band is adequate but not much ground breaking materials. Always liked "The Rooster" but a very consistent album beyond that.

“Depression, pain, anger, anti-social behavior, relationships, drug addiction (primarily heroin), war, death, and other emotionally charged topics.” Yay! Get the party started!

Not as in your face as I expected. Some reasonable stuff but plenty of rather gnawing industrial stuff.

Solid, powerful and dark.

Solid 90s grunge album with a surprising amount of variation in the guitar licks and song structures. Some tinges of 80s grandstanding and the mix bring the LP down a bit, but not enough to prevent a relisten.

Q: what sets Nevermind (and, perhaps, Ten) apart from the rest of the Grunge crowd? A: It’s pretty hard imagining an R n B cover of Smells Like Teen Spirit. This is not a diss of 90s RnB, much of which I liked. The point is that much of it, and 90s HipHop, was producer-driven brilliance. So too Grunge, but lacking the brill bit. The drums on Dirt are fucking fantastic, the guitars intriguing, and Layne Staney’s voice would carry anyone for an age. But it’s at least 60% producer wizardry, isn’t it? (If I were more committed to this task, I’ll search out the demos for this. But there’s only so much time in the world…) Imagine SWV or Aaliyah hitting Would? :)

Rock

A relentlessly HEAVY album. Emotional. Unrelenting. Uncompromising. Maybe too much for a single sitting but it's raw emotion. In that way it reminds me of Joy Division' Closer. Unfortunately I don't find the music nearly as compelling, so the most I can give it is 3.5 stars

Very late to this and enjoyed more than I thought I would. But some of it sounds like Queensryche on second listen so that drops it a star.

This was actually pretty good! Like, really good! I was fully prepared to loathe it but yet, I enjoyed it. The singer has this gutteral voice that is just perfect for the licks and hits the album gives you! It’s really not going to be for everyone though, but hey ho! I thought it was pretty fucking cool!

Alright.. bit dull

Didn't feel much like going back

Good sound but unfortunately not much variation within the album

Dull

2,9 Je moet z’n album zeker wel eens geluisterd hebben, maar voor mij doet het niet zo veel. Wanneer enkel de instrumenten spelen voel ik het niet echt, terwijl ik dat bij een goed geproduced beat wel heb. Dit kan wel zijn omdat ik niet thuis ben hierin. Zal ik het album nog is een kans geven? Ja

I don’t think I like hard rock? Or not enough to listen to it for an hour. Ooo a six eight! Are their voices okay? I genuinely want to know how people train to sing this way. The lyrics are interesting - maybe I could reimagine this for pop class. What is an angry chair?

Not a big grunge guy, but I understand why this would be a good one.

Not bad, but not an out and out classic either. It kind of falls short when compared to similar era Nirvana, Pearl Jam, Soundgarden etc. There are some great songs on here but for large parts, and especially a lot of the second half, this feels like the aural equivalent of trudging through mud.

Gritty stuff. Got the walk done so can't complain

Honestly writing this review before making it through the whole album b/c I don't know if I'll finish it. It's fine. I suppose.

To look cool to anyone over the age of 40, i turn my nose up at Alice in chain when they are on a festival line up and to anyone under the age of 20 i dont have to justify anything to them because they cant possibly know anything about anything before they were born and if they try to claim they know anything about the years before they are born you just use the "you was not there" defence! because you are not letting anyone younger than you to claim anything that is yours or have an opinion but all that aside, With Alice and her incarceration possibly? or maybe she just needs to come back at Christmas and make an old friend of her change their ways?...Anyway when Alice comes on with her chains and throws out "Them bone" i am taken back to 1990s San Andreas and i quit enjoy my self...sipping on my space wine hidden in F&F jacket. Then after they are done, i complain about them and pretend to to like AC/DC because....reasons

Rooster and Would were big songs for me back in the day, but generally Alice in Chains have a kind of creepy vibe to me.

Quite enjoyed this actually. Never really known what Alice in Chains were about but I guess they sit somewhere between Bon Jovi and Gun n Roses. The sort of music a tattooed, Alice band wearing Sergio Ramos would listen to before a big match to get himself pumped up.

Levyn alussa oli reipasta menoa, mutta sitten meininki väljähtyi aika nopeasti. Ei minun mielestäni mitään kovin ihmeellistä kamaa, mutta ei toisaalta mitenkään erityisesti ärsyttänytkään. Jotain shokkirokkiahan tämän kai pitäisi olla? Siinä kategoriassa mielestäni musiikillisesti paremman kuuloista kuin vaikka Marilyn Mansonin korina.

Alice In Chains are another one of those bands that I *should* be massively into, but for whatever reason it just doesn't stick. Happily enjoyed listening through the album, but didn't find anything particularly memorable and there wasn't anything I particularly want to revisit. 5.5/10 ⚽ Euro player: Declan Rice vs Croatia. Did the job. Wasn't memorable. Hope the next one is better.

One of those bands that I’d heard of loads but never actually taken notice of who they actually were. Grungy but suprisingly harmonious. Quite rare, bit like a right footed left back. Kieran Trippier

Grunge,heavy metal,alternative metal,alternative rock

Naja

Some all around good heavy sounds, nothing to really draw me back though

This album drags on and is honestly so dull in its songwriting. Every song has the same depressing guitar tone and tempo, and the singing is irritating. When you compare this to Nevermind, they are worlds apart in quality of songwriting, despite being labelled as the same genre.

*Them Bones, Down in a Hole, Dirt* I'm finally starting to get Alice in Chains; in the past, I generally would switch radio stations whenever they came on. Thematically and sonically heavy. I both love and hate the "sludge metal" sound that "Dirt" helped create.

I love the speed of the drums and the guitar work is excellent. The album starts great with "them bones", " dam that river" and " down in a hole". I'm not a fan of "sick man" the guitar is too screechy and is seems to lose its vocal harmony. "Rooster" picks it up again but it loses the harmony and goes back to noisy guitars until "angry chair" and "would?" (Which ends the album). Great start and strong finish, but the middle is inconsistent. Overall good album with some great standouts.

I bought this album when I was 13 and it is a fun trip down memory lane but not something I would probably listen to again

apart from a few tracks at the beginning in the end, the middle part merged together and wasn’t particularly strong. this artist is definitely a great, loud and talented one but this album wasn’t much of those things at all.

Good stuff

Opens up with a classic in them bones, and liked the first few tracks but then it just got a bit more sludge and wasn't too gone on second half

ok. Not ground breaking for me. Not going to search out anything else by them to be honest

Soundgarden esk but a bit heavier

I really thought I was going to have more of a nostalgic feeling for this album than I did. There are some songs I really like. A lot of the other songs sort of run together. I will say that this album finishes very strong, with two classic Alice in Chains songs, though I think the album would flow better if they were located sooner rather than at the very end 3/5

Not a bad album, just too long runtime and the songs sounding all very similar

the album cover makes me nervous and feels like it was directly ripped from my nightmare. album was pretty good though. i love "down in a hole". the album became more depressing as i read more about the lead singer.

I just can’t get into this genre

No ei kyllä lähtenyt yhtään. Ihan liian synkkää menoa itelle.

sempre la stessa cosa, sei incazzato ma con chi?

Ditch the hairspray and makeup, let’s fly the flannel!

Again, those who like it, like it.

Standard grunge fayre. Not particularly outstanding

We were a bit distracted when listening to this but I detected a mix of AC/DC and Uriah Heep. Am I wrong?

Not for me.

Not a fan of the vocal accent. Feels like every American rock band of the 90s

If I were about five years younger, I would probably have been into this band. Sort of like Nirvana with more heavy metal influence. Unfortunately, I think the heavy metal they were influenced by was bordering on thrash. So I will stick with Nirvana myself. Two songs here that I liked: Down in a Hole and Rooster. To me, all the songs are reminiscent of something familiar, but I think this is because of the similarities to Nirvana. The only song that I actually recognized was Rooster... I will probably listen to another album from Alice In Chains to be sure, but if this is really their best album, I can do without.

I didn't hate it this just isn't my taste of music - I only seem to like some heavy rock music and I didn't really take to this. There was a couple of songs I would listen to again but I wouldn't reach for them.

I had the first album by these guys when it came out, Facelift. I didn’t know much metal then except there was tons of hair metal around and I was starting to hear some thrash, some metal-adjacent stuff like Faith No More, Danzig, and Suicidal Tendencies, and some actual crossover stuff like DRI. But mostly hair metal, a lot of hair metal. There was no escaping it. Facelift and Beg to Differ by Prong were so much more appealing than Poison and Warrant and Skid Row. A year later, grunge really broke through and by then I had listened to so much more music in so many different styles that Alice In Chains seemed pretty bland. A few years later I had a roommate who listed to Dirt pretty constantly. There was a lot of overlap in our musical tastes but this one really didn’t please me. Actually, it annoyed me. People seem to think the singer’s voice is soulful, but it sounds more whiny than soulful to me. I listened to the whole album again and found it the same as I remembered it, whiny and boring. I appreciate every band that contributed to killing off hair metal, but if the entire discography of Alice In Chains just ceased to exist, it wouldn’t bother me at all. Essential listen: no Desert island disc: no

Не цепляет

Like listening to a vacuüm cleaner: no soul, repetitive, annoying and so so boring.

Life sucks, sung in various forms, ways, and words. Or, just call it grunge. 2.0

Alice in Chains feels like fourth place in the Grunge Olympics...Nirvana, Pearl Jam and Soundgarden all on the podium. I might like the music better but I don't love Layne Staley's voice. Grunge is a dark genre, and this seems darker than most of it. Layne Staley and Rob Zombie sound vaguely similar. Rooster was the big hit from this album. Would? was another big song off this album.

Feels like one of those albums that's better enjoyed after a few brews with the homies on a Sunday. Sometime in between the 3rd and 4th quarter of the 1pm games. Your team is already down two scores, barreling towards a 1-4 start to the year. You start drunk singing The Rooster and for a few minutes, but only for a few, you're back in control.

Was really hoping I could get into this by casting my mind back to what it'd be like to Beavis or Butthead. But it didn't take.

Look it's just not for me okay

Listen to their few more well known songs and you've heard every one of their songs.

no me gustó :(

Heavyyy

Just not really my thing, not bad per se, but it felt really flat a lot of the time. The vocals are quite good, but the instrumentation lacked a certain oomph to grab my attention.

mun varmaan ois pitäny tykätä tästä. en tykänny. tuntu hammaslääkäriltä. oon menossa tänään hammaslääkäriin. kesti liian pitkään eikä mitään tapahtunu. silti genrenä mun. mutta ei levynä.

Didn't like that. Sounded a bit cringey 80s and less grunge at times. Not a fan of the vocal either. 2/5.

Album 288. Dirt (https://open.spotify.com/album/58NXIEYqmq5dQHg9nV9duM?si=oXuR1I7EQcySj4PMfsXCLA) — Alice In Chains (1992) I don't like Alice in Chains in general, so this album is not an exception. It has quite high rating for metal, but I want to downgrade it so much for grunge. I just can't understand what's so good about this album. There're a couple of good songs, Would? specifically, but the whole album is meehh 2/5 Liked: — Down In A Hole — Would?

its personally not really my type of music, but its not bad

I can see why people like it but just don't think it's my thing

a bit too angry/depressive for me. I’m all for some grunge, but I appreciate some levity or experimentation mixed in. this was like pure grunge with a much clearer metal influence, which doesn’t really do it for me.

Like a joke of a rock band?

low 2 rubbish nirvana clone

I've dipped in and out on Alice in Chains over the years. I think the last time I tried to listen to a whole damn album was the one that had "Check My Brain" (Black Turns Into Blue, maybe?). "Check My Brain" absolutely ripped, but I think I gave up before listening to the whole thing. Feel the same way about this one. The riffage on this album is pretty solid throughout, and I've always liked their dirge-y, Southern-sounding harmonies (I had for the longest time assumed they were from the Southeast rather than Northwest). But my gawd, all sound same, and most of the lyrics are just so terrible, trite, dumb, and on the nose it's hard to tolerate. Particular offenders are "Junkhead," "Dirt," "God Smack" and "Hate to Feel." This is about as 2.5 as it gets.

Not my cup of tea

2.5 -- much better than expected, but gets to be too much after a while, only listened to first half or so

I had the Singles soundtrack on CD in high school — it had the song Would, but it was probably my least favorite song on there. Despite that I tried to keep an open mind. As I listened I found that a lot of the songs sounded very much the same. I’m not sure if the vocals use auto harmony to emulate powerchords or if they’re trying to sound that way… whichever it is I found it really off putting and overused. Down in a Hole sounded different which was welcome, but things immediately sank back into the same old formula for the rest of the album. Hate to Feel was okay, but sounded like a worse version of Led Zeppelins Dazed and Confused.

Them Bones Rooster Would The rest of the album difficult slog

not my genre

I mean, I don't really like this type of music. This type of grunge, is too 'hard-rock' for me. I prefer Nirvana and even Pearl Jam (normie I know). However, I can genuinely appreciate the quality here, it's very impressive. The melodies are also pretty catchy (sometimes). Maybe eventually I'll appreciate it more. My score is low because my taste really affects this one.. Sorry Alice, I hope you break those chains one day...

Didn’t like it then, don’t like it now

I appreciate Alice in Wonderland more 😃

This is a slice of grunge that just doesn't interest me. It all sounds so tortured and similar.

Pensándolo bien, está cerca del 3

I don't think this is a bad album but I also don't think Alice in Chains is for me

Not really my thing

Pas mon style même si je reconnais que c'est bien fait

C'était sympa sur 2-3 sons et puis c'est devenu chiant de fou. Je suis pas trop rock/metal et là c'est trop pour moi.

Not the biggest Alice in Chains fan. There was some cool songs, and it went a few places I didnt expect, but mostly, it was sludgy hard rock.

Hard rock not grunge. Nothing that makes it distinctive. Songs sound the same Vocalist not very good. Would is a good song. Not very good. Two stars.

Didn't really enjoy this, quite grungy rock and it all blended into one for me

4/10 - I don't think I understood the importance and songs begin to blend into each other Listened on plane so not sure how intently this was in fairness

I have the sinking feeling that I honestly dislike most grunge records. This one is unfortunately no different.

Not a fan, 2 stars

I did not enjoy a single song on here, and every song felt miserable. This is only a 2 and not a 1 because I get the impression that that's the point. For what reason? No clue.

Honestly, this record is a bit fucking boring. I’d never really listened two it in one sitting before but now having done so, it was a bit of a struggle. What does standout in my mind is that the vocals on this record are kind of middling- they don’t carry the record. Similarly, the guitar tone from Jerry on this record which appears on every track is annoying and pitched at a level that irritates. This is likely the fault of Dave Jerden who produced this record and uses an annoying blended amp approach which makes things pitchy. It is also a dark and gloomy record. Really. This adds up to a rather dark, gloomy boring record with an unpleasant guitar tone sung by a half interested Layne. Look, I get that some people are going to say that this is the best AIC record but what does that really mean? They had a definitive sound for sure and Layne can sing, but really, to me, the Hype regarding the record where every single song sounds similar is a little misplaced. Rooster, Down A Hole and Would? are first rate songs but make it an EP. It would have been less boring. 2/5

Gritty, grungy but not my cup of tea. Feels rather repetitive and a bit miserable. Can appreciate it for what it is but it's not for me. 2.5/5

Not really my cup of tea, cool and well produced songs though :)

One of the better recent heavy metal groups.

No soy de escuchar rock metalico.pero no esta tan mal

Good and rocky to start with but I soon got bored with lack of variation

I wanted to say that I didn’t dislike it I just thought it belonged back in the 90’s. However half way through I just thought it turned to shit. Nope, not for me

3.5/10 Not my genre at all. 'Down In A Hole' was a highlight, but I think that's because it was the least grungy song on the record. Most of the tracks were very similar. The vocals were strong and the music was fine but there's nothing extraordinary here and this should be a list of extraordinary records. Best track: Down In A Hole Will I revisit?: No

that came at a bad point in my life and made it worse

My mom just doesn’t understand me man

Among the three metal-adjacent albums we've listened to recently, I probably dislike this one the least. The vocalist is actually pretty skilled and there were a few satisfying vocal harmonies throughout. the Rooster is probably the best track partially for this reason. I also noticed a trait of his singing is that he likes to hold notes out for pretty long, which I thought was interesting. So the few moments that had long held out vocal harmonies were nice, and I enjoyed one or two of the guitar solos. Still not good enough for me to give it to three.

The song I always skip when I hear that AAHH turns out to be just as shit as I expected.

Not for me.

Did not find enjoyable. It seemed very dark. Maybe that was the point, I dont know.

2 stars I was familiar with a lot of it, but I’ve never listened to it because I wanted to. It’s pretty consistent but it’s the side of grunge I was never interested in. This listen just confirmed what I could have assumed it would sound like to listen to an Alice In Chains album.

Not really my cup of tea so in comparison to other reviews, given this a low 2 star

Notable Textzeile: Sitting on an angry chair Angry walls that steal the air Stomach hurts and I don't care Ich habe das schon vor ein paar Tagen gehört und es wirklich nicht viel hängen geblieben. Ich erinnere mich daran, dass ich das gleichzeitig schwer auszuhalten und schwer egal fand. Irgendwie ist das so produziert, das alle Riffs extrem ähnlich klingen, auch die Rhythmussektion hat keine große Abwechslung. Habs echt versucht, aber konnte mich nicht drauf konzentrieren. Textlich auch nix für mich, hab kurz nachgelesen was Cantrell darüber gesagt hat und finde die Aussage, "es sind ja nur 6 von 13 Songs" über Drogen schon drollig.

J'aime plus Pearl Jam que je pensais. Écoute fastidieuse. C't'un peu quétaine, j'trippe pas sur la chèvre qui chante.

hard, grungy, work

Never got into the band, though liked others from the Seattle scene. Perhaps because it leans more into that, or actually just is early 90s straight US heavy (metal); guitars and riffs and that gloom and doom thing just dressed in flannel. Listening that view isn’t changing today. Just doesn’t interest me, sure if it's your thing this is great but it ain't mine so was a laboured chore - 2 Star

I really like Nirvana and Pearl Jam, but man, I was never able to get into Alice in Chains. I even saw them live at Lollapalooza when I was in college and I fell asleep during their set. There may have been some intoxicants involved to help with that but still. I also never cared for Layne Staley's voice much.

This album...it's overrated. Other 90s grunge has aged well (Pearl Jam), but Alice in Chains just feels dated now. It's not as strong musically or lyrically as the timeless albums on the list. I think it's okay to forget this album.

Metal no de mi gusto por la falta de “fríos”

no

I've heard really good things about this album, but in my personal opinion, it isn't my style. I found nothing wrong per se with anything in particular; nothing really stood out at all, that's really all it was. A couple of tracks caught my attention slightly, but other than that, it was quite hard to stay invested. This may be one of those albums for me that I would have to listen to maybe another one or two times to really catch any interest, but for now, this is all I have to say about this album. Tracks that stood out slightly more than others: Rain When I Die Rooster Them Bones

I can see why I sort of liked them in high school. Not the case right now.

One or two were fab, the rest of the album was rather boring

I get why they were popular, I recognized half the tracks from the local rock radio station. Their sound is unique and varied, which gives the impression they’re talented. That being said the lyrics are bad and the vocals edge toward comical.

Its trashy music

I mean, it's not the kind of genre I usually listen to, but for now (4 song) it has been good. I loved the second song. I ended it, good.

Not my cup of tea

Not really a fan of the grunge genre, but most of the songs were alright, even if the instrumentation was repetitive to my stupid ears. Also a little too much distortion which i'm pretty meh about. Pretty cheesy. I like the harmonisation, but the vocals make me want to die. There was a good balance of hard rock and softer moments, but otherwise not for me.

Not a great album personally, a bit too heavy for my liking and no songs that stuck out as being particularly memorable

Please stop asaulting my ears Some songs are really okay thoo

Is this grunge? Is this goth? Is this metal? I'm not sure. Is this somewhere between 2 and 3 stars? Yes

Record company PR guys tricked a whole generation into buying more shitty Metallica-esque metal music by calling it grunge but I ain’t falling for it. This is just heavy metal. Giving it a new name and dressing the band in flannel rather than leather pants and hairspray doesn’t change that fact. This sucks.

Okay in short bursts.

To screamo. Not really a fan.

Too grungy for me. Let in the sunshine.

A bit too unmelodic for me. I get bored with some of that grunge.

just not my thing

Not for me

alice in chains is just irritating

Bog standard 90s rock

Better than I remember, but Jar of Flies is one of the best albums ever. It better be on this list. But you should hear Dirt, if it only to track their progression to their magnum opus jar.

Not my flavor

Not my type

Men would rather record an album of mid-range fuzz-dirge yelling their angst for an hour than go to therapy. Sorry to be mean, but AIC does nothing for me. The most overrated Seattle band of the early-90s. “Would?” really pops as the last track as it’s a breath of fresh air from the endless muck.

Least favorite of the big 4 grunge - but the album breathes its chaotic context. The riffness riffes - The singing dramatizes nasaly about dope Not my kind of grunge - but a landmark I guess

Some cool guitar licks but the rest of it was pretty irritating

El disco creo que musicalmente está muy bueno pero no es para nada mi estilo

This is not super for me but I can see why other people love it. Reading the reviews on here is funny because they all range between 4/5 stars and 1 stars with very few in between. I'll give it a 2.5 because I can tell it's a good album for people who are grunge fans, but a lot of the tracks sound the same and I find the lead singer's voice annoying. I will join the chorus of people shouting out Rooster as a standout track, though I have to wonder if that's only because it's the first song to sound different sonically than everything that came before it.

This was my first time really listening to Alice in Chains, and their sound has never really had much success drawing me in. Some cool moments in here, but the vocal style, guitar tones, and overall songwriting aren't really my favorite. I feel like a lot of these tracks end up blending together. Not the worst thing I've ever heard, but it's just not my thing, I guess. Favorites: Would?

Seems like Alice in Chains has been getting a lot of reappraisal lately, so I was looking forward to giving them a full look. Again, the hard rock side of grunge is just not for me. Layne has good voice for the genre but this doesn't do much for me. Instrumentation kind of just flattens out into a sludge and the tone is a little too aggressively dour to me. A very fitting album cover for what you're hearing, just kind of flat brown-ness.

I got older by 10 years before the second song ends.

The hill I will die on is that Facelift was their only good album.

Did I listen to the same album as everyone else? The sound feels so muted and depressing across the board, and that vocalist does absolutely nothing to bring any life into this album. Compared to the other big grunge bands, this feels so tame.

4/10 Best songs: Down in a Hole This is a heavy metal/grunge album whose music, surprisingly, I don't particularly dislike. My big issue with the album is that every. single. song. never. ends. They drone on and on and on with the same-sounding instruments, vocals/vocal techniques, and lyrics. It gets boring. There are few to no stand out tracks (mainly because I kept anxiously waiting for each song to end).