Alice in Chains - Jar of Flies

When Jar of Flies hit shelves in January of 1994, the grunge craze was at its zenith, and less than six months later would be all but dead. Kurt Cobain’s drug addictions were just starting to cause concern, Pearl Jam were raising eyebrows everywhere with their political leanings during live shows, and Layne Staley, front man for Alice at the time, was fresh out of rehab. With a new bassist in their midst, the quartet set up shop in the studio in September of ‘93. The second to last studio release from Alice in Chains before their fourteen year hiatus, came in the form of an EP. It kept the band’s dynamic of duality, and evoked a set of emotions with such a level of sincerity not felt in the rock world since the progressive rock era of the 70’s. However it kept the band’s uncompromising unique sound, and on top of it all, it hit number one on the Billboard charts, the first EP ever to do so, and for good reason.

The day I bought this CD I had the perfect atmosphere for listening to some classic Seattle grunge. It had been raining all week, and the temperature hovered in the mid to low sixties. I might as well have been living in an apartment above a Starbuck’s in downtown Seattle. I popped in the CD and was immediately greeted with one of the bleakest and most humbling acoustic intros to any song that I’ve ever heard. The opening track, “Rotten Apple“, sets the tone for the rest of the album, and arguably the rest of their discography, which is an overwhelmingly depressive, bleak, and strangely empowering sound of dissonance. The seemingly impossible duality that existed on their previous release, Dirt, in the form of pulsating metal anthems like “Dam That River” and “Rain When I Die” standing side by side in perfect harmony with the likes of self-loathing ballad-esque type songs such as “Down In a Hole” and “Would?” finds itself embedded in the confines of Flies with mixed emotions being brought up by a single song. The short bluesy intro quickly leads into a psychedelic guitar part that could have easily have been from the mind of Jimi Hendrix, but Jerry Cantrell is the man behind the guitar instead, wailing away as only he can to create a soundscape of blues, psychedelic rock, and sludge metal delivered in a punk D.I.Y. fashion.

After a psychedelic guitar outro, the next song by the name of “Nutshell” starts up, and is again begun with a solemn acoustic intro. Layne’s tortured wails permeate the mellow acoustic and electric melodies in a way that is so uniquely Alice in Chains they might as well copyright it. The band is so unlike anything today in popular music because every ounce of pain, every agonizing riff, every screeching howl was completely genuine. There was no faking it with these guys. Most of their lyrics delved into real life person hells, and you just knew when Layne sang he knew of the exact feelings brought about by the situations and could vocalize the pain and despair swirling around in his head to a T.

Despite being far longer in length than most EP’s, the record never ceases to deliver the band’s unique blend of bluesy heavy rock as the next two tracks were the two big radio hits off the album. “I Stay Away” continues the trend of acoustic intros, but this time instead of a forbidding and depressive atmosphere the music brings about uplifting instrumentation. However, as soon as the churning chorus kicks in and Layne’s one-of-a-kind voice mesmerizingly takes off, the dark tone returns to the forefront. “No Excuses” follows suit with the previous track and delivers elevating riffs along with lyrics of alienation and anguish, yet this time Jerry Cantrell steps up for the vocal duties and Sean Kinney performs a soothing drum intro. Normally Jerry performs backing vocals as his more leveled style is the perfect complement to Layne’s howls of agony. Layne is still in the picture though, performing a sort of duet with Jerry throughout the entire length of the song, though he seems to be mixed behind Jerry just a little bit. Jerry’s guitar work is also absolutely superb in this song as he performs riffs that peak and climax at just the right times throughout the entire track. The fifth song comes in the form of an instrumental named “Whale & Wasp”. It kicks off with a sound that can only be described as a whale breaching underwater. Synths, a violin, and an acoustic guitar carry the song as Jerry performs out-of-this-world guitar work that will leave the listener floored. The next two songs, “Don’t Follow” and “Swing on This” are pure blues songs consisting entirely of the now signature acoustic guitar, a harmonica, Mike Inez’s pummeling bass lines, and Layne’s singing which fit’s the blues vibe perfectly. However, “Swing” features Jerry ripping with his electric guitar during the swirling insanity of the chorus brought about by Layne’s vocals, much like “I Stay Away”. Layne’s apparent fury of being forced to go through rehab for his heroin addiction shine through in the lyrics. “So my friends said come home/ I said/ Let me be, I’m alright/ Can’t you see, I’m just fine/ Little skinny, but okay.”

Since grunge died out in the mid nineties, there hasn’t been a major shake up in the rock world for over a decade. The Seattle four were the last truly great innovators in rock music, and since the demise of Nirvana, Soundgarden, the hiatus of ‘Chains in 1996, and Pearl Jam’s intentional backing out of the spotlight shortly after, not one band has dared to challenge the status quo and find success in America. Bands such as Nickelback, Theory of a Deadman, and Hinder seem content to keep recording the same album over and over, and we need another grunge revolution like never before. Jar of Flies serves as a powerful reminder of the tremendous amount of energy and creativity that was oozing out of Seattle at the time, and we can only hope that something else triggers the next big thing in rock very soon.

Municipal Waste - Massive Aggressive

If any one band can be credited with the thrash revival of late it would have to be Richmond's Municipal Waste. They released their blistering self-titled EP in 2001 and it was on from there. A few splits later in 2003 we have their first full length, and then in 2005 what was arguably the tipping point for the new wave of thrash metal, Hazardous Mutation, saw the light of day. After The Art of Partying gave the band much publicity and a reputation for putting on insane live shows and, of course, partying. So what does their latest release have to offer?

To be honest, nothing new and nothing interesting either. The only thing different from their 2007 release is slightly cleaner production and the AWOL party aesthetic. Tony Foresta, their frontman, had mentioned several times in interviews that he wanted to distance the band from the party vibe that had been attributed to them, and I'm glad he stuck to his word and did what he wanted to do, but that schtick was working out for them insanely well. I had hoped that his concerns for moving the band's vibe in a different direction would mean expanding musically, but that just isn't the case.

Technically there's nothing wrong with the record. The production is top notch, the musicianship is great, the riffs are stupendous, and the band members sound like they're really into it, but we've all heard this before. I honestly can't point out anything that's bad about the album, other than it's samey. What made the crossover bands of old so interesting was that they were on a journey of sorts from hardcore to metal and they were treading completely new territory. They were expanding their musical horizons, but MW seems content on releasing their same brand of crossover for quite some time.

I guess I'll still be endorsing the Waste from here on out as an excellent live show (almost got my nose broken in Atlanta, fuck yeah) but my hopes for future records will be considerably lower. It's a matter of personal preference whether or not Municipal's lack of expansion bothers you. Just don't keep hoping that they'll release something else as earth shattering as Hazardous Mutation anytime soon.

No Comment - Discography 87-93

In the early 1990's the music world was sort of turned upside down. There was the mainstream grunge obsession in Seattle, the Floridian death metal scene, and the Norwegian black metal explosion, but what had been the two huge long lived cultural centers in America were almost hung out to dry. New York and SoCal had used up their hardcore bands and the current trends seemed to be happening everywhere but the two cities. Even Texas had Pantera rising to popularize the snoozefest excuse for metal that would become groove metal. SoCal, not to be beaten, gave us the spectacle of powerviolence in these trying times. Granted there were less than a dozen bands that filled this niche, but the movement would go onto to blaze a trail in brutality and agression in the American extreme music scene.

Around the time the band called it quits, they put all their eggs into one little CD/LP basket along with some live songs to top it all off. The compilation starts off with some of their earlier work from the first EP in all its raw unpolished glory and then plays a series of live songs which honestly sound like they have better quality than the first seven songs. The vocals are more traditional hardcore shouts and yelling than grind-like screeching which is always a plus in my book. Then comes the next EP and the live renditions of some of those. Starting to see a trend? I hope so. The quality gets better and better with each passing series, and all the songs show off the reasons powerviolence was so beloved by its tiny following. All the constant tempo shifts and absurd timing breakdowns are on full display with unmatched aggression and anger.

My favorite tracks are Hacked into Chunks, Farmer Hitler John, In the Name of Stupidity, and Modern Moses. In all honesty though, there's no low point here or time to catch your breath. It's just the band giving you all their angst and concerns as fast as humanly possible. So if you're in a rush, but wanna listen to some music along the way, pick up some powerviolence and this is just as good a start as any.

First Things First: Nirvana - Live at Reading

Holy undead band Batman! Courtney Love strikes again to cash in on her dead husband's legacy by giving the go ahead to put together a CD/DVD combo of Nirvana's legendary 1992 performance at the Reading Music Festival. Of course you can by the DVD and CD separately, and there's plenty of deals with other Nirvana merch put together by the likes of Amazon and Best Buy, but this review will be of the CD/DVD wombo/combo.

First off, the packaging is better than I expected, but being the cynic that I am I didn't expect much. The DVD stand alone comes in the standard DVD plastic case and the CD stand alone comes in digipack (which I hate with a goddamn passion), but the combo of the two comes in an odd sort of amalgamation of both. The case and sleeve material is sturdier stuff than the average cardboard digipack, and the booklet inside is a foldout black and white collage of the event with the inside case consisting of promotional posters of early and then-present Nirvana gigs. All in all, I like it and it scores points with me for new-ish packaging and making said new-ish packaging work.

On to the heart of the matter though. The DVD contains just the live performance and nothing else, so don't get your hopes up for extra little goodies. However, the performance is more than enough to keep you entertained. It starts off with Kurt being wheeled out onto the stage with a wig and a hospital gown on. Krist says, "You're gonna make it buddy" as Kurt shakily gets up, mutters a line into the mic, and falls down. Such antics are the mainstay of live performances and it helps to draw you into the concert. It was not this little stunt that made me feel like I was even close to being there though. Afterward, Kurt is handed his guitar and the feedback screeches into life. In the midst of the amp noise the main riff of Breed organically sprawls out of the feedback and hammers forward as Krist and Dave join in. It was that opening that really sucked me in and kept me there. Every single one of the songs in the performance is played with its own grungy flair and the whole thing is great fun to watch.

The production is phenomenal. Every instrument can be heard crystal clear, and the video is top notch quality. The camera work isn't mind blowingly movie-like as in Megadeth's One Night in Buenos Aires, but it doesn't have to be. This is grunge we're talking about here.

As many of you know, Smells Like Teen Spirit borrows the chord progression from the chorus of Boston's More Than a Feeling. I've been told that Kurt himself said that he borrowed it, but I've never seen this alleged interview with my own eyes. Either way, Nirvana poke fun at the accusation by playing a little section of More Than a Feeling with Krist and Dave on vocals before they play Teen Spirit, which made me smile.

If you're a fan of Nirvana this a must buy and chances are you probably already have by now. If you're just a passing listener and have $30 to blow on the video of a great concert instead of going to an actual concert yourself, then by all means purchase it, but you may want to go with the DVD only for $20. Either way, this package has got my recommendation.

Getting Started

Just got an itch to start blogging (I've been told it's what all the pros do >.>) and tap into my inner critique/music snob so....yeah. I decided to choose this site because it's where I get most of my hard-to-find music when torrents and frostwire fail, which is quite often. I'll try to post at least once a week instead of every day because I'm a lazy fuck and am in dire need of job but lack the drive to go out and get one to fund my legit music collection of hard copies....and my college commute. I'll post reviews on CD's I buy or have received before today, post youtube videos, and give my opinions on certain situations in the music world. Don't expect me to post download links for music unless they're sanctioned either by the artist or label, the last thing I need is legal trouble even though the chances of that are a million to one. Best to stay on the safe side right? Right. Well, let's get started.