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Alice In Chains Music Bank

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The Alice In Chains Box Set

Out of all the bands to have been part of the "Grunge" movement of the 1990's, Alice in Chains (AiC) is my favorite. I already had all their albums on CD & cassette, except for their EP, We Die Young, which was never released on CD, and somehow I never managed to get a cassette copy.

AiC often provides a dark and dirty glimpse into a world and lifestyle that is totally foreign to me, having never used drugs. Yet I find that I can enjoy the music and relate to some of the basic feelings expressed in the songs.

When the band's Box Set, Music Bank, was released, there were no questions, I had to get it, the sampler Nothing Safe: Best of the Box and the related DVD, Music Bank - The Videos!

After years of setbacks due mainly to lead singer Layne Staley's struggles with drug addiction, Alice in Chains returned to the studios in 1998 to record two new songs to be included with their box set collection, Music Bank.

Music Bank isn't exactly a greatest hits compilation, it is more of an overview of their music including most of their biggest songs along with demos, rarities, remixes and previously unreleased songs.

AiC - Playlist

The songs on this Playlist have been screened for profanity, still if I had kids, I don't think I'd let them listen to this music until they were older, and could better understand the tragic side of the story.

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Some AiC History

Alice in Chains formed in 1987 after Layne Staley and Jerry Cantrell had become roommates while they were members of separate bands. Staley was a member of Alice N' Chainz and Cantrell was in Diamond Lie with Sean Kinney and Mike Starr.

Staley eventually joined Diamond Lie, but they changed their name to Alice in Chains before they were supposed to record their demo album, The Treehouse Tapes, which was scheduled to be recorded at the Music Bank studio in Washington. The band had to find another studio to record their demo at after Music Bank was shut down in Washington State's largest marijuana raid.

On the basis of The Treehouse Tapes, Alice in Chains were signed to Columbia Records in 1989. Their debut album, Facelift has been called one of the most important records to bring hard rock and heavy metal fans over to the grunge and alternative rock genres.

  • Layne Staley - vocals, guitar (1987 - 2002)
  • Jerry Cantrell - guitar, vocals (1987 - present)
  • Sean Kinney - drums (1987 - present)
  • Mike Starr - bass (1987 - 1993)
  • Mike Inez - bass (1993 - present)
  • William DuVall - vocals, rhythm guitar (2005 - present)

Disc One

Music Bank - AiC

The first of the four discs starts with the new song "Get Born Again" which had originally been written for one of Jerry Cantrell's solo albums.

"I Can't Have You Blues", "Whatcha Gonna Do", "Social Parasite", and "Killing Yourself" are all from the The Treehouse Tapes and hadn't been released since then.

"We Die Young" and "Man in the Box", are from Facelift. "Sea of Sorrow" is a demo version of the song on 1990's Facelift. "I Can't Remember", "Love, Hate, Love", "It Ain't Like That", and "Confusion" are also from Facelift.

"Rooster", which was written in tribute to Cantrell's Vietnam War Veteran father, is a demo of the song that was released on Dirt, "Right Turn", and "Got Me Wrong" are both from the 1992 EP Sap.

  1. Get Born Again
  2. I Can't Have You Blues
    [Previously Unreleased][Demo Version]
  3. Whatcha Gonna Do
    [Previously Unreleased][Demo Version]
  4. Social Parasite
    [Previously Unreleased][Demo Version]
  5. Queen of the Rodeo
    [Live][Previously Unreleased]
  6. Bleed the Freak
    [Previously Unreleased][Demo Version]
  7. Killing Yourself
    [Previously Unreleased][Demo Version]
  8. We Die Young
  9. Man in the Box
  10. Sea of Sorrow
    [Previously Unreleased][Demo Version]
  11. I Can't Remember
  12. Love, Hate, Love
  13. It Ain't Like That
  14. Confusion
  15. Rooster
    [Previously Unreleased][Demo Version]
  16. Right Turn
  17. Got Me Wrong

Disc Two

Music Bank - AiC

"Fear the Voices" was originally recorded in 1991, but was not included on any albums previous to Music Bank. When released as a single in 1999, it when to number eleven on the Billboard Mainstream Rock Tracks chart, and ended up being the last single the band released with Staley as lead singer.

"Rain When I Die", "Them Bones", "Dam That River", "Sickman", "Rooster", "Dirt", "God Smack", Iron Gland", "Angry Chair", and "Would?" are all from 1992's Dirt. Five of the songs on Dirt are about heroin, which Staley freely admitted to using. In fact he later said that he didn't feel he was being unsafe or careless about drugs, they had worked for him for years, but then made his life a living Hell.

"I didn't want my fans to think that heroin was cool. But then I've had fans come up to me and give me the thumbs up, telling me they're high. That's exactly what I didn't want to happen."
- Layne Staley, To Hell and Back: Alice in Chains (Rolling Stone Magazine)
 
"Lying Season was and unreleased track, "Brother" is an alternative version of the song from Sap which lacks Ann Wilson's vocals which were on the original album version.

"Am I Inside" is from Sap, "I Stay Away" and "No Excuses" are from 1994's Jar of Flies EP.

  1. Rain When I Die
  2. Fear the Voices
    [Previously Unreleased]
  3. Them Bones
  4. Dam That River
  5. Sickman
  6. Rooster
  7. Junkhead
    [Previously Unreleased][Demo Version]
  8. Dirt
  9. God Smack
  10. Iron Gland
  11. Angry Chair
  12. Lying Season
    [Previously Unreleased]
  13. Would?
  14. Brother
    [Alternate Mix]
  15. Am I Inside
  16. I Stay Away
  17. No Excuses

Disc Three

Music Bank - AiC

"Down in a Hole" and "Hate to Feel" are both from Dirt. "What the Hell Have I" and "A Little Bitter" are remix versions of two songs that were originally on the Last Action Hero soundtrack.

"Grind", "Again", "Head Creeps", "God Am", "Frogs" and "Heaven Beside You" are from 1995's self titled Alice in Chains except this version of "Again" is called the "Tattoo of Pain Mix" which was previously unavailable in the US.

"Nutshell", "The Killer Is Me" and "Over Now" are all from Alice in Chain's 1996 MTV Unplugged performance which was the band's last appearance with Staley.

  1. Down in a Hole
  2. Hate to Feel
  3. What the Hell Have I
    [Remix][Previously Unreleased][Mix]
  4. Little Bitter
    [Remix][Previously Unreleased][Mix]
  5. Grind
  6. Again
    [Tattoo of Pain Mix][Previously Unreleased in the United States]
  7. Head Creeps
  8. God Am
  9. Frogs
  10. Heaven Beside You
  11. Nutshell
    [Unplugged Version]
  12. Killer Is Me
    [Unplugged Version]
  13. Over Now [Unplugged Version]
  14. Died
    [Previously Unreleased]

Disc Four

Music Bank - AiC

The fourth disc is a CD-ROM that is compatible with PC and Mac computers that includes some videos and an interactive game.

  1. Get Born Again
    [Multimedia Track]
  2. Jar of Flies
    [CD Extra Multimedia][Multimedia Track]
  3. The Journey
    [Multimedia Track]
Music Bank

Music Bank

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AiC Video Showcase

Alice In Chains - Sea Of Sorrow
by AliceInChainsVEVO | video info

2,232 ratings | 772,085 views
curated content from YouTube

Nothing Safe: Best of the Box

Alice in Chains

Actually released before Music Bank, Nothing Safe is considered a greatest hits compilation, but is more of a sampler of the Box Set.
Nothing Save: Music Bank

Nothing Save: Music Bank

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  1. Get Born Again
    [Previously Unreleased]
  2. We Die Young
    [Previously Unreleased][Demo Version]
  3. Man in the Box
  4. Them Bones
  5. Iron Gland
  6. Angry Chair
  7. Down in a Hole
  8. Rooster
    [Live]
  9. Got Me Wrong
  10. No Excuses
  11. I Stay Away
  12. What the Hell Have I
  13. Grind
  14. Again
  15. Would?

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Music Bank - The Videos

DVD

Music Bank: The Videos features all of Alice in Chains' award-winning videos, even the rare early version of "We Die Young" and the uncut version of "Rooster."

As a bonus, this 95-minute compilation includes 10 minutes of behind-the-scenes home videos of the band in the studio, on stage, backstage, and everywhere in between.

See the early years of Alice in Chains with a hometown TV documentary on the band's life prior to singing with Columbia Records, featuring performances of the rare songs "Social Parasite," "I Can't Have the Blues" and "Queen of the Rodeo."

Songs: "We Die Young" (2 versions), "Man in the Box", "Sea of Sorrow", "Would?", "Them Bones", "Angry Chair", "Rooster", "What the Hell Have I", "Down in a Hole", "No Excuses", "I Stay Away", "Grind", "Heaven Beside You", "Again", "Over Now" (MTV Unplugged), "Get Born Again".
Alice in Chains - Music Bank - The Videos

Alice in Chains - Music Bank - The Videos

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VHS

Alice in Chains - Video Bank [VHS]

Alice in Chains - Video Bank [VHS]

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Alice in Chains News

Alice in Chains is back together with new lead vocalist William DuVall. Staley may be gone, but certainly not forgotten, and the title track to the new album, Black Gives Way to Blue was written as a tribute to him.
Gotye: All hail the new wizard from Oz
In his first high-school band, a grunge act he started with Lucas, the bassist in his current touring band, his musical obsessiveness became clear when they graduated from covers of Alice in Chains and Nirvana to his self-penned creations.
Grammys 2012: Warrant's Jani Lane, Weezer's Mikey Welsh Snubbed in Tribute
Other stars who didn't make the video tribute included Warrant singer Jani Lane, former Weezer bassist Mikey Welsh, Alice in Chains rocker Mike Starr and frequent Frank Zappa collaborator Jim Sherwood. The recording academy did, however, ...
Dead Letter Circus announce national tour
The band has shared the stage with bands such as the Karnivool, Smashing Pumpkins, Flyleaf, Chevelle, Dir en Grey, Alice In Chains, and Serj Tankian throughout the US & Europe. This will be Fair to Midland's first tour of Australia and the band are ...
Day of the Iguana back on the calendar for 2012 Mardi Gras season
shows a certain kinship with Alice in Chains, though it's generally less sludgy, with a more progressive feel and a funky streak. Not to mention a fun streak. Vocalist Roy Truxillo said that in the band's earliest days it covered some REM and other ...
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Black Gives Way To Blue

Black Gives Way To Blue

Black Gives Way To Blue

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Comments? What do you think about Alice in Chains?

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  • Reply
    missbat Aug 8, 2009 @ 7:12 pm | delete
    Layne Staley was one of a kind. My teen years were spent listening to a lot of the Seattle bands, and Alice In Chains was one of my favorites. Great lens.
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AiC Resources

In addition to sources already listed above, the following Websites assisted in the research for this article:
Alice in Chains - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Alice in Chains is an American rock band formed in Seattle, Washington in 1987 by guitarist Jerry Cantrell and vocalist Layne Staley. ...
allmusic ((( Alice in Chains > Overview ))):
In many ways, Alice in Chains was the definitive heavy metal band of the early '90s. Drawing equally from the heavy riffing of post-Van Halen metal and the gloomy strains of post-punk,

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