30 Years Ago: Alice in Chains released their debut album "Facelift."

Oh man, I lived in the Seattle area at the time and this album was a big deal.  Can't believe I was only 22 at the time.

I probably would have gotten into the style at the time but would not listen to anything but Christian rock at the time.  Also, the first song of theirs was "Man In The Box" and that just turned me off to this band altogether.

alldatndensum wrote:I probably would have gotten into the style at the time but would not listen to anything but Christian rock at the time.  Also, the first song of theirs was "Man In The Box" and that just turned me off to this band altogether.

I get that.  And Man In The Box isn't even one of my favorites from the band.  But I had a demo of theirs for probably close to a year before their major label record had even come out.  I had even seen them live twice before they every got signed.  There music actually got a bit darker between the demo and the "Facelift" album.

I saw them open for Queensryche just before they broke big and they got booed. 

I was a big fan of the first two AIC albums (especially Facelift). They were dark and very Sabbath inspired! I like Jerry’s simple but memorable riffs and Layne had a great voice.

alldatndensum wrote:I probably would have gotten into the style at the time but would not listen to anything but Christian rock at the time.  Also, the first song of theirs was "Man In The Box" and that just turned me off to this band altogether.

I think the lyrics are vague and misunderstood. “Man in the Box” has the lyric: Jesus Christ, deny your maker... (but the next line warns): Anyone who tries (will be wasted). Just like Black Sabbath, they painted with “light & shade“. I never had the impression they ever promoted the devil. Their song “Rooster” mentions Jerry’s father praying to God to make it through. That’s something Danzig would never say.

I've heard Man in the Box is really about censorship, though I dont really see it looking through the lyrics.

WildWorld wrote:I've heard Man in the Box is really about censorship, though I dont really see it looking through the lyrics.

Yeah, I can see that (pun intended). The whole “eyes sewn shut” thing...

I think it’s one of those songs where the meaning is open for interpretation.

Black Rider wrote:I saw them open for Queensryche just before they broke big and they got booed. 

That's kind of funny because they had a huge club following.  
Maybe more of a case of having two rather incompatible bands (style-wise) on the same bill.

My first exposure to them was on the "Singles" soundtrack and then on the radio or MTV where I heard "Man In The Box."  
They made a big impression, even though I didn't like the lyrics and felt their sound owed too much to Kings-X, who were struggling while these guys took off pretty fast.

I thought "Dirt" was their high point, but man, it is so dark and depressing to listen to.  I can only take it in small doses.

They are the best of the so called Grunge bands.