Good Morning to you! This is Jacob Braybrooke, and the time has arrived for me to pay a visit to one of the ghosts of Pop-Punk’s past for another weekly entry of ‘Scuzz Sundays’ on the blog, because it’s always my day-to-day pleasure to write up about a different piece of music every day! Having sold over 30 million records worldwide, scored 18 top 10 entries on Billboard’s Mainstream Rock Tracks chart in the US and named as the 15th greatest live band by Hit Parader in their time, Alice In Chains were a visceral part of the 1990’s Grunge movement who have released six studio albums together between 1990 and 2018. An aura of sadness exists within the band, however, as original lead vocalist Layne Staley passed away in 2002 due to ongoing issues with substance abuse, with co-lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist William DuVall stepping up to fill the role later. ‘Them Bones’ was a fan favourite single that reached #30 on the Alternative Airplay chart in the US. It was taken as a single from 1992’s ‘Dirt’ – the band’s second studio album – which was featured on the soundtrack of Cameron Crowe’s 1992 film ‘Singles’ and, commercially, the record has been certified four-times Platinum by the RIAA and sold over five million units. The band also released their fourth studio album – ‘Black Gives Way To Blue’ on the 17th anniversary of ‘Dirt’ on September 29, 2009 – which is a great little tribute. Check out ‘Them Bones’ below.
Sharpening it’s blade for tackling emotionally charged themes like depression, anti-social behavior, relationships, drug addiction, anger and conflict throughout it’s near-hour run time, 1992’s ‘Dirt’ has aged rather well and it has been included in the 2005 version of the ‘1001 Albums You Need To Hear Before You Die’ book. Upon release, it was nominated for the Grammy Award for ‘Best Hard Rock Performance’ and, in retrospect, Loudwire has named it as one of the best Metal albums of the 90’s. ‘Them Bones’ was classic Alice In Chains, starting off with some portentous guitar riffs and jaunty sing-a-long vocal hooks before breaking into a chorus which feels like a lighter relief to the distorted chords of the verses. ‘Them Bones’ was built on a central guitar riff that was written in 7/8, and a friction remains between the very grounded lyricism and the chromatic riffing against the sustained long notes, with the open fourth vocal harmonies being a staple of Staley’s vocal work throughout his time and influence in the band. Lyrics like “I believe them bones are me/Some say we’re born into the grave” have a sense of prescience and bleak tragedy to them, while later lyrics like “Dust rise right on over my time/Empty fossil of the new scene” are given a lightly uplifting sense of black humor, where the absurdity of realizing that you’re going to die one day, no matter what, rings true. Staley commands his presence on the track with a nasal tone which seems to shift tones as he keeps holding the voice for longer and longer, but ruminating on your death is never truly considered to feel like an outlandish prediction due to the gritty textures of the guitars. It is mostly about our morality as human beings and how the thought that your knowledge or experiences can simply end when you’re gone for good is important, as opposed to lingering solely on how we’re all going to pass away eventually. It may not be everybody’s cup of tea due to it’s bleak theme, although it is not necessarily executed as such by Staley and the band, and the track ends just a little too abruptly for my personal liking. However, it seems like it has aged pretty well because the lyrics still have a relevance and the Glam Metal influences still seem relatively fresh. Rest in peace – Layne Staley.
Thank you for checking out my latest post on the blog, as your support always means so much. I will be back tomorrow to review the latest single by a Statford-born singer-songwriter who used to be the keyboardist of Mercury Prize-winning New Rave band Klaxons and he is married to the actress Keira Knightley, of all people. He previously fronted Shock Machine and his new Soulwax-produced album will be released in July.
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