Alice in Chains ‘The Devil Put Dinosaurs Here’

  Dig out your flannel shirts and skip the shower! It’s time to trudge through the thick, murky waters of the latest Alice In Chains release, “The Devil Put Dinosaurs Here.” The record is their first since their 2009 comeback album (for lack of a better term), “Black Gives Way To Blue.” Since some time has gone by, I am hoping that the hubbub over whether or not AIC should continue without Layne Staley is over and we can now focus on what drew us to AIC in the first place, the music. And oh what music it is!

  After hearing the first single, “Hollow,” on the radio months ago, I was impressed and my first thought was how much I missed the hypnotic power of this style. Now that the entire record is out, I was anxious to give it a spin. Working once again with producer Nick Raskulinecz, the album has a classic AIC sound with a few surprises mixed in. The first three songs, “Hollow,” “Pretty Done,” and “Stone” have that distinctive Alice sound with Jerry Cantrell’s sludgy guitars, viscous bass lines by Mike Inez, and the thundering drums of Sean Kinney. Lead vocalist William DuVall and Cantrell have been sharing vocal duties and the result is absolutely beautiful harmonies and mesmerizing lyrics. Things change up a bit with the lighter acoustic feel of “Voices” which will get plenty of radio play and the slower feel of “Scalpel.” Don’t miss the guitar work on “Phantom Limb.” It is powerful, intense and insane in the best possible way.

  It seems impossible that over 25 years has passed since Alice In Chains first hit the scene but the power of their music remains and I can still listen to Cantrell and company grind it out all night long. To all the naysayers, I will say this. The original Alice In Chains lineup was fantastic. There is no doubt about that. But this is the Alice In Chains of today. They’re here, they’re rocking it out and they’re pretty damn badass!!