Alice In Chains

Unplugged

AIC's stripped down

Review Score:

(8/10)
Not as a great surprise as you would had thought, one of alternative's loudest rock acts stripping their sound back to fragile acoustic versions of hit songs. The glooming Jar Of Flies and EP Sap proved Alice In Chains were one of America's most gifted bands as emotional and intense acoustic music. Unplugged just took it into a different direction. The dream team of Jerry Cantrell and Layne Staley combine well on haunting classics Rooster, Angry Chair and of course the hit single Would? - all from the Dirt album. First, the negative aspects. It can't be helped in thinking that the originals are better, where as the unplugged versions are watered down photocopies, lacking the edge and chill of first time round. The vocal performance of Layne Staley is clearly not as powerful as it could be, his natural ability pulling him through. The set list is to be desired - no Facelift material, no covers (which made Nirvana's Unplugged performance stronger) and no sense of fun. With so many disappointments, it can easily overshadow the positive. No matter the performance, the songs are just too strong to be ignored - it is almost a greatest hits session, classic after classic is quickly pulled out keeping the captivated audience on it's feet. Not the best way to start your Alice In Chains collection but worth hearing if you already have the studio albums if only to hear new interpretations.

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