Alice in Chains (often abbreviated as AiC) is an American rock band formed in Seattle in 1987. Since 2006, the band's lineup has consisted of vocalist/guitarists Jerry Cantrell and William DuVall, bassist Mike Inez, and drummer Sean Kinney. Vocalist Layne Staley and bassist Mike Starr are former members of the band. While often associated with grunge music, Alice in Chains' sound and style is rooted in heavy metal. The band is recognized for its distinctive vocal style
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Alice in Chains (often abbreviated as AiC) is an American rock band formed in Seattle in 1987. Since 2006, the band's lineup has consisted of vocalist/guitarists Jerry Cantrell and William DuVall, bassist Mike Inez, and drummer Sean Kinney. Vocalist Layne Staley and bassist Mike Starr are former members of the band. While often associated with grunge music, Alice in Chains' sound and style is rooted in heavy metal. The band is recognized for its distinctive vocal style, which frequently included harmonized vocals between Staley and Cantrell, and later between Cantrell and DuVall. They are considered one of the most popular rock bands of the 1990s.
Alice in Chains' original lineup consisted of Cantrell, Kinney, Staley, and Starr. The band took its name from Staley's previous band, Alice N' Chains. They gained international attention as part of the grunge movement of the early 1990s, alongside other Seattle bands such as Nirvana, Pearl Jam, and Soundgarden. They achieved mainstream recognition with the single "Man in the Box" from their 1990 debut album "Facelift". After releasing the EP "Sap" in early 1992, the band achieved further commercial success with their follow-up album "Dirt" later that year, which included the singles "Rooster" and "Would?". Starr was replaced on bass by Inez in early 1993. Subsequent releases, "Jar of Flies" (1994), which featured the singles "I Stay Away" and "No Excuses", and the self-titled album "Alice in Chains" (1995), which included "Heaven Beside You" and "Grind", both reached number one on the US Billboard 200 chart and earned several Grammy Award nominations.
The band experienced a period of inactivity from 1996 onward, largely due to Staley's substance abuse, which resulted in his death in 2002 and led to a hiatus. Alice in Chains reunited in 2005, with DuVall joining in 2006 as rhythm guitarist and co-lead vocalist. Since then, they have released three more albums: "Black Gives Way to Blue" (2009), "The Devil Put Dinosaurs Here" (2013), and "Rainier Fog" (2018).
In the United States, Alice in Chains has sold over 30 million RIAA-certified records. They have achieved 18 Top 10 songs on Billboard's Mainstream Rock Tracks chart, including five number-one hits, and received 11 Grammy Award nominations. The band has been included in several greatest-of-all-time lists, including number 34 on VH1's "100 Greatest Artists of Hard Rock" and number 15 on Hit Parader's "Greatest Live Bands".
Studio albums
Facelift (1990)
Dirt (1992)
Alice in Chains (1995)
Black Gives Way to Blue (2009)
The Devil Put Dinosaurs Here (2013)
Rainier Fog (2018)
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…shrink me down again
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