Alice in Chains — Facelift (1990) Album Review
The year is 1990. Rock and metal music is shifting to alternative, and there’s been momentum building in Seattle, Washington shaping the next sound. Columbia Records just signed a band out of that area that was dubbed their “top priority.”
The band is Alice in Chains, comprised of 4 members, guitarist Jerry Cantrell, drummer Sean Kinney, bassist Mike Starr, and vocalist Layne Staley. They released their debut album, Facelift, on August 21, 1990, and sold 40,000 albums first week, a deceptively modest entrance into the mainstream rock world but a victory nonetheless considering their underground roots. The album spawned four singles: “We Die Young,” “Man In the Box,” “Bleed the Freak,” and “Sea of Sorrow.”
It was not until “Man in the Box” got MTV rotation six months later in 1991, when 6 weeks later, the album sold over 400k copies and the band’s presence was felt across the country. It became the first album from grunge to be certified gold and in a way opened the doors for the whole movement into the mainstream. Cantrell and Staley both had rough childhoods and family lives, and their similar pasts led them to form a distinct connection as a premier guitarist-vocalist duo.
The album cover initially had the four band members wrapped in plastic to show an embryonic birth or reinvention of the band into the main stage. As the ideas evolved, they hired a photographer to film each member with varying camera exposures and frame rates which resulted in the distorted image of the bassist Starr as the cover. Perhaps it symbolizes the band’s emergence from the underground into superstardom, where it often looks bright and colorful but has a crazed, unstable side as well.
Alice in Chains catapulted to the top of grunge through the strength of this debut. Their performances had infectious energy, and the live shows from that era are a highly recommended watch. It would be on my list of places to see if I could travel back in time.
What’s interesting is that many of the writing credits are to Cantrell and the inspirations behind the lyrics are as much from Cantrell’s life as Staley’s. What makes this album great is it’s equal parts the vocal performances of Staley and the shredding solos and riffs of Cantrell. Who is the real genius of AiC? Is it Jerry or Layne? In my opinion, it’s the sum of their abilities, and their musical synergy is what distinguishes AiC from other bands of that era and to this day.
Track 1 — We Die Young: 8.5/10
Grand entrance, inspired by observing young kids in gangs and in the streets. The message is clear, this band is not holding back in both lyrics and instrumentation.
Favorite line: We Die Young, Faster We Run.
Track 2 — Man in the Box: 10/10
Sometimes simple, effective riffs is where the genius hides. Ultimate banger from a small club to a packed stadium. Message of the song is anti-censorship and breaking outside of the box. Interestingly, the voice box effect was influenced by Bon Jovi’s Livin on a Prayer.
Favorite line: The whole chorus
Track 3 — Sea of Sorrow: 8/10
Solid combo of Jerry’s guitar playing and Layne’s vocals. The orchestration of the piano, guitar, and vocals gives it a bluesy, grunge sound.
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Track 4 — Bleed the Freak: 9/10
Lot of biblical references. Highlights society’s tendencies to quickly judge and punish rather than lend a hand, rehabilitate, or solve the root issues, where freak can describe anyone that doesn’t conform to another’s beliefs.
Favorite line: When the sin lies bolder, I’ll pluck out thine eye.
Track 5 — I Can’t Remember: 9/10
Feels like a continuation and response from previous track. If “Bleed the Freak” is society beating on the victim, this track is where the victim fights back (“You took everything but my will to be. Now the loss of your god won’t make me bleed”). The character in the song doesn’t know why he’s the way he is, he can’t remember.
Favorite line: ‘Scuse the ‘tude but I haven’t eaten today.
Track 6 — Love, Hate, Love: 9/10
Eerie sound, lyrics describe a twisted relationship, and Staley/character in the song is suffering from love. “I still love you, but I still burn.” And the riffs sound extra distorted to match the tumultuous lyrics.
Track 7 — It Ain’t Like That: 10/10
Instantly picks the energy with another thrilling banger. Jerry Cantrell steals the show on this one.
Favorite line: Sign the deal, set in motion. Smaller fish, so huge the ocean.
Track 8 — Sunshine: 8/10
Jerry’s tribute to his late mother. Describes a single parent household and a child that should be a sunshine but feels like is a product of a broken relationship.
Track 9 — Put You Down: 9/10
Pure infatuation, from a perspective of a lover or an addict, the lines are blurred.
Favorite line: I don’t need you. I just can’t put you down.
Track 10 — Confusion: 9/10
Slower paced song to showcase Staley’s vocal power and range.
Favorite line: I want to set you free. Recognize my disease.
Track 11 — I Know Somethin (Bout You): 8.5/10
Instantly hooked by the catchy bassline. Another song that showcases Cantrell’s guitar shredding abilities. Up-tempo and funk.
Track 12 — Real Thing: 9.5/10
“Goin’ down the steps on a white line straight to nowhere.” Definitely a cycle of addiction with no end in sight. Really adds to the foreshadowing to their next album, Dirt, and the events that unfold with Staley.
Favorite line: I grew up, went into rehab. You know the doctors never did me no good. They said, ‘Son, you’re gonna be a new man.’ I said, ‘Thank you very much and can I borrow 50 bucks?’
The beauty of this album is in the diversity and wide range of sound, much like the album cover suggests, and seamless fusion of metal, blues, and funk that defined the band’s identity. The layering of Cantrell’s guitar with Staley’s vocals produces an unmatched, electric landscape.
Upon listening to this album, it opens up some deeper philosophical questions:
Are musical icons bound to be dysfunctional? Is creativity borne out of destructive habits? Maybe the best art has a dark, twisted element. In any case, as grunge is a reflection of the working class, that duality is why it became such a sensation and celebrated. Alice in Chains carried that edge and life’s tribulations into genius-level music, and it’s no surprise Facelift lives on as one of the greatest grunge and metal albums of all time.
