Dirt by Alice In Chains

Alice In Chains got lumped in with the grunge scene of the early 90s but strictly speaking they were considerably heavier and more metal than their fellow Seattle cob-nobblers. They have satisfyingly huge and grinding guitars and only a couple of tracks on this album approach the grimier end of the musical spectrum.

However, the glaring floppy haired elephant in the room is that lead singer Layne Staley was a hopeless junkie. Seriously, if you are in a band and one of your bandmates starts writing songs titled “Junkhead”, and lyrics about “losing my soul, down in a hole” and “walking through the valley of rape and despair” please stop the recording and get them some professional help as soon as possible.

It was tragically inevitable that he would end up dying of an overdose aged just 34 on the anniversary of Kurt Cobain’s death.

What a lamestain.