‘Black Gives Way To Blue’ is a remarkable record – emotive, beautiful, heavy, dramatic, and complex; it makes clear how timeless, potent and visionary Alice In Chains are. From the opening notes of ‘All Secrets Known’, their trademark sound of melodic melancholia wrapped around gravity-laden guitars heralds the return of one of America’s most influential rock bands.
First single ‘Check My Brain’ roars in with a circular head-crushing riff then blasts through a down-tuned melody before sailing into a sing-along chorus while the likes of ‘Last Of My Kind’ and ‘A Looking In View’ revel in the heaviest sounds Alice In Chains have created to date.
Tracks such as ‘Acid Bubble’ showcase both the lightness of touch and the powerhouse riffs that Jerry Cantrell brings to the table while the hypnotic ‘Your Decision’ and the beautiful ‘Black Gives Way To Blue’ itself (featuring Elton John on piano) showcase the more reflective side that Alice In Chains have always had.
Alice In Chains have just been confirmed to appear on BBC2’s ‘Later… With Jools’ in November and will also be touring Europe that month. UK dates are as follows.
12th Glasgow Barrowlands
13th Birmingham O2 Academy
14th Manchester Academy
16th London HMV Forum
17th London HMV Forum
Tickets are available from 9am this Friday (18th September).
These performances will see the band showcase their new album ‘Black Gives Way To Blue’ in much greater detail than the sneak preview they gave at their London show in August. ‘Black Gives Way To Blue’ is released on September 28th and is already being hailed as a rock masterpiece.
