Review: Alice In Chains at the Orpheum Theater 03.14.10

AIC performs "Rooster" at the Orpheum Theater in Boston.

I have been looking forward to this concert for months. I finally was going to see one of my all time favorite bands, Alice in Chains live.

I have been a huge fan of AIC since they came on to the scene in the early 90’s. Their tapes/CD’s were staples in my music collection and part of the soundtrack for my college years at UMASS-Lowell.  People on campus or the shuttle bus could probably hear “Dirt”, “Them Bones”, and “Man in the Box” blaring on my walkman and/or discman at any given time.

Sure they were dark and not exactly cheery but that was grunge. Alice In Chains led by the screeching sounds of guitarist Jerry Cantrell and the haunting vocals of Layne Staley were going to be a band that would stay relevant for years to come.

However, Layne Staley had demons and addictions. He ended up losing his battle with drugs especially heroin and crack. Layne passed away on April 5, 2002.

So what of the future of Alice In Chains?

Jerry Cantrell, the heart and soul of AIC, went on to a successful solo career. His albums “Boggy Depot” and “Degradation Trip” were very Alice In Chains influenced but still had a sound of its own.

I was a huge fan of Jerry’s work and was luck to get tickets for him when he opened up for Nickleback in 2002. I never heard the Alice in Chains songs live and when I did, I was out of my mind. Jerry and his band, which included unknown William Duvall, were doing complete justice to every Cantrell and Alice in Chains song they played.

I hoped that perhaps Jerry and the rest of AIC would get back together, but who would sing?

Little did we know that he was with the band the whole time.

Could William Duvall be AIC’s Brian Johnson?

Johnson replaced the deceased Bon Scott and AC/DC didn’t miss a beat.

When AIC reformed and released “Black Gives Away to Blue”, I was finally going to have the opportunity to see one of the bands that helped shape my love for music especially hard rock.

Their new album was superb. It was a great mix with skull crushing hits like “Check My Brain” but also included eerie tunes like “Your Decision”. You could picture Layne singing some of these songs but not all of them. William Duvall was putting his own stamp on the band.

I missed out on their gig at the Paradise in September 2009 due to a pre-planned trip to Atlanta. I wasn’t going to miss out on them again!

I bought tickets for their show at the Orpheum on March 14^th and the countdown was on.

Alice in Chains training was in full swing.

Training you ask?

I do a music listening marathon of the artist I am going to see.

My friend Anthony, who is part two of the concert going duo of Chazz and Rocko, was on board and pumped to see AIC for the first time in almost 15 years.

March 14^th was in the middle of a monsoon that hit Boston. Blinding rain and gusting winds gripped the Commonwealth. However, washed out roads were not going to thwart us in seeing one of our favorite bands.

On the way to the show, we discussed what songs that AIC would have a hard time pulling off without Layne and his distinct vocals. The song that stuck out was “Nut Shell”. We thought there was no way William DuVall could do this song justice.

After we settled into our miniscule seats at the historic Orpheum (which was built in 1852), Alice In Chains especially Mr. DuVall proved us very wrong.

Sean Kinney, Mike Inez, Jerry Cantrell and William DuVall were as tight as a band could be. It was like they have been playing together since the late 80’s.

Every AIC fan was satisfied with the set list. They played songs off their new album like the thunderous “A Looking In View” and the aforementioned hit “Your Decision”. But, they spent most of the night playing the historic hits.

Man In The Box.

Would?

Got Me Wrong.

Them Bones.

Damn the River.

Rooster.

They played almost the whole “Dirt” album which arguably could be their best. No one could tell that they haven’t played these songs since the damn of the new millennium.

William DuVall hit the ball of the park. His singing complimented the rest of the band to a T. The transition to William from Layne was almost seamless. The songs that were Layne staples such as “Man In The Box” and “Nutshell”, William was incredible. He didn’t let us forget Layne but he didn’t try to replace Layne Staley either.

Alice in Chains passed all the tests and there is no reason they won’t be as successful with William behind the mic. Jerry Cantrell found his vocal heir apparent and I am looking forward to seeing AIC be a force in the music scene again!

You all did Layne proud!

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