This year marks the 30th anniversary of Alice In Chains' seminal 1992 album Dirt. In celebration, the Seattle grunge heroes are reissuing the album in a special deluxe box set, containing a hardback book that features thoughts and reflections from the band, peers and friends about the album's influence and legacy.
One artist included in the book is Slipknot's Corey Taylor, who reveals that the record had a profound effect on him as a musician.
“Alice in Chains changed my entire approach to songwriting" he writes. "They showed me that you could write/marry the heavy to the beautiful and combine the sadistic with the hopeful.
"I’ve been a massive Alice in Chains fan since day one. I saw them open the Clash of the Titans tour and was addicted from that moment. The first song I heard from Dirt was Would? because it was on the Singles soundtrack. My initial thought was, ‘How are they going to top this?’ And holy hell, they smashed it."
He continues, “The whole album is perfection. The harmonies are perfect, the guitar tones are so thick, the passion is gorgeous, and the grooves — how the bass glues to the drums — are unfuckingtouchable.
"Whenever I am stuck musically, I go on a ‘Chains binge, and I always start with Dirt. It’s just a perfect album. Simply put, it’s one of the greatest hard rock/heavy metal albums of all time. It transcends genres. it speaks to people regardless of age or generation. It’s literally a clinic on how to make nihilism and contemplation work together.
“‘Would? and Angry Chair were two of the first songs Stone Sour played as a band. Joel Ekman and I would just jam the whole album together in my basement. Dirt is one of my favourite albums ever made.”
Since its release on September 29, 1992, Dirt has sold over five million copies worldwide. It was also the final Alice In Chains album to be recorded by all four original members - Layne Staley, Jerry Cantrell, Mike Starr and Sean Kinney.
The expansive box set released for the album's 30th anniversary will be limited to just 3000 units, and will be available exclusively from the band's webstore.
It contains a box with lid filled with metal shavings (move shavings around to create your own dirt design using magnetic cover figurine), a resin cover figurine to sit atop vinyl records on your record player, Dirt on Orange 2LP for the first time with remastered audio, Dirt on CD with remastered audio, Five 7” singles with brand new artwork on various coloured vinyl and the pre-mentioned hardback book.
Additionally, the collection features exclusive Dirt-inspired art prints by Cody Melick, Victor Melendez, Brent McKee, and Eric Wolfe Sahlsten, and more print memorabilia.
Check it out below:
