Alice In Chains – Dirt (2xLP)

Dirt, released in 1992, is Alice in Chains’ second full-length and one of the defining albums of the grunge/alternative-metal era. Built around themes of pain, addiction, mortality, and inner turmoil, the album combines dense guitars, heavy rhythms, and haunting vocal harmonies. Layne Staley’s voice alternates between wounded confession and fierce outcry, while Jerry Cantrell’s riffs shift between sludge, dissonance, and melody. The tone is relentless, often bleak, but also intimate—small moments of softness puncture the darkness. Within their catalog, Dirt represents Alice in Chains at their most raw and uncompromising. It solidified their legacy as a band willing to confront destructive impulses face-on, and helped define what a “dark major-label rock record” could be. Decades later, it remains influential—cited by artists across metal, alternative, and post-rock as a formative influence for how emotional weight can coexist with sonic heft.

Reviews

“The album rightfully made Alice in Chains one of the most famous bands in the world … Dirt is one of the most unremittingly bleak albums ever released by a major label.” – Pitchfork

“Alice in Chains left an impression with Facelift, but it was on Dirt that they let all their scars show.” – Far Out