Episode 171 is LIVE! We’re wrapping up our deep dive into Alice In Chains’ 1992 masterpiece Dirt ! More riffs, more darkness, more harmonies that haunt your soul. Join us as we close out one of the most powerful records of the ’90s.

Dirt is the second studio album by American rock band Alice in Chains, released on September 29, 1992, by Columbia Records. It was the band’s last album recorded with all four original members, as bassist Mike Starr was fired in January 1993 during the tour to support the album. The majority of the songs were written by guitarist Jerry Cantrell, but for the first time, vocalist Layne Staley wrote two songs by himself (“Hate to Feel” and “Angry Chair”), both also featuring Staley on guitar. The track “Iron Gland” features Tom Araya from Slayer on vocals. The album’s lyrics explore depression, pain, anger, anti-social behavior, relationships, drug addiction (primarily heroin), war, death, and other emotionally charged topics.

Dirt received critical acclaim and charted in Australia, Canada, the Netherlands, Finland, Germany, New Zealand, Norway, Sweden, and the United Kingdom. In the US, it peaked at number 6 on the Billboard 200 chart. The album spawned five singles: “Would?”, “Them Bones”, “Angry Chair”, “Rooster”, and “Down in a Hole”, all with accompanying music videos. Dirt was nominated for the Grammy Award for Best Hard Rock Performance. It is certified 5× platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), making it Alice in Chains’ most commercially successful album.

Dirt is often considered a landmark album of the grunge era and been included in numerous best album lists. According to a writer of Pitchfork, the album made Alice in Chains “one of the most famous bands in the world”. In 2022, the album returned to the Top 10 of the Billboard 200 chart at number 9 following the release of its 30th anniversary reissue.

Alice In Chains
Layne Staley – lead vocals, rhythm guitar on “Hate to Feel” and “Angry Chair”
Jerry Cantrell – guitars, backing vocals, co-lead vocals on “Down in a Hole” and “Would?”
Mike Starr – bass
Sean Kinney – drums

Production
Alice in Chains – production
Dave Jerden – production (except on “Would?”), mixing
Rick Parashar – production on “Would?”
Bryan Carlstrom – engineering
Annette Cisneros – engineering, mixing
Ulrich Wild – engineering
Steve Hall and Eddy Schreyer – mastering

Art
Mary Maurer – art direction, visual effects
Doug Erb – cover design
David Coleman – logo
Layne Staley – sun logo/icons
Rocky Schenck – photography

Intro Music/Wheel Spin Music by LiteSaturation from Pixabay