Review Summary: Why's it have to be this way?
Alice in Chains’ self-titled album (commonly referred to as 'Tripod') was born during a difficult time for the band, largely because of Layne Staley’s return to heroin a year before it's release in 1995, little ahead of a summer tour with a few other prominent bands, in which, due to the group's vocalist's bad condition-the band didn’t play any shows. Earlier that year, the band released their second acoustic EP 'Jar of Flies' (notable for debuting at number one on the Billboard 200) , a gloomy, sorrowful acoustic album with songwriting equally great to what’s probably their opus magnum-'Dirt'.
What can be said about Alice in Chains?
This album is very gloomy. Dark, bleak, depressing and grim. Forget about the epic solos and riffs from 'Facelift' and 'Dirt'. Layne Staley doesn’t showcase his amazing vocal range in here like he did on the two previous records. There’s no signature bass lines like in 'Would?', 'Rain When I Die', 'Rotten Apple' or 'Swing on This'. Epic drums like on 'Love, Hate, Love', 'Would?' or 'Sickman?' No.
This album is all about it’s bleak, gloomy atmosphere. And Alice in Chains did a great job on that.
Bass and drums aren’t as impressive as on their earlier records. All that can be said, is that they get their job done. The guitars are often quite heavy and sludgy. There’s no really outstanding and very distinctive riffs, however many are nonetheless very good, the best one’s probably being 'God Am', 'Brush Away', 'Heaven Beside You' and 'So Close'. There’s considerably less solos than on the band’s two previous records. If there are some, they’re often trippy and noisy. Beside some songs also rely heavily on dissonant background noises ('Sludge Factory', 'Frogs'). This album is not very guitar heavy, but Cantrell, who’s no average guitarist did a good job on providing grim riffs and guitar lines greatly fitting this record’s mood. Vocals often seem to be a little isolated from the instruments, with Staley not showing his impressive range here and sounding lower than on 'Dirt' or 'Jar of Flies'. Nevertheless, his signature, raspy voice is still here to enjoy and he creates many mesmerizing vocal lines in here ('Head Creeps', 'Frogs', 'So Close'). There’s also some vocal output from Cantrell, who does main vocals on 'Heaven Beside You', 'Grind' and 'Over Now'. While he doesn't meet Staley's vocal standards, Alice in Chains' guitarist still provides nice diveristy with his vocals.
From the opener-'Grind', to the closing track-'Over Now', Alice in Chains create many dark and sorrowful tracks (whether it’s the calm 'Shame in You' or the unsettling and doomy 'Again'), sometimes a little angrier and more abrasive ('God Am', 'Brush Away'). There are few moments of relief, such as the two acoustic tracks written by Jerry Cantrell, 'Heaven Beside You', overlapping acoustics with sludgy and psychedelic guitar lines and the 7 minute 'Over Now', closing 'Tripod' down in a rather, and in a way, a little too, jaunty way. While some tracks were written out of lack of inspiration ('Nothin Song' and 'So Close'), and some are a little overdraged and may tire the listener (like the 7 minute 'Sludge Factory' or 'Over Now') even the worst moments of this album have something to them, whether is it creepy vocal melodies ('Head Creeps') or intricate lyrics ('God Am'). The lyrics here are also a very strong point, greatly portraying Layne Staley’s struggles with drug addiction ('Sludge Factory'), pressure from both the media and Alice in Chains’ record company ('Head Creeps', 'Nothin’ Song') as well as a the dark side of interpersonal relationships ('Frogs', 'Shame in You').
'Tripod' is a rather overlooked record when it comes to both grunge music and Alice in Chains’ catalogue. By some means, Alice in Chains has more elements of 'Jar of Flies' than of 'Dirt' or 'Facelift'. It’s focused on creating a bleak atmosphere and it does a great job on it. Layne Staley’s lyrical output and somber vocals add a lot to this albums quality and despite not having as many memorable riffs as their earlier work, Jerry Cantrell’s ideas on 'Tripod' are still very interesting, whether it’s eerie noises in the outro of 'Frogs', 'Grind’s' sludgy main riff overlapped with rich, wah-wah melodies ('Rotten Apple', anyone?) or 'Heaven Beside You' –a great mix of acoustic flavours and heavy guitar riffs.
While some songs seem unfitting or a little tiresome and at times the band lacks creativity ('Brush Away', 'So Close', 'Nothin’ Song'), most of Tripod’s flaws are rather minor. While besides 'Again' the artistic standards of individual songs aren’t definitely as high as on Alice in Chains’ earlier releases (except 'Sap'), what makes this album very strong is it’s consistency and rather even songwriting, which is what for instance brings 'Facelift' down. 'Alice in Chains' is a fantastic piece of music and it’s depressing character is undeniable. After all, tracks like 'Frogs' or 'Again' are probably some of the dismal and dark pieces of music one can find and certainly won’t forget.
Best tracks:
'Grind'
'Heaven Beside You'
'Head Creeps'
'Again'
'Frogs'
