Review Summary: Alice In Chains continue to do what Alice In Chains do best.
The consistency of Alice In Chains is something to behold. Not all of their albums are great, but there are few who would say that one of their albums are absolute garbage. For that very reason, when the band announced a new album I was cautiously optimistic. What if this was the album to ruin the streak that’s been running for 28 years❓ For we all know, this could be their big slip up in quality. Now that Rainier Fog has been released, I can now safely say that… this album didn’t disappoint!
Here’s the thing if you’re expecting a radical change in sound from their last album then, you are going to be sorely disappointed. Alice In Chains are still making sludge-y heavy music with lots of harmonizing between Jerry Cantrell and William DuVall. There really aren’t that many differences between this and the previous few albums by the band. The few differences that exist are minor, like the fact that there are a few songs that aren’t about emotions. The continuation of the same sound that the band has used for so long, doesn’t mean that the music is uninspired or too samey. The band still sounds extremely energetic and passionate. William DuVall and Jerry Cantrell sound fantastic as the vocalists and their guitar work is strong. The former is a part of the extremely strong rhythm section and the latter provides fantastic solos and guitar riffs. Mike Inez is easier to hear than ever with his powerful and interesting basslines. Sean Kinney continues to have really strong drumming that makes so many songs here sound more powerful, even if he isn’t that technical.
One of Alice In Chains’ strongest qualities was always the great songwriting from the great choruses to the content in the verses. The great news is that Rainier Fog still has these traits with songs like “All I Am” having some of the band’s strongest songwriting. While their previous effort lacked a lot of really strong melodies, this album makes up for it with most songs either having a beautiful or catchy melody. Many times, it’s both. This is all made even better with the fact that there are no bad songs here. A few are weaker than others, but there are a lot more fantastic songs here that outweigh the weak points. The consistency of this album is great stuff and some of these songs are among the best from the newer Alice In Chains’ work. “Drone” and “Red Giant”, in particular, are some of the band’s strongest songs. That’s not to say that there aren’t any issues with this album. Quite a few of these songs could probably be a bit shorter (“Fly”) and there are a few tracks that aren’t that musically interesting (“Deaf Ears Blind Eyes”). Sometimes, the album can sound a bit too much like it’s predecessors.
Despite these flaws, Rainier Fog is an extremely enjoyable outing from a veteran band. I can’t say that there are points that bore me. There is always something to enjoy in these songs. The band still has great instrumentation, melodies, lyrics, and songs. There’s an argument to be had that this album isn’t that unique or even that impressive for this band. However, this album was a very pleasant surprise that should appeal to people who loved the last two releases from this band. If you didn’t like those releases than, it’s safe to assume that you can skip this album. There won’t be much here for those who weren’t sold on the newer Alice In Chains. Overall, Rainier Fog is another great release from a very consistent band.
