Alice In Chains - Jar Of Flies (1994)

Written and recorded in about a week, Jar of Flies solidified Alice in Chains' somewhat bizarre pattern of alternating full-length hard rock albums with mostly acoustic, ballad-oriented EPs. That quirk aside, Jar of Flies is a low-key stunner, achingly gorgeous and harrowingly sorrowful all at once. In a way, it's a logical sequel to Dirt -- despite the veneer of calm, the songs' voices still blame only themselves. But where Dirt found catharsis in its unrelenting darkness and depravity, Jar of Flies is about living with the consequences, full of deeply felt reflections on loneliness, self-imposed isolation, and lost human connections. The mood is still hopelessly bleak, but the poignant, introspective tone produces a sense of acceptance that's actually soothing, in a funereal sort of way. Jerry Cantrell's arrangements keep growing more detailed and layered; while there are a few noisy moments, most of Jar of Flies is bathed in a clean, shimmering ambience whose source is difficult to pin down, but is well served by Cantrell's varied guitar tones and even occasional string arrangements. And coming on the heels of Dirt, the restraint and subtlety of Jar of Flies are nothing short of revelatory -- though it was written and recorded in about a week, it feels much more crafted and textured than Sap. Perhaps Jar of Flies would have gotten more credit if it had been a full-length album; as it stands, the EP is a leap forward and a major work in the Alice in Chains catalog. Source: [AMG]

Alice In Chains - No Excuses


Track Listing
1. Rotten Apple
2. Nutshell
3. I Stay Away
4. No Excuses
5. Whale & Wasp
6. Don't Follow
7. Swing on This

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White Zombie - La Sexorcisto: Devil Music Vol. 1 (1992)

Perhaps co-defining the future of heavy metal, White Zombie's major-label debut nearly equals fellow classics Guns N' Roses' Appetite for Destruction, the Cult's Electric, and Soundgarden's Badmotorfinger in significance. With a funky rap-metal undercurrent, these metal monsters combine Black Sabbath's riff sludge and Metallica's rhythmic intensity, a combination that would again resurface in the late '90s. On La Sexorcisto: Devil Music, Vol. 1, Zombie and co. take listeners on a hokey carnival ride capable of inducing vomit yet provide an exhilarating, heart-throbbing metal experience. Tactless and continuously shocking, lyricist Rob Zombie reveals blatant tales of muscle cars, sleazy encounters, and Fangoria-mustered fantasy, clearly paying homage to vintage trash culture. Complemented by Russ Meyer film soundbites and demonic aura, Zombie ridicules middle American Leave It to Beaver values and insolently challenges the politically correct. Diabolical manifestos such as the barbaric "Soul-Crusher," macabre "Spiderbaby (Yeah-Yeah-Yeah)," and sexually indiscreet "Thrust!" will intrigue those yearning for lewd explicitness but may offend traditional hard rock enthusiasts. "Thunder Kiss '65," an ode to Russ Meyer's 1965 busty B-movies Faster, Pussycat! Kill! Kill! and Mudhoney, remains this album's most listenable and enduring highlight. Along with perverted lyrics, Rob Zombie's vocal snarls and the band's muscular metal thunder produce the furious concoction that secures La Sexorcisto: Devil Music, Vol. 1's place in heavy metal history. Weak appetites for raunchy, tongue-in-cheek decadence need not apply. Source: [AMG]

White Zombie - Thunder Kiss '65


Track Listing
1. Welcome to Planet Motherfucker/Psychoholic Slag
2. Knuckle Duster (Radio 1-A)
3. Thunder Kiss '65
4. Black Sunshine
5. Soul-Crusher
6. Cosmic Monsters Inc.
7. Spiderbaby (Yeah-Yeah-Yeah)
8. I Am Legend
9. Knuckle Duster (Radio 2-B)
10. Thrust!
11. One Big Crunch
12. Grindhouse (A Go Go)
13. Starface
14. Warp Asylum

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Alice In Chains - Sap (1992)

Upon its release, Sap was a revelation, a seemingly tossed-off EP of four mostly acoustic ballads (augmented with a goofy bonus track) that threw Alice in Chains' melodic gifts into stunning relief while exposing a gentler, more melancholy side of their sound, something that Facelift never even hinted at. The mood is still bleak, but not affectedly so, as was sometimes the case on Facelift. There's a newfound maturity in the subtlety and confessional introspection of the first four songs, whose somber beauty is unfortunately dispelled by the bonus track (in a different context, it might be idiotic fun, but it really doesn't fit here). Still, Sap served notice that there was a great deal more depth to Alice in Chains than their debut had let on, hinting at the potential that would be realized with Dirt. [AMG]

Alice In Chains - Got Me Wrong


Track Listing
1. Brother
2. Got Me Wrong
3. Right Turn
4. Am I Inside
5. Love Song

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Screaming Trees - Dust (1996)

In many ways, the Screaming Trees missed their opportunity. They released Sweet Oblivion just as grunge began to capture national attention and they didn't tour the album extensively, which meant nearly all of their fellow Seattle bands became superstars while they stood to the side. After four years, they returned with Dust, their third major-label album, and by that point, the band's sound was too idiosyncratic for alternative radio. Which is unfortunate, because Dust is the band's strongest album. Sure, the rough edges that fueled albums like Uncle Anesthesia are gone, but in its place is a rustic hard rock, equally informed by heavy metal and folk. The influence of Mark Lanegan's haunting solo albums is apparent in both the sound and emotional tone of the record, but this is hardly a solo project -- the rest of the band has added a gritty weight to Lanegan's spare prose. The Screaming Trees sound tighter than they ever have and their melodies and hooks are stronger, more memorable, making Dust their most consistently impressive record. Source: [AMG]

Screaming Trees feat. Josh Homme - Witness

Track Listing
1. Halo of Ashes
2. All I Know
3. Look at You
4. Dying Days
5. Make My Mind
6. Sworn and Broken
7. Witness
8. Traveler
9. Dime Western
10. Gospel Plow

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Veruca Salt - American Thighs (1994)

With their thin, singsong vocals and fuzzed-out guitars, Veruca Salt may sound like the Breeders and the Pixies, but lack either band's talent for inverting pop conventions or taste for the bizarre. What Veruca Salt has instead is a raw talent for simple, infectious pop songs; the result is a surprisingly fresh fusion of alternative pop and bubblegum. Nina Gordon and Louise Post try hard to inject meaning into the sweet, distorted rush of "Seether," but all that sticks is the infectious melody and crushing guitars. That also applies to the slower songs, from the enchanting lust of "Spiderman '79" to "Forsythia," which is too close to the Breeders' Pod for comfort. But musically, American Thighs is surprisingly satisfying; it's a pure pop album masquerading as the next big thing. Source: [AMG]

Veruca Salt - Seether


Track Listing
1. Get Back
2. All Hail Me
3. Seether
4. Spiderman '79
5. Forsythia
6. Wolf
7. Celebrate You
8. Fly
9. Number One Blind
10. Victrola
11. Twinstar
12. 25
13. Sleeping Where I Want

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Supersuckers - La Mano Cornuda (1994)

La Mano Cornuda, or the horns of the devil, is The Supersuckers' most ambitious record to date as the intense guitar chord explosion first heard on The Smoke of Hell is joined with a more aggressive lead guitar attack that almost verges on The Supersuckers' closet dream of heavy metal machismo. Every song on La Mano Cornuda (with the exception of the limp punk-pop slacker anthem "On the Couch") embraces an overpowering rock jock attitude that will either disgust you or leave you rolling on the floor. Source [AMG]

Supersuckers - Creepy Jackalope Eye


Track Listing
1. Creepy Jackalope Eye
2. Seventeen Poles
3. High Ya!
4. On the Couch
5. Clueless
6. Sugie
7. Mudhead
8. Gold Top
9. How to Maximize Your Kill Count
10. I Was Born Without a Spine
11. Glad, Damn Glad
12. She's My Bitch
13. The Schmooze
14. Untitled

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