So why is Alice in Chains’ Jar of Flies on this best 1,000 albums ever thing?
Alice Alice in Chains is a band for which my admiration has steadily grown over the years – and that dynamic only accelerated during the lengthy research process for this here best 1,000 albums ever project.
With regard to the (let’s call it) long EP or short album) Jar of Flies, I’m right in line with how All Music’s Steve Huey puts it: “a low-key stunner, achingly gorgeous and harrowingly sorrowful all at once.”
The low-key side, the acoustic side, the slow and mournful side of Alice in Chains is the mode in which I believe they shine the brightest (through the gloom): beautiful and haunting and affecting down to the bone.
“I Stay Away” is way up there in terms of my favorite all-time AiC songs. It’s got a “classic” Alice in Chains sound, really, but leans into a quieter, and if not softer mode, a gentler sound that is nonetheless still ferocious by most bands’ standards. The ferocity comes from the achingly gorgeous and harrowingly sorrowful mode that Huey mentions. The vocals are unbelievable here, harmonies that transcend whatever most people might ever think of as “grunge” or “metal” music.
It’s simply staggering, really.
“No Excuses” is nearly as good, but with an even gentler and softer feel, acoustic and wonderful. And it has one of the best choruses the band ever produced.
“Don’t Follow” is another great quieter number, with a harmonica and just a touch of a country feel.
And then “Whale & Wasp” is a delightfully quiet (yet somewhat somber, this is Alice in Chains, mind) instrumental number that even makes room for strings(!).
Finally, “Swing On This” is as close to groovy as Alice in Chains ever gets, but with a chill (almost? kind of?) alternative metal feel that’s unique and great.
Some stats & info about Alice in Chains – Jar of Flies
- What kind of musical stylings does this album represent? Rock Music, Grunge, Hard Rock, Alternative Rock, Alternative Metal, Seattle Bands
- Rolling Stone’s greatest 500 albums ranking – not ranked!
- All Music’s rating – 4 out of 5 stars
- When was Jar of Flies released? 1993
- My ranking, the one you’re reading right now – #225 out of 1,000
Alice in Chains’ Jar of Flies on Spotify
A lyrical snippet from Alice in Chains’ Jar of Flies that’s evocative of the album in some way, maybe
Everyday it’s something, hits me all so cold. Find me sittin’ by myself, no excuses, then I know.
What does the “best 1,000 albums ever” mean and why are you doing this?
Yeah, I know it’s audacious, a little crazy (okay, maybe a lot cray cray), bordering on criminal nerdery.
But here’s what it’s NOT: a definitive list of the Greatest Albums of All-Time. This is 100% my own personal super biased, incredibly subjective review of what my top 1,000 albums are, ranked in painstaking order over the course of doing research for nearly a year, Rob from High Fidelity style. Find out more about why I embarked on a best 1,000 albums ever project.