Long after the death of Layne Staley, Alice in Chains move on in style

There's no doubt the critics are rubbing their hands together, waiting to offer their lofty opinions on the first Alice in Chains record in 14 years. But before they deliver a verdict, the harshest critics of Black Gives Way to Blue have already been satisfied. "If we had gone through this and didn't feel it lived up to our standards, we would have shelved it, gone home and been fine," drummer Sean Kinney asserts. "Of course, you hope everyone will be into it, but we've never been a band for everybody anyways."

But they have been a hit with millions across the world ever since "Man in the Box" helped usher in the Seattle sound almost 20 years ago. The band became one of the biggest in the world, until lead singer Layne Staley's drug problems began to derail their plans and they officially broke up following his death in 2002. But the music lived on. "We made an amazing career choice of having two number one albums and never touring or doing any press," Kinney sarcastically admits. "But people passed the music on. It was totally out of our control, and I think it's great. It's an honor that the music still resonates with some people."

After the tsunami tragedy in '05 brought the remaining members back together for a benefit, there was still an undeniable creative spark. "We just got in a room and played some songs. Just jammed. And we decided there was something there." Enlisting the help of William Duvall, a gifted musician who worked with guitarist Jerry Cantrell for years, everything began falling in place. "We never put too much thought into it, and then all of a sudden we're playing in front of 40,000 people," Kinney laughs. "It felt good and genuine and was coming from the right place, but we didn't have any intention of taking it to the next level." But after touring for a couple years, they found themselves demoing new material in the studio for Black Gives Way to Blue, an album that will satisfy any skeptics with the same addictive dissonance and cryptic harmonies that made the band such a force last millennium.

And a new chapter of Alice in Chains starts with the members feeling more positive than they have in years. "A lot's happened," Kinney says. "Tremendously great things and devastatingly horrible things. We've grown a lot, and this record reflects that. We lost our brother, and it was a huge undertaking. But we feel strongly about the album and believe in it, and we're doing it for the same reasons we've always done it. To me, this is already a success."