10 Rock Albums That Are Way Too Bloated
Records Getting Flabby.
When putting together an album, you’re always going to want to put your best foot forward no matter what. Even if you don’t come in inspired, there’s a certain magic that comes with being in the studio that gets your creative juices flowing and makes you want to create a sound that no one has ever heard before. Then again, sometimes that ambition can go on for a bit longer than expected.
Though most of these albums still work as full experiences, having so much to plow through can be a bit daunting if you’re just getting acquainted with a band’s work. Most of these just have to do with the sheer volume of tracks, either because of the album ballooning into a double album experience or just stretching the track listing out to the 20s. Not every album on this list has to be bloated because of its number of tracks.
Being bloated can also come down to the songs themselves going on way too long, like tracks that would have made great 3 minute nuggets that are drawn out for 6 minutes instead. It might be the artist’s choice to make the final call, but the actual turnout reflected the bloat more often than not, with fans not showing up to go back to the records. It’s nice to have artists share a lot of themselves, but there’s no shame in having someone know when to stop recording.
10. The Devil Put Dinosaurs Here - Alice in Chains
Alice in Chains didn't really have any business sticking around after Layne Staley passed away. Since the pain in his voice was such a big part of what made them special on albums like Dirt, it felt like the band should have died along with him, until William DuVall reenergized them and sparked their career resurrection on Black Gives Way To Blue. Alice was going to get a second chance, but the next record was a bit more sluggish than most would have liked to admit.
That's not to say that the Devil Put Dinosaurs Here is a bad record by any stretch. There's a good chance that Alice doesn't have a bad album in them, but this one does feel the most stretched out just for the sake of time. While Black Gives Way to Blue may have had problems with the loudness wars in its time, the way these tracks drag on pale in comparison to their earlier work, with riffs that are a little too weak to carry the entire song.
Since Jerry Cantrell was taking the reigns here, what we got was an Alice record trying to be doom metal, and there's a fine line between sludgy and just getting boring after a while. Then again, Jerry Cantrell was in the emergency room to correct back problems when writing this record, so it makes sense why the album might sound like this. Alice is in repair, and they needed to take it slower to get in touch with those grunge roots again.