10 Songs That Emotionally DESTROYED Artists

After the making of Dirt, Layne Staley was coming to the end of the line. Despite being in and out of rehab for his heroin addiction, his downward spiral became much more pronounced going into Jar of Flies. While you can see most of the songs on Dirt as character pieces, there’s no barrier between artist and audience on Nutshell.

After years of trying to clean up his act, this is the moment where Layne gives into his addiction, talking about the toll that the drugs have had on his body and how small he feels having to deal with the constant hunger for more day after day. Outside of the rock star lifestyle though, Layne seems to be signing off from this life, thinking that he’ll never win this battle and will most likely become a rock and roll casualty later down the line.

It’s easy to just see this song as another junkie who messed themselves up, but hearing Layne like this gives you perspective on what the life of an addict can be like. We might see them throwing their lives away, but when you get past the actual addiction, it’s lonely living in that sickness.