12 PERFECT Metal Albums With NO Bad Songs
3. Dirt - Alice in Chains
Metal had somewhat of a hard time finding its voice in the era of flannel. While the grunge bands coming from Seattle certainly had a lot of respect for the heavier side of rock and roll, most bands like Pearl Jam and Nirvana were more concerned with the rock side than anything metallic. Things may have looked grim, but Alice in Chains brought the sounds of Seattle back down to Hell with Dirt.
Across this album, every song feels like a dirge in the best way possible, with tracks like "Down in a Hole" and "Rain When I Die" never sacrificing heaviness when bringing the tempo down lower than usual. This album also had a lot to unpack lyrically, with the band using these songs almost as therapy as they talk about their internal demons. Even the more straightforward songs like "Rooster" feel like a sad lament, as these guys drench their songs in a depressive haze.
While the band may have been the shiny new band back in their day, every song on here feels like the next step for heavy rock, with songs that are as much indebted to Black Sabbath as they are to Mudhoney. The band's demons may have taken Layne Staley's life in the end, but Dirt still holds up as one of the most tortured pieces of music to come out of the grunge era.