Alice in Chains: Facelift (2LP) [COLUMBIA/LEGACY]

Why you'll love it

Facelift was the first grunge album certified gold, it's now triple platinum, and "Man in the Box" earned the band a Grammy nomination. It's where the sludgy riffs and those Staley/Cantrell harmonies first arrived.

This edition

• 2LP set
• Columbia/Legacy pressing
• Includes "Man in the Box" and "We Die Young"

About the album

Before Nevermind kicked the door open, Alice in Chains were already in the building. Facelift came out in August of 1990, a year before the rest of Seattle broke big, and it quietly became the first grunge album to be certified gold, thanks largely to MTV's heavy rotation of the "Man in the Box" video.

It's heavier and more metallic than much of what followed from the city, all thick, churning Jerry Cantrell riffs and Layne Staley's unforgettable howl, but the secret weapon is already there: the eerie, close vocal harmonies between the two of them. "We Die Young," "Love, Hate, Love" and "Bleed the Freak" set out the blueprint the band would perfect on Dirt, and it still sounds massive.

Also at Kops: more Alice in Chains on vinyl · browse Alternative

Tracklist

Listen

On Columbia/Legacy, a reissue of the 1990 album.