• Reviews

• All
• Music
• DVDs
• Live
• Cinema
• TV
• Books
• Comic Books
• Video Games

Sep 21, 2015 Web Exclusive By Frank Valish

For Alice in Chains: The Untold Story, journalist David de Sola attempts to craft the definitive biography of one of grunge’s biggest and best bands. In doing so, he meticulously traces the group from its roots in Seattle’s local hair metal scene in the 1980s through its continued present day success. De Sola did not speak to any of the band members for the book, but his volume still brings a wealth of information. He interviewed many parents, friends, and peripherals to the band and scene, and their information provides context and depth.

What is clear from reading the more than 300 page book is that de Sola did his research. He relies on a wealth of sources, from other books to magazine articles to YouTube clips to flesh out his story. As such, the book is punctiliously annotated, with a hefty bibliography at the end as well. At times it feels like the best information was gleaned from sources like Mark Yarm’s Everybody Loves Our Town: An Oral History of Grunge or Greg Prato’s Grunge Is Dead: The Oral History of Seattle Rock Music, but the tale de Sola spins is nevertheless all-inclusive, comprehensive, and utterly affecting.

Heroin, of course, plays a major role in the history of Alice in Chains, and as the drug sinks its teeth into frontman Layne Staley toward the book’s end, things become emotional. In the book’s final quarter, it seems that band members, girlfriends, and others are dropping like flies, succumbing to a lifestyle of drugs that could never be sustained. The reporting on Staley’s final months is heartbreaking. Which leads to the ultimate moral of the story. Yes, Alice in Chains goes on, with founders Jerry Cantrell and drummer Sean Kinney, but without the voice-that voice-things could never be the same. (http://us.macmillan.com/thomasdunne)

Author rating: 7/10