I hate Layne Staley.

Layne Staley, vocalist of Alice in Chains, was one of the greatest singing voices I have ever heard. His ghostly harmonies, the exposing and depressing lyrics, the spine tingling vibrato...I have yet to hear anyone that can grasp these qualities like he did, only come close (David Eugene Edwards, Warrel Dane, Mikael Åkerfeldt). So why do I hate him?

He killed himself with drugs.

One of the greatest artists and singers of this generation and he destroyed it. He injected poison into his veins and deprived the world of his voice. I can't forgive someone who could ruin something so amazing.

Now, there's this.



Now, I'm all for a new Alice in Chains song. But there's no Layne. Willian Duvall is not Layne. Try as I might to understand why people claim that he does, Duvall does not sound like him. They do not have the same voice. People are trying to say that this is like the old Alice in Chains and it isn't. This is Jerry Cantrell doing the same things he did before but without the second half of the dynamic duo that made up the majority of Alice in Chains' qualities. The emotion isn't there, the self-defeating loneliness isn't there. How people can say this is an Alice in Chains comeback is beyond me.

This wouldn't aggravate me as much if they used a different name. I'd probably enjoy it if they pushed it as a new band featuring the surviving Alice in Chains members. But no, they want to ride the popularity train as hard as they can and I truly think they're going to fail for it. This is just disappointing. It's insulting to people like me who really appreciate Layne Staley's talent. Until I hear Layne's voice coaxing me into a sweet depression, Alice in Chains is gone. This new band is something different that I don't recognise.