Alice in Chains – Roy Wilkins Auditorium – Saint Paul, MN – July 9, 2013

Written by Tracy Hansen.  Photography by Kyle Hansen of RKH Images.
The Roy Wilkins Auditorium is filled with fans of all ages and varying generations, all eagerly awaiting Alice in Chains.  They are first treated to Chevelle, who has not been on the scene as long, but is incredibly popular.  Chevelle plays a traditional styling of a concert with no major stage show.  Rather, they work to get the crowd amped up for the main act while thoroughly enjoying a mix of great tracks.  Such songs played by them include numerous hits, such as “The Red”, “Send the Pain Below”, “The Clincher”, and more.  They also play several of their new favorites, including, “Hats Off to the Bull” and “Face to the Floor”.

Alice in Chains hit the stage with William DuVall on leading vocals.  He is well known to do an excellent job stepping into Layne Staley’s shoes.  They open with the track, “Again”, which pulls together the fans of all ages instantly.  The band is supporting their new album, Alice in Chains’ fifth studio album, “The Devil Put the Dinosaurs Here”, as well as playing a number of classic tracks.  They play several songs from the new album, including, “Voices” and “Hollow”.  It is the older Alice in Chains’ tunes that really get the crowd moving including, “We Die Young”, “Rooster”, “Down in a Hole”, “Check My Brain” and many more.

Overall, the show is fantastic and simply cannot get more positive remarks from the audience.  Numerous people state that it is the best show they have seen all year.  While many also laugh this off, there are several reasons as to why they are saying this.  It sounds like classic Alice in Chains, as if they are channeling Layne Staley to perform.  Jerry Cantrell is in incredible form, tearing up the guitar throughout the entire show, not slowing down one bit.  There is also a huge video screen that allows for interaction with fans all the way through the entire auditorium.

It seems that Alice in Chains is very true to all of their work, whether old or new.  It’s a nice aspect for the fans because they are both able to hear new songs live and be treated to music they may have never had the chance to hear in a concert.