It is a straight acoustic ballad with some nice harmonica. “Don’t Follow” is probably the least experimental of the songs. Jerry wrote it when he was in highschool, finally recording it on Jar of Flies. The instrumental “Whale and Wasp” is up next, so named because Jerry felt it sounded like whales and wasps talking to each other. It’s an almost-happy sounding song with some sweet rolling basslines from Mike Inez. “No Excuses” was another single (the first one, actually). Alice seem to ignore songwriting convention most on songs like “I Stay Away”. It’s a cool tune because it has sections that sound like they don’t go together, yet they make it work.
The single “I Stay Away” features strings to emphasize the powerful chorus. It always takes me right back to summer 1994. It’s my personal favourite tune on Jar of Flies. The opener is followed by “Nutshell”, which I like even better. None of this changes the fact that this slow one is both warm and forboding at the same time a cool thing. Perhaps that’s what makes it so hypnotic to me. It just feels like the fragment of a lyric. Who knows what Layne was trying to express at the time, perhaps it’s with intent. It’s hypnotic, even though the lyrics really feel unfinished. “Rotten Apple”, which is one of the best tunes anyway, kicks off the CD. Here I am, still playing it 19 years later and loving it just as much. As a result, it has a longevity that similar EPs sometimes lack.
Just about every song on Flies is a total winner, but the best thing about it is that it grows on you. As you listen to it more, that feeling disappears. When I first heard it, I felt like some of these songs were under-written, that they could have used more work. Jar of Flies was written and recorded rather spontaneously in just a week. Hilarious track, but it must have taken people by surprise. The band switched instruments for this chaotic joke song, with Sean Kinney on megaphone/vocals. Everything goes to hell though with the final track, the unlisted “Love Song”. Layne Staley’s “Am I Inside” follows, another understated and mellow slow-burner. I remember Jerry Cantrell once said that Mark Arm’s vocal on it “scares the shit” out of him every time he hears it. These songs are followed by “Right Turn” by Alice Mudgarden: essentially Alice In Chains with Chris Cornell of Soundgarden and Mark Arm of Mudhoney on guest vocals! It is a great contrast: Cornell screaming at the top of his lungs, and Arm down low. Both “Brother” and the next song, “Got Me Wrong” (another standout) were released live on the band’s Unplugged CD. The opening track, “Brother” is sung by Jerry Cantrell with Ann Wilson of Heart on the choruses. He had a dream about it one night, and told the band, “Guys, we have to release these songs as an EP, and we have to call it Sap.” He stated that they were writing songs for the next album ( Dirt), but all this acoustic music started pouring out instead. I remember reading an interview in RIP Magazine with drummer Sean Kinney. Although Jar of Flies is the first disc in the set, I will review Sap first since that’s how they came out. It even contains all the artwork from the original releases. Great score, and it was in great condition. I snagged a European import of this set many years ago, for less than the price of either of the two EP’s separately. Acoustic in nature, these two recordings are crucial to rock fans who need to know more about one of the most interesting bands of the 1990’s. This ended after Layne’s death, but these two EPs - 1992’s Sap and 1994’s Jar of Flies - represent some of the best work of this pioneering band. ALICE IN CHAINS – Jar of Flies / Sap (1994 double Columbia EP edition, originally 19)įor a little while, Alice In Chains were in the habit of releasing an EP before each studio album ( We Die Young preceded the Facelift album albeit it was a promo).
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