i'll just wander my own road

Alice in Chains played a phenomenal two-hour set at Cleveland's House of Blues last night. The band played a fantastic set that did an excellent job covering all the albums and EPs from their catalog. They covered almost all the hits and played so many songs that I can't complain about the one or two that were left out. The venue was small enough to provide an intimate setting for the show, especially during the acoustic set in the middle of the show.

The band seemed to be having a great time and there was a lot of interaction with the audience. William Duvall did a remarkable job filling the very large shoes left by the late Layne Staley. It's remarkable how similar he sounds to Layne, and he had no problem performing any of the songs. Jerry Cantrell was fairly stoic and mellow for the majority of the show, but his performance was amazing. Duvall may have adopted the role of frontman and Mike Inez was the most playful, pulling out goofy props and attempting to distribute cans of beer to the crowd, but Cantrell was obviously the quiet force driving the show. I'd also argue that he's probably one of the most underrated guitarists ever. Anyways, the show was well worth the trip.

Set List:
Again
Bleed the Freak
Grind
It Ain't Like That
Junkhead
Nutshell
Them Bones
Dam That River
Rain When I Die
(Layne Staley video tribute)
Don't Follow (acoustic)
Brother (acoustic)
Killer Is Me (acoustic)
No Excuses (acoustic)
Got Me Wrong (acoustic)
Down In A Hole (acoustic)
(Alice in Chains video montage)
Sludge Factory
We Die Young
Angry Chair
Man In The Box
(encore)
Rooster
Would