Soundgarden vs. Alice In Chains POLL

omg enough (from a huge grunge fan.. seriously)

well, when i did that Nirvana/Pearl Jam poll some suggested it would be more fair to pit PJ against Soundgarden, and i figured i'd just go ahead and poll the rest of the 'big four' instead.

ok sorry.. i vote SG

Alice In Chains.

In the early 90s I would've defo voted AIC. Now I'm not so sure.

Soundgarden are a lot funkier, which I didn't appreciate at the time.

Alice In Chains

SG

Soundgarden by a mile.

Alice in Chains

lol @ Soundgarden being funky

Alice In Chains have the best album for sure (Dirt), but Soundgarden have an astronomically better hit-to-miss ratio. When AIC was bad, AIC was BAD. SG was pretty decent their whole career thru.

SG is totally funky! Matt Cameron, duh.

Am I missing something if I never heard of any of those two bands?

If only Chris Cornell and Jerry Cantrell would team up. the harmonies we could hear.

No offense, dude's got pipes, but I think I could go without hearing Chris Cornell's voice ever again. But I'll still pop on "Dem Bones" or "Would?" every once in a while (haven't thought about AiC in a long time but I can't hate on those tracks)

AiC

Soundgarden. 'Superunknown' still stands up today as a great rock album from beginning to end, no filler. It is a bit long, though.

alice in chains, who don't get much love around here sadly.

In the early 90s I would've defo voted AIC. Now I'm not so sure.

― chap, Tuesday, December 23, 2008 10:23 PM (Yesterday) Bookmark

which is also where i fall ...

i mean, as if i would care that Soundgarden were all reverential towards Black Sabbath and Led Zeppelin and that shit ... that's nice, and back in the day i liked Soundgarden well enough. but stuff like "dem bones," "would?," "man in the box," and "no excuses" were all pretty damn great.

Automatic thread bump. This poll is closing tomorrow.

Never liked any of them much, but Soundgarden had "Black Hole Sun" only while AiC had a handful of similar melodic ballads. So my vote goes to Alice in Chains.

I can't stand either singer, but every once and a while I think I should check out Superunknown, hear how it comes off as a whole. Based on the singles, there's no AIC album I'm that curious about.

Soundgarden were so much better to me in the early years. I saw them both live just a little bit before the style got big, and Alice in Chains were boring traditional hard rock, good for a few songs, but tedious for a whole set. Soundgarden were huge noisey metal grunge, but ultimately, also tedious by third time I saw them.

On record, I have no interest in AiC except to hear the Rooster on rock radio every once in a while. I still listen to Louder Than Love every once in a while, and don't care that much of it is stupid (on purpose?). It's massive.

Dead tie, so...no vote.

can't believe people are actually voting for Alice in Chains, one of the only bands whose appeal I just can't see from any angle. Weren't they "Man in the Box"? That's one of the worst songs of all time.

it's not that alice in chains are a good band, but that soundgarden annoy me JUST. SO. MUCH.

The Cantrell/Staley harmony vocal is probably one of the worst things in rock.

I'll still pop on "Dem Bones" or "Would?"

Oh man my sentiments exactly. Love those two.

BUT, Soundgarden.

The albums Alice in Chains did when Layne Staley was clean/trying-to-get-clean (the acoustic EP, the Jar of Flies EP) are really great and like a totally different band almost.

Alice In Chains don't have one song though nearly as good as "Head Down".

Other than "Rooster" and "Dem Bones" which I desire never to hear again in my life Dirt is a very good album.

alice in chains really seem to get an unjustified bad rap. it's not music that's designed to be enjoyed by everybody, but i nevertheless would imagine that discerning music fans could find something singular and valuable in their records.

well, Alice in Chains are, um, gnarlier, but, um, yeah

Weren't they "Man in the Box"? That's one of the worst songs of all time. - J0hn D is the dog who gets beat.

the guitar solo alone, man. i mean.. that f***ing guitar solo maaaaaan!

that main riff in 'we die young' gets me every time. still full of vital energy and razor sharp guitar hook.

i nevertheless would imagine that discerning music fans could find something singular and valuable in their records.

I'll give you "singular." Where I could say Chris Cornell is a miserable Sammy Hagar, I'm having a real hard time thinking up a precedent for Mr. Staley.

I do enjoy "No Excuses."

"Searching With My Good Eye Closed" came up on shuffle the other day while I was standing in a snowstorm waiting for a bus while watching the sun set and it made me extremely happy.

I like AiC as much as the next guy but come on.

"lol @ Soundgarden being funky"

George Clinton thought Soundgarden was funky. The thing I think is impressive about some Soundgarden is that they would get into some pretty odd time signatures and the stuff would just roll out. Usually when bands get into odd time things get stilted sounding, but their stuff would sound really natural and groove.

Alice In Chains like Pearl Jam definitely spawned a horde of bad sound alike bands. Trying to be Soundgarden isn't quite so easy, as there is quite a bit more going on. That being said, the harmonized lead vocals that Lane Staley and Jerry Cantrell would do was really signature and I think probably one of the main reasons they were successful. It was pretty unique sounding in a big rock guitar band.

Right now I'm playing Dirt again for the first time in years. I had forgotten how much loved this album when I was younger.

Oh yeah:

The Cantrell/Staley harmony vocal is probably one of the worst things in rock.

― the ref (ed hochuli ha ha) (call all destroyer), Friday, December 26, 2008 4:25 AM (6 hours ago) Bookmark Suggest Ban Permalink

WRONG

I voted Soundgarden on the basis of their really early stuff ("Hunted Down"/"Nothing To Say" 45 and Screaming Life EP, even before some joker convinced them it would be a good idea to cover the Ohio Players), though actually, I am glad I own their A-Sides best of CD. At least at their rare best they made for a decent Kingdom Come or Whitesnake substitute. Never understood would people heard in AIC, at all really -- they just seemed fucking dreary and hookless back then, and though it's not like they invented harmonies in a loud pretentious rock bullshit context ("Carry On My Wayward Son"!), I'm willing to admit they may have been influential in some way (on certain '00s Nashville country-rock bands, for one thing.) And occasionally I'd notice a song (off that Jar of Flies EP for instance) where the dreariness actually amounted to a halfway identifiable dreary melody, since the melody wasn't buried under the dirt for once. Still, as boring a rock band as hit in the early '90s. So no contest, really.

Wouldn't you agree that Cantrell is a good guitarist, FWIW? Some merit to be found there perhaps, despite Staley's vocals being perhaps a dealbreaker for some?

the guitar solo alone, man. i mean.. that f***ing guitar solo maaaaaan!

I bow to no man on love of guitar solos but that song is like listening to four or five badly constipated men trying to work out their difficulties in an expensive recording studio - no solo can save it from its own dreadfulness

The thing I think is impressive about some Soundgarden is that they would get into some pretty odd time signatures and the stuff would just roll out. Usually when bands get into odd time things get stilted sounding, but their stuff would sound really natural and groove.

^^ truth, to me they're a really rare example of guys that threw in tons of unusual time signatures and tunings and weird solos and still managed to be a pretty hook-driven, meat-and-potatoes hard rock band.

Just listening to Badmotorfinger... Damn there are some enormous riffs going on, particularly on Room a Thousand Years Wide. I liked Superunknown better at the time, but I think this sounds fresher to my ears now.

Soundgarden. Superunknown is one of 3 or 4 best grunge albums. The follow up is excellent too, although far too long. Alice In Chains have some great songs, but not as many as Soundgarden.

impossible to choose. Dirt is prob the best album though.

Dirt I consider one of the best albums of all time btw. Badmotorfinger just behind it.
I still love listening to early soundgarden though. AIC reforming did put me off them for a bit.

Automatic thread bump. This poll's results are now in.

closer than i thought it would be. Hurrah.

I like Screaming Life and that one song from Jar of Flies that Chuck didn't mention by name. That's about it.

Alice In Chains don't have one song though nearly as good as "Head Down".

so wrong (and this is off their debut EP...!)

Alice in Chains was my youth...though oddly, I do think Soundgarden had more complete albums. Dirt still gives me chills, especially "Would?" and "Rain When I Die".

I never was a big fan of Jerry Cantrell singing lead. He has a bland, vanilla voice...

yeah but those fucking harmonies....those were a beautiful thing when deployed right.

Cantrell's voice is just nondescript enough to get the melody across, so when Staley joins in with the chorus it feels like there's some kind of sunburst going on inside yr head....

aic over soundgarden any day. soundgarden sounds waaaaaay too much like buffalo for comfort

and not to be a dick but "we die young" was alice's debut e.p., and "got me wrong" above there was on "sap," released after facelift. song for song "sap"'s my favorite thing they ever did and set expectations really high that dirt couldn't meet

oh duh my bad...

i like soundgarden a little more, but its way closer than most realize...i seriously have not been able to stop listening to "got me wrong" all day...superunknown is such a great album, but there are a few special moments when AiC just blow them totally out of the water...

"got me wrong" is awesome. so are "brother" and the sort of spooky "am i inside." i still wish there'd been more of that to come. ironically our two antagonists on this thread and their team-up with mudhoney (as alice mudgarden) recorded my least favorite song on the thing, "right turn." it's too temple of the dog for me

there are a few special moments when AiC just blow them

fixed for accuracy

quiet down buttrock!