The band had closed the first leg of the Dirt European tour which consisted of 26 dates in 12 countries (they would come back 6 months later) and 14 dates in the states, so they came in a solid form, particularly new bass player, Mike Inez, who became part of the band in Camden Underworld concert in London.

Alice In Chains

Lollapalooza III 1993

Vancouver, B.C.

UBC Thunderbird Stadium

June 18th 1993

First show Lollapalooza '93 tour

Lollapalooza III 1993

First show of Alice in Chains in the third version of the Itinerant festival “Lollapalooza”, This version should be one of the best in terms of line-up, amongst 92 and 94 versions.

The show was recorded with a SonyWM D3 Professional Walkman equipment and a Sony ECM-907 microphone, right in front of the center of the stage and just a few meters from the the Mosh Pit.

The show was recorded by a BLEED for AIC´s friend; "Audioarchivist" who has an experience of over 25 years of being a "taper" of big shows and bands. Gently, Audioarchivist has given us the audio and exclusive photos taken by himself with a camera at the time.

These shows of that era, are historical records that acquire much more value today because at that time the tapers had to carry equipment, microphones, tapes and extra batteries and hold them with their hands up to try to capture the best audio. And if this were not enough, think about every trick they had to do in order of not being discovered by the event security or even to deal with the weather, either rain or heat. In this case it was the heat. All this was made for us, and 24 years later we can enjoy a historical record. With all these cons, Audioarchivist starts recording before the beginning of the Alice in Chains show, one of the most anticipated bands of the day, so track 1 it´s the end of Dinosaur Jr. set and track 2 is the soundcheck of Alice in Chains which included classics such as "Look that kill" of Motley Crue and "We die Young" played by Cantrell´s guitar roadie. The audience went mad instantly.

Dinosaur Jr. toca previo a Alice in Chains.

Then the band strafe us with a killer version of "We Die young" and the audience go crazy again even than in the first 2 songs. At the end of the song a huge ovation for the band!

The classic bass lines created by Starr start, this time played with mastery by Inez Layne introduce the song that follows in the setlist; "We're Alice in Chains and this song is called Would?". The band flows with ease that is caused by having been on the road for several months. It is in this song that our taper Audioarchivist taper has a problem because the crowd was pressing hard to see and hear our heroes. Result: The recording is cut and the end of Would? is lost.

The recording starts again with "Love, Hate, Love" and Inez's bass shines with great depth which gives an even more dramatic touch to the song.

A correct version of Godsmack follows, a great highlight on this song is the initial riff by Cantrell, a little bit deeper than we are used to hear. Junkhead is always one of the highest points in any show of that time and this version doesn´t dissapoint, and everyone in the crowd is singing leaving their lungs out. Towards the end of Junkhead a new problem appears: the tape ends and our taper must change it as quickly as possible. In this digital age, where anyone can record video or audio through their handheld devices, the tapers of the time are great heroes and even I´d dare to say, great historians.

We continue with Angry Chair, with a very correct version, where Sean hits his drums with great the power. It´s weird the audience seems to be more quiet, perhaps they were not losing any detail of the Alice in Chains mastery.

"We got one more for you, thank you very much for coming out," says Layne and the storm breaks! The crowd is already hearing "Man in the Box" and they´re all singing this magnificent masterpiece. Layne is in great shape. We continue with an excellent version of Hate to Feel and the crowd receives it very well. At that moment a guy tries to negotiate the purchase of Audioarchivist recording. A unique moment for sure!. At that moment the magnificent bass of Inez roars to tell us that a great song the Alice in Chains catalog is coming: Rain When I Die. Layne shines in the chorus of the song with a bone-wrenching voice.

Jerry announces Rooster and the audience goes wild. It's the last song of this first lollapalooza III show, and what a great epilogue with this huge version that shows each of the pieces of this engine called Alice In Chains, working together in the best possible way. As always, I finish the review of this Live Show recommending the following: do yourself a favor, try to get this show in FLAC, not MP3, so you can get the whole picture of what was Alice in Chains Live.

Our friend Audioarchivist have authorized us to put some of the photos he took that day, you will find them at the end of the comment.

Article and translation by: Schulz

After the 20 minutes between the end of Dinosaur Jr set and the soundcheck of Alice in Chains, the crowd begin to feel the Intro of Iron Gland and that is the point where everyone turns to stage. Hearing the voice of Layne in "Dam That River" and the audience goes wild and screams become deafening. Somehow annoying, however, but optimally show the true experience of attending a lollapalooza with Alice in Chains as headliner.

The shows in festivals are are shorter due to scheduling so that each band has a timely presence on stage. However there is no reason to leave out some of the songs of the initial triple pack. "Them Bones" sounds and the audience seem happy to have Alice in Chains before their eyes so they sing and chat about what they are witnessing. It seems a calmer audience than we are used to hear in a show of Alice In Chains at that time.