Alice In Chains guitarist/singer Jerry Cantrell has confirmed that he is working on a new solo album. The effort will mark his first full-length release since Degradation Trip, the 2002 solo album he made with then-future Metallica bassist Robert Trujillo and Faith No More drummer Mike Bordin.
Cantrell discussed his plans in a new interview with guitar manufacturer Gibson, saying, “I've been in this band, in Alice In Chains, since 1987, so 33 years. And that's always been my first love and my commitment, but I did have the opportunity to make a couple of solo records, and since we started the band back up, I really didn't have the opportunity to revisit that.”
Cantrell continued, “(Alice In Chains is) gonna take a year off, so I thought I'd maybe do some shows and I'm working on some music as well. And there's gonna be some exciting things. I don't wanna say just yet what's happening, but I can tell you that there's gonna be some cool s**t happening this year.”
In a separate interview with People TV, Cantrell remarked, “I'm working on a new record myself . . . If you liked any of the solo work that I did or the work with Alice, I'm sure you might like some of this stuff too.”
Degradation Trip was written at a dark time in Cantrell's life and he told us a while back that he's never shied away from exploring that: “It's never been my intention to be dark. I guess I just maybe talk about stuff that's more real, you know what I mean? There's plenty of stuff out there to distract you from stuff. I'm not really trying to distract anybody from anything, and I'm trying not to look away from myself or somebody else that's either scary, disturbing, something that I don't like about somebody or myself. I'm trying to look at those things without looking away.”
Cantrell did a pair of shows this past December at the Pico Union Project in Los Angeles where he played material from Degradation Trip and his first solo LP, 1998's Boggy Depot. Alice In Chains has finished touring behind its latest album, Rainier Fog.