Various Artists – ‘Dirt [Redux]’ (Magnetic Eye)

By DJ Astrocreep

Losing Layne Staley will still go down as one of the biggest losses that rock music has had, certainly, in terms of the manner and age we lost him at. His voice was and remains the inspiration for so many vocalists and was a big part of Alice in Chains’ sound, one that has been since rightfully continued – and in a good manner – by William Duvall. ‘Dirt’ will likely forever be amongst my favourite albums recorded, so the chance to hear the next generation of artists do their version of such songs was one I couldn’t really pass up.

One thing I can say without a doubt is that I have a profound respect for the way that all the artists involved have approached their tasks. While some have remained fairly close to the original, such as High Priest, hearing Khemmis cover ‘Down in a Hole’ – a song that I have lyrics from tattooed on me, so deep is its meaning to me – and These Beasts on ‘Sickman’, transforming the songs with their own very well-executed takes on classic tracks really is something else, somehow breathing new life into even such a classic release.

When an album this influential and with so many complex layers, both in vocal harmonies and musically receives such an across the board high standard of covers, it’s an actual feat. There is not a single artist on here that feels out of place, despite the complexities already mentioned and the differing approaches of the bands involved. Such is the standard, it’s pretty hard to pick out high points. At a push, I’d probably look at Khemmis with ‘Down in a Hole’, Somnuri with title track ‘Dirt’ – I stopped everything on a couple of occasions due to the vocals in this – and Forming the Void with ‘Junkhead’, though the honourable mentions would definitely spread across the rest of the artists with a rather haunting version of ‘Would’ by The Otolith certainly banging on the door to be included.

As someone who is generally quite against covers, this is an album I truly both appreciate and enjoy. The varying takes, presented in a multitude of sonic stylings, add something different to the original that makes it feel like a true homage to the greats, rather than something blindly released for a quick buck and the artists all play their respective parts magnificently. I kinda feel like the next few days are going to be taken catching up on some of these artists now, such is the impression they’ve left. An excellent addition to a fan’s collection.

‘Dirt [Redux]’ is released on 18 September. You can get your copy HERE.

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