“This record is a serious piece of work… I think it’s some of my best songwriting and playing”: Jerry Cantrell taps Guns N’ Roses and Metallica bassists for new solo album I Want Blood

Alice in Chains guitar icon Jerry Cantrell has announced I Want Blood, his fourth solo record, will be released on October 18 – and it features a host of high-profile guests.

Bass duties are handled by Duff McKagan (Guns N’ Roses) and Robert Trujillo (Metallica), while Faith No More’s Mike Bordin also features on drums, in effect reuniting the Cantrell/Trujillo/Bordin power trio behind 2002’s epic double album Degradation Trip.

Other guests include drummer Gil Sharone (Team Sleep, Stolen Babies), with backing vocals provided by Lola Colette and Greg Puciato (Better Lovers, ex-Dillinger Escape Plan).

Opening track Vilified is the first taste of the record, which finds Cantrell breaking out both the talk box and the wah over a 6/8 groove that wouldn’t sound out of place in early ’90s Alice in Chains.

Accordingly, the 45-minute collection is an altogether heavier effort when compared with Cantrell’s previous album, the folk-infused Brighten (2021).

Jerry Cantrell – Vilified (Official Visualizer) – YouTube

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“This record is a serious piece of work. It’s a motherfucker,” Cantrell says of his upcoming release. “It’s hard, no doubt, and completely unlike Brighten. And that’s what you want, to end up in a different place. There’s a confidence to this album. I think it’s some of my best songwriting and playing, and certainly some of my best singing.”

The record was co-produced by Cantrell and Joe Barresi, whose resume includes Tool, Queens of the Stone Age and Melvins – and explains why the guitar tone is quite so ferocious on this opening cut.

I Want Blood is out on October 18 via Double J Music, and available to preorder now. The full tracklisting is below.

Jerry Cantrell kicks off his North American tour with Bush this evening – see JerryCantrell.com for full dates.

Earlier this year, Cantrell put out a call for fans to be on the lookout for his original G&L Rampage – one of grunge’s most important guitars – which he believed to have been stolen. It was found the very next day, with the AIC leader admitting it had just been misplaced.

Jerry Cantrell – I Want Blood tracklisting

1. Vilified
2. Off The Rails
3. Afterglow
4. I Want Blood
5. Echoes Of Laughter
6. Throw Me A Line
7. Let It Lie
8. Held Your Tongue
9. It Comes