On October 29, 2021, Jerry Cantrell released "Brighten".
While most of the albums released this year are the work of the Covid-19 crisis, this album was created in March 2019, before Covid-19 broke out. This is Jerry Cantrell's third album, released almost 20 years after his second and double solo album.
Jerry finished most of the writing of the album towards the end of Alice In Chain's "Rainier Fog" tour, which ended in September 2019, a few months before the plague broke out. He managed to record most of the material for the album and even managed to hold several shows with the materials of the album and with musicians who would later appear on the album before the shutdown. But following the lockdowns, the production and mix of the album became longer and more complex. But Jerry took the challenge he faced and turned it into an opportunity. He recruited the recording technician Paul Figueroa and film composer Tyler Bates who is a known producer who among other things produced the soundtrack for the "300" and "John Wick" films. Jerry used the time he was forced to spend, in recruiting various friends and artists to play with him on the album.
(Photo: frontview-magazine)
Of course, most of the guitars are performed by Cantrell, most of the bass roles are performed by Duff McKagan and most of the drum roles are performed by Gil Sharone ("The Dillinger Escape Plan" and Marilyn Manson). But in addition to this excellent lineup, there are quite a few other stars like: Greg Puciato ("The Dillinger Escape Plan", "Killer Be Killed"), Abe Loriel Jnr., Eric Clapton, Sting, Avril Lavigne, and several others.
The album consists of 8 original songs that reflect Cantrell's DNA and flow between the country style he absorbed in his youth, the blues that influenced him so much when he grew up, the heavy riffs that were expressed in Alice and all of which are led by his all-too-familiar and delightful singing. Cantrell is without a doubt a talented musician who can express all the elements of music, just like a one-man band. In our opinion, even when other artists are hosted here, the perceived musical stamp is still that of Cantrell, it is not felt that the same artist has taken the focus in his direction. The album is signed by the song "Goodbye" by Elton John, the client from his album "Madman Across the Water" which is one of the favorite albums in the shoot on Jerry. As a reminder, Elton John was a guest on piano playing the song "Black Gives Way to Blue" by "Alice In Chains" written by Cantrell in memory of Layne Staley. Out of respect for Elton, Cantrell approached him and asked him if it was okay to include the cover version on the album. Elton listened to the performance and gave Jerry the stamp Jerry needed.
Listen to the album on: Spotify, Apple Music