Sean Kinney | |
---|---|
Background information | |
Birth name | Sean Howard Kinney |
Born | Renton, Washington, U.S. [1] | May 27, 1966
Genres | |
Occupation | Musician |
Instruments |
|
Years active | 1976–present |
Member of | Alice in Chains |
Formerly of | Spys4Darwin |
Sean Howard Kinney (born May 27, 1966) is an American musician, best known as the drummer and co-founder of the rock band Alice in Chains. [2] [3] Kinney also founded the short-lived supergroup Spys4Darwin, and has collaborated with other artists such as Johnny Cash and Metallica. He played drums for his Alice in Chains bandmate, Jerry Cantrell's first solo album, Boggy Depot (1998). Since 2009, Kinney has been co-owner of The Crocodile club in Seattle. He was a guest drummer on NBC's Late Night with Seth Meyers in September 2018. Kinney has earned nine Grammy Award nominations as a member of Alice in Chains. [4]
Sean Howard Kinney was born in Renton, Washington, on May 27, 1966. [5] [1] His father was a police officer and his mother was a city official. [6] [7]
Kinney's interest in music was developed at an early age. He got his first drum kit when he was 5 years old. By the age of 9, he was the drummer for his grandfather's band, The Cross Cats, [7] and was traveling the Northwest playing small venues. [7] Kinney grew up in Renton, where he attended Liberty Senior High School in the Issaquah School District.[ citation needed ]
Kinney met singer Layne Staley around 1985, when Staley's band Sleze was playing at Alki Beach. [7] Kinney revealed to Guitar Legends magazine that in their first meeting he told Staley that he was cool but his band sucked, and that he should get a different drummer, so Kinney suggested himself. [7] Kinney did not have a phone at the time, so he gave Staley a piece of paper with his girlfriend's number. [7]
Kinney met up with Alice in Chains in 1987, [2] when guitarist Jerry Cantrell wanted to form a new band after his band Diamond Lie broke up, so his roommate Layne Staley gave him the phone number of Kinney's girlfriend, Melinda Starr, so that Cantrell could talk to Kinney and set up a meeting. [2] Kinney and his girlfriend went to the Music Bank in Seattle where Cantrell was living and listened to his demos. [8] Cantrell mentioned that they needed a bass player to jam with them, and he already had someone in mind: Mike Starr, with whom Cantrell had played in a band in Burien called Gypsy Rose. [2] [8] Kinney then mentioned that his girlfriend was actually Starr's sister, and that he had been playing in bands together with Starr since they were kids. [2] Kinney called Starr and a few days later he started jamming with him and Cantrell at the Music Bank, but they didn't have a singer. [2] Cantrell, Starr and Kinney wanted Staley to be their lead singer, so they started auditioning terrible lead singers in front of Staley to send a hint. [9] [2] [10] The last straw for Staley was when they auditioned a male stripper – he decided to join the band after that. [2] Starr was replaced by former Ozzy Osbourne bassist Mike Inez in 1993. [11]
Kinney almost didn't play on Alice in Chains' debut album, Facelift . He had broken his hand and the band started rehearsing with Greg Gilmore, the drummer from Mother Love Bone. Kinney explained in the 2009 book Grunge is Dead:
I almost didn't play on the record – they started rehearsing with the drummer from Mother Love Bone, Greg Gilmore. I was sitting there playing with one hand, guiding him through it. Dave Jerden came in and they started to try to do it. He was like, 'Screw it – pull the plug. This is not going to be the same.' Luckily, we took a tiny bit of time off. I had that cast on for a while, and was like, 'I can't miss this.' I cut my cast off in the studio and kept a bucket of ice by the drum set. Kept my hand iced down and played with a broken hand. I tried not to do that again – your first big break, and you fuck it up. [12]
Since the band's inception, Kinney has been the only drummer. He also played piano and sang chorus vocals through a megaphone on the hidden song from Sap entitled "Love Song". [13] [14] The album was named after a dream Kinney had about the band recording some light acoustic songs for an album they name Sap, because it's "sappy.". [15]
Kinney was featured in the 1992 movie Singles , along with the other members of Alice in Chains performing the songs "It Ain't Like That" and "Would?". [16]
In 1996, Kinney joined singer Johnny Cash, guitarist Kim Thayil of Soundgarden, and bassist Krist Novoselic of Nirvana for a cover of Willie Nelson's "Time of the Preacher", featured on the tribute album Twisted Willie, [17] [18] which also had Kinney playing drums for Jerry Cantrell's cover of "I've Seen All This World I Care to See". [18] In the same year, Kinney played drums for Cantrell's first original solo song, "Leave Me Alone", featured on the soundtrack of the 1996 film The Cable Guy . [19]
In 1998, Kinney played drums for Cantrell's first solo album, Boggy Depot , [20] and percussion in the song "Tuesday's Gone", a cover of Lynyrd Skynyrd released on Metallica's 1998 album Garage Inc. , also featuring Cantrell on guitar. [21]
After they toured as part of Cantrell's solo band in 1998, Kinney and Queensrÿche guitarist Chris DeGarmo formed a new band called Spys4Darwin in 1999. [22] Alice in Chains' bassist Mike Inez and Sponge lead vocalist Vin Dombroski joined the band soon after. The band released their first and only album on May 18, 2001, a 6-track EP entitled Microfish, [23] and made their live debut at Endfest in Bremerton, Washington on August 4, 2001. [24]
Since 2009, Kinney co-owns the club The Crocodile in Seattle along with Alice in Chains' manager Susan Silver, [25] [26] Capitol Hill Block Party co-founder Marcus Charles, [27] Peggy Curtis, [27] and Portugal. The Man guitarist Eric Howk. [27] In 2013, Rolling Stone named The Crocodile as one of the best clubs in America, ranked at #7. [28]
Soundgarden lead vocalist Chris Cornell personally asked Kinney to join him, Pearl Jam guitarist Mike McCready, Soundgarden drummer Matt Cameron, Screaming Trees drummer Barrett Martin and Guns N' Roses bassist Duff McKagan in the tribute show to the band Mad Season at Seattle's Benaroya Hall on January 30, 2015. [29] Kinney played bongo for the song "All Alone" while a track with Layne Staley's original vocals were played. [30] The performance was released as a live album in August 2015, entitled Mad Season / Seattle Symphony: Sonic Evolution / January 30, 2015 / Benaroya Hall. [31]
From September 17 to 20, 2018, Kinney was a guest drummer on NBC's Late Night with Seth Meyers . [32]
Alice in Chains was inactive from 1996 onwards due to Layne Staley's drug issues, which resulted in his death in April 2002. [33] In 2005, Kinney came up with the idea of reuniting with the other two surviving members of Alice in Chains, Jerry Cantrell and Mike Inez, to perform at a benefit concert for the victims of the tsunami disaster that struck South Asia in 2004. Kinney made calls to his former bandmates, as well as friends in the music community, such as former Alice in Chains manager Susan Silver. Kinney was surprised by the enthusiastic response to his idea, [34] and the band performed for the first time in 10 years at the K-Rock Tsunami Continued Care Relief Concert in Seattle on February 18, 2006, featuring guest vocalists singing Staley's parts. [35]
On March 6, 2006, the band performed together again at VH1's Decades Rock Live concert, honoring fellow Seattle musicians Ann Wilson and Nancy Wilson of Heart. [36] That night they played "Rooster" with Comes with the Fall vocalist William DuVall and Ann Wilson. [36] DuVall joined Alice in Chains as lead singer shortly thereafter. [36] The band has toured extensively worldwide since then. [37]
The album Black Gives Way to Blue , the first without Staley, was released on September 29, 2009, featuring DuVall as the new vocalist. [38] The album was totally funded by Kinney and Cantrell, as the band did not have a record label at the time. [10] Their fifth studio album, The Devil Put Dinosaurs Here , was released on May 28, 2013. [39]
In 2013, Kinney added the initials "LSMS" on his drum kit, a tribute to Alice in Chains' late members Layne Staley and Mike Starr. [40]
Alice in Chains' sixth studio album (and the third with DuVall), [41] Rainier Fog , was released on August 24, 2018. [42]
Kinney plays a large role in the presentation of the band, having helped design artwork, T-shirts and stage setups for most of the band's albums and tours. [43]
In 1995, Alice in Chains was contemplating making a third studio album. When it was official, Kinney drew out artwork for the cover and liner notes. [44] [45] The cover features a three-legged dog, reason being, according to band lore, there was a three-legged dog named Tripod that used to terrorize Kinney and chase him around during his paperboy duties when he was a kid. [45] The music video for the album's first single, "Grind", shows a three legged dog (similar to the one that allegedly used to chase Kinney) walking up a stairway with an elderly man. [45]
The cover art of Black Gives Way to Blue (2009), an illustration of a heart surrounded by a black background, [46] was Kinney's basic concept. [47]
Kinney uses a drum kit made by Drum Workshop (DW Drums) with Remo heads and cymbals by Sabian. [48] He uses Vater Percussion drumsticks. [49]
Title | Release | Label | Band |
---|---|---|---|
Boggy Depot | 1998 | Columbia | Jerry Cantrell [50] |
Microfish | 2001 | Pied Viper Records | Spys4Darwin [51] |
Year | Song | Artist(s) | Album |
---|---|---|---|
1996 | "Time of the Preacher" | Johnny Cash | Twisted Willie [18] |
"I've Seen All This World I Care to See" | Jerry Cantrell | ||
"Leave Me Alone" | The Cable Guy (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) [19] | ||
1998 | "Tuesday's Gone" | Metallica | Garage Inc. [21] [52] |
2015 | "All Alone" | Mad Season | Mad Season / Seattle Symphony: Sonic Evolution / January 30, 2015 / Benaroya Hall [53] |
2016 | "Tears" | Alice in Chains | Rush – 2112 (40th Anniversary Edition) [54] [55] |
Year | Title | Role | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
1992 | Singles | Himself | Cameo |
1995 | The Nona Tapes | Himself | Short film |
2013 | AIC 23 | Stanley Eisen | Short film |
Alice in Chains is an American rock band formed in Seattle, Washington, in 1987. Since 2006, the band's lineup has comprised vocalist/guitarists Jerry Cantrell and William DuVall, bassist Mike Inez and drummer Sean Kinney. Vocalist Layne Staley and bassist Mike Starr are former members of the band, having died in 2002 and 2011, respectively. The band took its name from Staley's previous group, Alice N' Chains. Often associated with grunge music, Alice in Chains' sound and style is deeply rooted in heavy metal music. The band is known for its distinctive vocal style, which often included the harmonized vocals between Staley and Cantrell, making Alice in Chains a two-vocal band.
Dirt is the second studio album by American rock band Alice in Chains, released on September 29, 1992 by Columbia Records. Peaking at No. 6 on the Billboard 200 chart, the album received critical acclaim. It has since been certified quintuple platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), making Dirt the band's highest selling album to date. It was the band's last album recorded with all four original members, as bassist Mike Starr was fired in January 1993 during the tour to support the album. The album spawned five singles: "Would?", "Them Bones", "Angry Chair", "Rooster", and "Down in a Hole", all with accompanying music videos. Dirt was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Hard Rock Performance. The music video for "Would?" was nominated for an MTV Video Music Award for Best Video from a Film, as the song was featured on the soundtrack to Cameron Crowe's 1992 film Singles.
Layne Thomas Staley was an American singer and songwriter who was the original lead vocalist of Alice in Chains, which rose to international fame in the early 1990s as part of Seattle's grunge movement. He was known for his distinctive vocal style as well as his harmonizing with bandmate Jerry Cantrell. Prior to his success with Alice in Chains, Staley was also a member of the glam metal bands Sleze and Alice N' Chains. He was also a part of the supergroups Mad Season and Class of '99.
Sap is the second studio EP by the American rock band Alice in Chains, released on February 4, 1992, through Columbia Records. Sap is mostly acoustic and marks the first time that guitarist Jerry Cantrell sings lead vocals in an Alice in Chains release, with the song "Brother". The EP was produced by Alice in Chains and Rick Parashar and features guest vocals by Ann Wilson of the band Heart, Chris Cornell of Soundgarden and Mark Arm of Mudhoney. The track "Got Me Wrong" became a hit two years later after being featured on the soundtrack to the 1994 film Clerks. On January 14, 1994, Sap was certified gold by the RIAA for the sale of more than 500,000 copies.
Jerry Fulton Cantrell Jr. is an American guitarist, singer, and songwriter. He is best known as the founder, lead guitarist, co-lead vocalist, and main songwriter of the rock band Alice in Chains. The band rose to international fame in the early 1990s during Seattle's grunge movement and is known for its distinctive vocal style and the harmonized vocals between Cantrell and Layne Staley. Cantrell started to sing lead vocals on Alice in Chains' 1992 EP Sap. After Staley's death in 2002, Cantrell took the role of Alice in Chains' lead singer on most of the songs from the band's post-Staley albums, Black Gives Way to Blue (2009), The Devil Put Dinosaurs Here (2013), and Rainier Fog (2018), with DuVall harmonizing with him in the new songs and singing Staley's vocals in the old songs in live concerts.
Jar of Flies is the third studio EP by American rock band Alice in Chains. It was released on January 25, 1994, by Columbia Records. The band's second acoustic EP, after 1992's Sap, it was the first EP in music history to debut at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 chart, with the first week sales exceeding 141,000 copies in the United States. The self-produced record was written and recorded over the course of just one week at the London Bridge Studio in Seattle. The tracks "No Excuses", "I Stay Away" and "Don't Follow" were released as singles to promote the EP. Jar of Flies was nominated for two Grammy Awards in 1995: Best Recording Package and Best Hard Rock Performance for "I Stay Away".
Alice in Chains is the eponymous third studio album by American rock band Alice in Chains. It was released on November 7, 1995, by Columbia Records, and was the follow-up to the highly successful Dirt (1992). This is the band's first full-length studio album to feature bassist Mike Inez and their last studio album to feature original lead vocalist Layne Staley before his death in 2002. It is also their final studio album to be released through Columbia. As with their previous releases, the album's songs focus on heavy emotional content and subject matter such as drug addiction, depression, religion, broken relationships, and the internal tensions within the band fueled by Staley's substance abuse. The album's music relies less on metallic riffs and more on melody and texturally varied arrangements, integrating some of the more delicate acoustic moods of their EPs.
Michael Allen Inez is an American rock musician and bassist. Since 1993, Inez has been the bassist of the American rock band Alice in Chains. He is also recognized for his work with Ozzy Osbourne from 1989 to 1993. Inez also has connections with Slash's Snakepit, Black Label Society, Spys4Darwin, and Heart. Inez has earned seven Grammy Award nominations as a member of Alice in Chains.
Michael Christopher Starr was an American musician best known as the original bassist for the rock band Alice in Chains, with which he played from the band's formation in 1987 until January 1993. He was also a member of Sato, Gypsy Rose, Sun Red Sun, and Days of the New.
"No Excuses" is the lead single from American rock band Alice in Chains' third EP, Jar of Flies (1994). Written by guitarist and co-lead vocalist Jerry Cantrell, the song was well received by music critics and was a charting success, becoming the first Alice in Chains song to reach No. 1 on Billboard's Mainstream Rock Tracks chart, spending a total of 26 weeks on the chart. It has gone on to become one of the band's most popular songs. The song was included on the compilation albums Nothing Safe: Best of the Box (1999), Music Bank (1999), Greatest Hits (2001), and The Essential Alice in Chains (2006). Alice In Chains performed an acoustic version of "No Excuses" for its appearance on MTV Unplugged in 1996, which marked the last time they performed the song with Layne Staley, and that version was included on the band's Unplugged live album and home video release.
"Get Born Again" is a song by the American rock band Alice in Chains and, along with "Died", one of the last two songs recorded with vocalist Layne Staley before his death in 2002. The song was released as the lead single from the compilation Nothing Safe: Best of the Box (1999) on June 1, 1999. It peaked at No. 4 on the Billboard Mainstream Rock Tracks chart, and at No. 12 on the Modern Rock Tracks chart. "Get Born Again" was nominated for the Grammy Award for Best Hard Rock Performance in 2000. The song was also included on the compilation albums Music Bank (1999) and The Essential Alice in Chains (2006).
"Over Now" is a song by the American rock band Alice in Chains. Written by Jerry Cantrell, who also sings lead vocals, the song is the last track on the band's third studio album, Alice in Chains (1995), and it is about the 1995 breakup of the band. The song closed the televised broadcast of Alice in Chains' MTV Unplugged performance, and that version was released as a single in 1996. The B-side is the original studio version. The single peaked at No. 4 on Billboard's Mainstream Rock Tracks chart, and at No. 24 on the Modern Rock Tracks chart in 1996. The song was included on the live album Unplugged (1996), on the box set Music Bank (1999), and the compilation album The Essential Alice in Chains (2006). The MTV Unplugged concert was the first and only time that Alice in Chains performed the song. It was performed again 23 years later at Jerry Cantrell's solo concert at the Pico Union Project in Los Angeles on December 6, 2019.
Live Facelift is a concert video and live album by the American rock band Alice in Chains, originally released on VHS on July 30, 1991, containing live footage of songs from their debut album, Facelift, recorded at The Moore Theatre in Seattle on December 22, 1990. The video has been certified gold by the RIAA with excess sales of 50,000 copies.
"Nutshell" is a song by Alice in Chains that originally appeared on the band's 1994 extended play Jar of Flies. The band played it on MTV Unplugged in 1996, and this rendition of the song was included on the compilation album Music Bank (1999), as well as The Essential Alice in Chains (2006). Since 2011, guitarist/vocalist Jerry Cantrell dedicates "Nutshell" to Alice in Chains' late original members Layne Staley and Mike Starr during the band's concerts.
Spys4Darwin were an American rock supergroup formed in Seattle, Washington in 2001. The short-lived project featured members from Seattle-based groups Queensrÿche and Alice in Chains as well as the frontman of Detroit, Michigan-based group Sponge. Spys4Darwin began with guitarist Chris DeGarmo and drummer Sean Kinney, two friends who had both recently performed with Jerry Cantrell during his solo tour. They were soon joined by bassist Mike Inez and vocalist Vin Dombroski, and began jamming at Binge Studios, an abandoned paint factory in Seattle. The project marked DeGarmo's first creative work since departing from his long-held position in Queensrÿche in 1998.
"Brother" is a song by the American rock band Alice in Chains and the opening track on their 1992 acoustic EP Sap. The song was written by guitarist and vocalist Jerry Cantrell for his younger brother, David. Cantrell sings lead vocals in the song, while Heart lead vocalist Ann Wilson sings backing vocals. An acoustic version performed on Alice in Chains' MTV Unplugged in 1996 was released in a live album and DVD. The song was included on the compilation albums Music Bank (1999) and The Essential Alice in Chains (2006).
"Black Gives Way to Blue" is a song by American rock band Alice in Chains, and the last track on their 2009 studio album of the same name. Written and sung by guitarist/vocalist Jerry Cantrell, it features Elton John on piano. The song is a tribute to the band's late lead singer, Layne Staley, who died in 2002. Cantrell described the song as the band's goodbye to Staley. The first concert that Staley attended was Elton John's, and Cantrell's first album was Elton John Greatest Hits (1974). A piano mix of the song is a bonus track on iTunes. The lyrics to "Black Gives Way to Blue" are printed on the base plate of Jerry Cantrell's signature Cry Baby Wah-Wah pedal.
"Sunshine" is a song by the American rock band Alice in Chains and the eighth track on their debut album, Facelift (1990). The song was written by guitarist and vocalist Jerry Cantrell as a tribute to his mother Gloria, who died in 1987.
"Rainier Fog" is a song by the American rock band Alice in Chains. It is the fourth single and the title track to the band's sixth studio album, Rainier Fog (2018). Written by guitarist and vocalist Jerry Cantrell, the song is a tribute to the Seattle music scene and the band's former members, Layne Staley and Mike Starr, and the title was inspired by Mount Rainier, a volcano that overlooks Seattle. The single peaked at No. 20 on Billboard's Mainstream Rock chart. Excerpts from the lyrics are featured upside down on the album cover. The full lyrics to "Rainier Fog" are inscribed on the bottom plate of Jerry Cantrell's signature Dunlop Cry Baby Wah pedal, released in April 2019.
{{cite AV media notes}}
: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)