Watch An Unearthed Video From Alice In Chains’ Early Hair Metal Days

Alice In Chains always seemed like the odd band out during the initial Seattle grunge wave, and you could tell that, unlike their peers, they’d never really spent time in the city’s punk underground. If you’ve ever seen the band photo on the inside of their 1990 debut Facelift (an album that, after all, came out a year before Ten or Nevermind), you will probably not be surprised to learn that this band had a hair-metal past. You may, however, be surprised at just how much of a hair-metal past they had. The band grew out of a mid-’80s unit that seriously, no joke, was called Alice N’ Chains. And judging by footage that recently appeared online, they were a straight-up good-times nerf-metal band. Former band member Johnny Bacolas posted footage of the band from a May 1986 show at Seattle’s Kane Hall. On the one hand, only singer Layne Staley would still be in the band when they became what they became. On the other hand, look at Lanye Staley! I’m not sure I’ve ever seen Staley so young, and I’ve certainly never seen him with this much Aquanet in his hair.