When I first heard this I was ready to write it off as a boring, flat album full of uninspired riffs with standard vocals. When I actually listened though and I mean a careful listen to the whole album not just a preview of a few songs, then I realized what I Jerry Cantrell had created was nothing short of amazing. His voice matches the mood, tempo, lyrics, and riffs perfectly. This album is more mainstream and easier to listen to than some of Alice in Chains work but that doesn't mean it lacks soul, it just exudes that soulful tone in a less tortured way. There are some really great catchy tunes here as well as the wierd ones. DICKEYE the first song is a great driving hard hitting rock song with a great catchy chorus. CUT YOU IN is a strange little number that has great little bouncing acoustic guitar riffs and the lyrics seems to speak of friends who are a little pre occupied with partying than keeping friendships. MY SONG is a great slow tempo song that bursts into a great loud chorus and nice little melodic guitar bits and soulful singing this song sounds like Cantrell times 10. SETTLING DOWN is another slow number with an uplifting chrous the piano througout the song is beautiful and haunting! BREAKS MY BACK is a acid tripping watery meltdown of vocals and chiming guitar over a slow bumping groove, very nice bass lines. JESUS HANDS starts mellow and haunting arrpegiated intro and continues with a mellow haunting chrous that becomes electrified, Jerry's voice sounds almost alien and childlike in this one, very creepy indead. DEVIL BY HIS SIDE is a rocking groove of a number similiar to a PIXIES song but with Jerry rocking pitch bending lead lines and soulful singing this like DICKEYE sound very poppy and mainstream but also haunting in that heart melting way. KEEP THE LIGHT ON sounds almost like an Alice in Chains song almost like It Ain't Like That great grooving pounding rock verse then just a great soulful sweet chorus, this one will have you humming along. SATISFY is a great slow number with Jerry's voice as the main event with very tender lead lines played throughout, and then a knockout hard hitting chorus. There seems to be alot of contrast here with either a very slow intro followed by a hard hitting chorus or a fast intro followed by a slow haunting chorus. HURT A LONG TIME is a very sad a soaring number almost country in it's nature with slide guitar and reverberated choruses very soulful ballad with sad love story lyrics and tragedy laced theme. BETWEEN sounds almost like another country inspired tune with very happy major chords but when the chorus kicks in you hear whats in Jerrys heart as he strums a nice kicking chorus with a short little twangy solo, this one is definiately a standout!! COLD PIECE is the closing song with some great lounge club piano and jazzy little drum sections as well as the most soulful singing yet from Jerry. So in conclusion this album has a standout in every song while not a well known masterpiece not one song on here is meaningless and Jerry fills this entire album with his heart and soul, meshed with hard rock rhythyms, crushing soaring guitar, pop hooks, sweet soulful singing, this album will bring the sunshine then the darkness, then the sunshine once again!!! There is never a dull moment here.

Jerry Cantrell's first solo album is more or less what someone would expect: Alice in Chains without Staley's atmospheric voice. It's forgivable for a debut, but the lack of experimentation keeps it from ever having a chance to be considered a classic (not that it had much of a chance anyway...). Some powerful rock songs stand alongside some mournful, more introspective numbers, but little more. This is no-risk sludge rock, but few can do it better than Jerry.

Cantrell's status as a songwriter was solidified when he was with AIC, but now he proves that he can strike alone (though fellow AIC band members do make appearances). Precious few real standout tracks, but the record rarely falters; look for radio hits like "Cut You In" and "My Song" to strike first while slow burn tracks like "Dickeye," "Cold Piece" and "Jesus Hands" catch up later. Like his former band, though, don't expect to have a blast--this is a man who could use some happy pills. But there's nothing wrong with weariness and hardship in rock music; hell, the blues has been doing it for decades.

Best cuts: "My Song," "Dickeye," "Jesus Hands," "Cut You In," "Cold Piece," "Devil By His Side," "Keep the Light On," "Settling Down"

If you're a big Alice in Chains fan (as I was), you'll enjoy a lot of this album. However, it doesn't really do much to expand any of the ideas from those records.

Cantrell was the musical genius behind AIC, even though Layne was the voice.
It is very evident that we are listening to the same man that wrote so many classic songs. While none of these will go down as classics on the same level as AIC songs, there are some great additions to the Cantrell catalog.
"Dickeye" opens the album, and is the most explosive rocker on here.
"Cut You In" was a single, and I think would have fit right in on the self-titled AIC album. It is my favorite solo Cantrell song.
"My Song" was another single, and is hauntingly beautiful and melodic.
The rest of the songs are all worth your time, but they don't work outside the album. By that, I mean they wouldn't hold up as stand-alone singles or songs that you'd put in a playlist. Sort of like songs like, "Right Turn" or "Am I Inside" by AIC. They are great songs, but fit best within the album. Does that make sense?
If you are an AIC fan, I recommend getting this and Degradation Trip (the two disc one if you can).

Demonstrates the song writing power of Jerry Cantrell. His best work by far.