This is the 1996 MTV New York show, which proved there and then that Alice's unique brand of dark existentialist metal (talk about being number one in a field of one) never needed wattage to convey that brooding intensity. There are plenty of classics here, including "Nutshell" and "No Excuses", although you won't get any of the earliest stuff and it's a pretty short set overall. While it would be fair to say that this disc could have offered a little more substance, no fan will want to be without it, and experiencing Layne Staley's menacing lisp in the stark environment of an acoustic set somehow returns the whole genre to its roots in the blues. Gnarly.

On the DVD: The extra features include a chronology which fearlessly (and with plenty of self-deprecating humour) lists the band's long history of near misses as well as their successes. Also included are some wonderful anecdotes, such as the famous occasion when guitarist Jerry Cantrell missed a gig because he forgot how many days there were in November. There's also a discography and three extra tracks which didn't feature in MTV's original broadcast. --Roger Thomas

 

Special Features

DVD 5

English

Region 0

Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround English

Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround

Interactive Menus

Chapter Access

Timeline

Discography

Digitally Mastered