Dark Masterpiece
30 Days of Writing Challenge day 25: “a song you like by an artist no longer living”
Death isn’t something that I can easily bear. It’s pretty hard to decide which song I’m going to talk about today because many of the artists I like are no longer living — Chester Bennington, Chris Cornell, Layne Staley, Scott Weiland, Freddie Mercury, and many more. Most of those artists were in a band. I don’t know if I’m allowed to write about the band’s song but let’s assume it’s allowed. I’ll pick the darkest of them all, Layne Staley’s former band, Alice in Chains. The song was released in 1994, a part of Jar of Flies EP, titled I Stay Away.
I Stay Away was written by Layne Staley, and composed by the guitarist and the new bassist at that time, Jerry Cantrell and Mike Inez. Compared to the previous records of Alice in Chains, this song is softer than most of their songs. It started with a 12-stringed acoustic guitar and bright chords. Enjoy the bright, road trip-vibe of the verse. Then, BAM!!!! The darkness rains on the chorus. Creepy guitar riffs and haunting vocal harmonies of Layne and Jerry will shake your soul and suck all the light in your ears until all you hear are just darkness. This song also uses a new instrument that never been heard in any of Alice in Chains’ songs: Orchestra strings. The strings section brought a new kind of sound to Alice in Chains without covering up their rock sound.
I don’t really know what this song is about. I can’t find anything either about this song on the internet. Then, it’s time for my assumption-maker brain to act! Let’s take a look at the verse.
Yeah, hey, I want to travel south this year
I won’t, Won’t prevent safe passage here
As this verse vibe is bright, I assume these lines represent the freedom of Layne Staley. Layne Staley was struggling with addiction back then, and drugs were also the cause of his death. So, I guess “Travel South” was a representation of his hope to leave his addiction. I also found someone on the internet who said Layne was having a problem with his fiancee at that time too. Maybe we can also say that these lines represent how Layne wanted to leave his girl, and nothing can stop him. Also, this theory is strengthened by the second verse that said:
ah, hey, yeah, tears that soak a callous heart
A callous heart is a heart that has been emotionally hardened or shows no emotion. I think his girlfriend was a lousy partner with a “callous heart,” and her tears won’t make him stay. And this theory is also strengthened in the second chorus.
Why you act frightened
I am enlightened
Your weakness builds me
So someday you’ll see
I think this part represents how his girlfriend acted like she was scared to lose him, but that only makes him wanted to leave more. But the “weakness builds me” part doesn’t make sense in my brain. If it’s about the girl, I don’t know what kind of weakness the girl had that makes him stronger. It kinda makes sense if it’s about the drugs. He wanted to prove that all the weaknesses drugs gave to him will build him.
And this song ends with Layne singing the title, “I Stay Away”. Is he staying away from the girl or the drugs? I don’t know. That’s the farthest my brain can do.
In the end, this dark masterpiece is the perfect presentation of Layne and Jerry’s duo harmonies. Alice in Chains songs is kinda tricky to sing alone. Layne died in 2002, the year I was born. Too bad he left too soon.
