Jerry Cantrell’s recently released album, I Want Blood, is being reimagined as a spoken-word series, with new versions of the album tracks debuting every Thursday, and featuring video animations by Boy Tillekens. The first instalment is for “Vilified,” which can be viewed below.

In a recent episode of the Lipps Service podcast, Cantrell shared how the spoken-word pieces came to be: “I wanted to do something special, try to do something cool, and I’ve never done a spoken word recitation of the lyrics, and I thought it might be kind of cool to have it on the B-side of ‘Vilified.’ I recorded it, and it sounded cool. I thought maybe it needs some music or something, and I was sitting there with Maxwell Urasky, my demo partner. He’s a really talented musician, and he said ‘Let me mess around with it for a night.’ He came back the next day with that piece of music, and it sounded killer. I brought it in to Joe Barresi and he said, ‘Man, you should do this with all of them.’

"So I sent it out to my friends, and they hadn’t heard the songs, which I thought was really cool. I got this creative stew going of sending the lyrics out to people, having them come up with the music, and sending it back. We ended up with nine pieces of really interesting takes on the lyrics, but the music is done by creative partners of mine, and it has nothing to do with the real music, so it is truly a standalone piece.”

Additional collaborators on the project include Barresi, Greg Puciato (Better Lovers, The Black Queen), Roy Mayorga (Ministry), Gil Sharone (Stolen Babies, Team Sleep), Rani Sharone (Stolen Babies), George Adrian (The Maybirds), composer Vincent Jones, and producer Michael Rozon.

The spoken-word version of “Vilified” arrives as Cantrell heads out on his first tour supporting the critically-acclaimed album, I Want Blood. The five-week tour kicks off on January 31 in Niagara Falls, with Filter opening on all dates.

I Want Blood, co-produced by Cantrell and Joe Barresi (Tool, Queens of the Stone Age, Melvins), was recorded at Barresi’s JHOC Studio in Pasadena, Calif. The album also features contributions from bass heavyweights Duff McKagan (Guns N’Roses) and Robert Trujillo (Metallica), drummers Gil Sharone (Team Sleep, Stolen Babies) and Mike Bordin (Faith No More), and backing vocals from Lola Colette and Greg Puciato (Better Lovers, ex-Dillinger Escape Plan).

Album orders, which include CD, digital and multiple 2LP variants are available here.

I Want Blood tracklisting:

"Vilified"
"Off The Rails"
"Afterglow"
"I Want Blood"
"Echoes Of Laughter"
"Throw Me A Line"
"Let It Lie"
"Held Your Tongue"
"It Comes"

"Vilified" visualizer:

"Off The Rails" visualizer:

"Afterglow" video:

"I Want Blood" visualizer:

"Echoes Of Laughter" visualizer:

"Throw Me A Line" visualizer:

"Let It Lie" visualizer:

"Held Your Tongue" visualizer:

"It Comes" visualizer:

As mentioned above, Cantrell has announced a North American tour in support of I Want Blood. The trek kicks off on January 31 in Niagara Falls and makes its way across the country, concluding in Cantrell’s home state of Washington. For ticket information, visit jerrycantrell.com/tour. Filter supports on all dates.

North American tour dates:

January
31 - Niagara Falls, ON - Fallsview Casino Resort

February
1 - Sayreville, NJ - Starland Ballroom
2 - Portland, ME - Aura
4 - Boston, MA - Citizens House of Blues Boston
5 - New York, NY - Irving Plaza
7 - Silver Spring, MD - The Fillmore – Silver Spring
8 - Bensalem, PA - Parx Xcite Center
11 - Huntington, NY - The Paramount
12 - Norfolk, VA - The NorVa
14 - Raleigh, NC - The Ritz
15 - Atlanta, GA - Buckhead Theatre
16 - Louisville, KY - Mercury Ballroom
18 - Columbus, OH - The Bluestone
19 - Indianapolis, IN - Murat Egyptian Room at Old National Centre
22 - St. Louis, MO - The Hawthorn
23 - Chicago, IL - The Vic Theatre
25 - Tulsa, OK - Tulsa Theater
26 - Houston, TX - House of Blues Houston
27 - San Antonio, TX - The Aztec Theatre

March
1 - Mesa, AZ - The Nile Theater
2 - Las Vegas, NV - House of Blues Las Vegas
4 - Los Angeles, CA - The Belasco
5 - Ventura, CA - The Majestic Ventura Theater
7 - Spokane, WA - Knitting Factory - Spokane
8 - Portland, OR - Wonder Ballroom
9 - Seattle, WA - Moore Theatre

Jerry Cantrell is an iconic American troubadour, celebrated for his distinctive guitar playing, soulful vocals and profound songwriting. Known for his work in both Alice In Chains and as a solo artist, the Grammy-nominated musician has sold in excess of 30 million albums, has been named one of the greatest guitar players of all time by both Guitar World and Rolling Stone, and has been instrumental in shaping the sound of modern rock music. Over his career, he has released six studio albums with Alice In Chains, three solo full-lengths, has had his music featured in films from Cameron Crowe, Judd Apatow and Ben Stiller and made cameos in “Deadwood” and “Jerry Maguire.”

(Photo - Darren Craig)