Jerry Cantrell Brings the I WANT BLOOD Tour to Vegas!

Alice in Chains founder Jerry Cantrell rolled into the House Of Blues on March 2nd, with openers Filter in tow, for a night showcasing his latest solo release I Want Blood.

With a sparse stage set up and low lights, Cantrell shows that he lets his music do the talking.  Leading off with “Psychotic Break”, off of his 2002 solo album Degradation Trip and segueing right into the AIC classic “Them Bones”, Cantrell set the tone immediately. While his last tour was more of a laid back showcase of his 2021 album Brighten, which was acoustic heavy and even showed twangs of country, this setlist hit much harder.

Backed by a band featuring former Dillinger Escape Plan members Greg Puciato on harmony and lead for some of the Alice in Chains material, Cantrell’s secret weapon to stage right was Las Vegas’ own Zach Throne, the former Sin City Sinner and current lead guitarist for Corey Taylor’s “CMFT” solo project, Throne added a layered dimension while taking the lead on “Off the Rails” from the new record, and his soaring backing vocals mixed so well with both Cantrell and Puciato, at times it seemed like there was an entire choir on stage.

Jerry revisited his entire career, with songs off of Boggy Depot (“Cut You In”, “My Song) the aforementioned Degradation Trip, and Atone, as well as his main project, Alice in Chains. The AIC deep cuts included “Hate to Feel” off of their debut album Facelift as well as the classic “Man in the Box” and the encore, show closing “Rooster”.

While Jerry remains mostly stoic on stage, the intensity of his playing and his remarkably soulful voice commands the crowd. While no one can deny the legacy of the late Layne Staley, Cantrell is quite the frontman himself, shown through his banters with the audience in between songs and his cracking jokes with his band.  The crowd was musician heavy, and I recognized some of the biggest hitters of the Las Vegas scene there to take in the guitar mastery of the “Riff Lord” as Cantrell is known in the music circles online.  No one left disappointed, as Jerry and his band brought absolute power with their renditions of “Held Your Tongue” (again I will call out Throne’s backing vocals as a high point of the song) and what many call the definitive AIC (and grunge anthem) “Would?”

Since this show the tour has wrapped up, and Cantrell has teased new music is in the works with Alice in Chains. I would expect a tour afterwards, Whether he’s solo or with AIC, no matter what the date or the venue- I’m there!

Gallery.

PHOTO CREDIT: All live photos by Stephy Hayward (Muzio) for ZRockR Magazine -(c)2025 ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.