Them Bones was released in 1992 as the opening track on Alice in Chains' second album Dirt, written by guitarist Jerry Cantrell about his fear of mortality. Layne Staley's opening scream became one of grunge's most sampled shouts, later appearing in games, wrestling edits and metal compilations. The isolated AAAAA clip spread on soundboards and video edits in the 2010s, where fans cut just the intro to use as a reaction. Its staying power comes from that unmistakable voice and the song's enduring place in nineties rock.
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The opening scream from Alice in Chains' Them Bones, the raw AAAAA yell by Layne Staley used for intense entrances, shocks and metal memes online.
This clip isolates the famous opening scream from Them Bones by Alice in Chains, where Layne Staley lets out a sustained, raspy AAAAA over a grinding guitar riff. The vocal is raw and distorted, rising with the chugging rhythm before the verse kicks in. It is only a few seconds of pure grunge intensity, but the aggression and strain in the voice make it instantly recognizable. Listeners use it as a jolt of energy, a comic overreaction to pain or frustration, or a nostalgic hit of early nineties alternative metal.
