If it wasn't for Ozzy Osbourne, bassist Mike Inez may never have joined Alice In Chains.
Mike was working in Ozzy's band in 1993 when he got the call-up from Alice In Chains' drummer Sean Kinney to replace then bass player Mike Starr. “When I got the call from Sean I was with Ozzy working in a studio in Nevada and I said 'hey Ozzy come outside with me',” Mike recalls.
“I went outside and said 'I'll never leave you hanging, you gave me my first shot, I love you and the family'. He and Sharon changed my life. I would never leave them.
“I said 'Alice In Chains asked me to fill in' and he said 'well if you don't go we have to go to the hospital', and I said 'why is that?' and he said 'it's going to take them a week to get my foot out of your ass'.”
Given the options, Mike decided on Alice In Chains and played his first show with the band at the Camden Underworld in London on 27 January, 1993, having had only a few days to learn the band's songs. “I just jumped off the deep end,” Mike says.
“I remember being onstage in London with Layne [Staley, vocalist] the first night and he'd introduce the song like 'this is a song called 'Sick Man'' and then I'd walk up to Layne and say 'hey, how does that go?' and he'd sing me the riff off the mic. And I'd be like 'ok I got it, go go go!'” he laughs. As they say, the rest is history.
Last year, Alice In Chains released their sixth studio album 'Rainier Fog', which was partially recorded in their home town of Seattle at Bad Animals Studio – the same studio where they recorded their self-titled album in 1995.
This would be the last studio album by Alice In Chains to feature original vocalist Layne Staley, who was struggling with heroin addiction. In 1996, Layne overdosed in Kansas City after supporting KISS on their Alive/Worldwide tour and the band went on hiatus up until his death in 2002 from a speedball.
“At first I had anxiety flying up with Jerry [Cantrell, guitarist and co-vocalist] from Los Angeles,” Mike says of returning to Big Animal to work on 'Rainier Fog'.
“I was like 'oh man, we're going back into the belly of the beast', then right when we walked in the front door it all went away magically, like 'okay here we are, let's go to work'. We felt really at home there, home-town jamming.”
When Alice In Chains get to Australia for Download Festival, it will be like old times for Mike when he runs into old mate Ozzy who is headlining the festival. [Ed's note: Ozzy has unfortunately withdrawn from Download Festival due to ill-health.] “I think it's going to be great,” he says.
“I love festivals, they're my favourite; it's like a gathering of the tribes. I was in the Ozzy Osbourne band on and off for eight years, that was a great time. I always tell people I went to the Ozzy Osbourne University... I have such a great relationship with Ozzy and the guys.”
