Ironic Makes Iconic: Jerry Cantrell's "Solitude"

Analyzing and Interpreting Song Material: Jerry Cantrell's "Solitude"

Sometimes the situation that a piece of persuasive rhetoric is released into makes a world of difference, especially in terms of how a piece is viewed initially and remembered. I chose to analyze the song "Solitude" by Jerry Cantrell, mainly because of the ironic situation that the recording was released into. This song in particular is a fine example of the bitter irony present on "Degradation Trip", an album which surfaced only a few months after Cantrell's former Alice in Chains band mate, Layne Staley, was found dead in his apartment of a drug overdose. The combination of Layne's death and the dark, sometimes drug-related song material on this album made many, myself included, misinterpret the lyrics as referring to his death. I completely believed this myself until I started doing the research for this analysis.

The title and lyrics to "Solitude" bear a striking resemblance to the circumstances surrounding Layne's death, which is why I chose this song even over the others on the album. It describes someone who has given up and is "locked inside a room" alone, like Staley was when police kicked in the dead bolted door to his apartment and found his lifeless body on the couch (Kerrang 1). He had been deceased for two weeks by that time, and was so unrecognizable that police had to run reports identifying the body (Kerrang 1), which brings to mind lyrics such as "no flesh... unclean, defiled" and the closing line "so black it's untrue" could almost describe a decomposing body. Staley had clearly been in a "hallucinatory state" as in the song; his body was found "surrounded by drug paraphernalia" (Kerrang 1). Another interesting lyric is "cold transparent blue"-- could this be referring to the color of Staley's eyes?

As possible as a connection between all this may seem, the answer is no. Cantrell said that the assumption that the album was inspired by Layne in any way is "completely false" (Snow 3). In fact, the title "Solitude" actually refers to one of Cantrell's own experiences: he locked himself up in his own house for weeks to write the album (Snow 1).

No matter who it's referring to, the theme of "Solitude" is definitely self-deprecation. As a matter of fact, this song is where the title of the album "Degradation Trip" comes from. It presents two ways of dealing with the harshness of life: either "seal your doom" or make an effort to fix your life. Basically, the theme is that giving up hope is deadly. If you don't try to fix your life and give up instead, you "seal your doom" to solitude, which will drive you to insanity, something "so black it's untrue".

Although Cantrell leaves much of the lyrics up to audience interpretation (Snow 2), the piece's requested action is explicitly stated in this song: "when hurting yourself feels right... take the time to pull the weeds choking flowers in your life". In other words, when you'd rather wallow in your self-pity, take care of yourself instead by making an effort to fix your problems. He is trying to convince anyone who has lost "the will to fight" to not give up, or be prepared to suffer serious consequences like insanity or even death.

Most of the barriers of this song concern the audience and their initiative. If the audience is feeling extreme hopelessness, they may feel a lack of initiative to try to fix their problems, and so fail to fulfill the requested action. Giving in is easier than making that extra effort to gruel through troubles. The audience's obstacles may seem too high to overcome by their own initiatives.

Another audience-related barrier is a possible lack of knowledge, created by choice of the artist himself. Cantrell's writing style is laden with deep lyrics that could have more than one interpretation. As he told Dina Snow in a 2002 interview, "I prefer to leave [interpretation] up to the listener. My interpretation is what I put down" (2). This means that deep, elusive lines such as "no light, reflection understood" (my interpretation being self-deception; you need the presence of light to technically see your reflection in a mirror) may be lost to the casual listener.

Audience attitude could also be a barrier in this piece. If the audience denies that they have a problem with self-deprecation (which is often the case with drug abusers, for example) then they may not interpret the song material as even being addressed to them. They may also disagree on the definition of self-deprecation itself, and downplay its damage. Even if the audience is aware that they have a problem, they may have convinced themselves that they are in control of it (again, relating to drug abuse) and that they will be able to escape the consequences of it (according to Cantrell's song, insanity and death).

Of course, the situation that this album appeared into is a huge barrier which could detract from the album's original messages themselves. In an album review by E! Online, the message of the album "Degradation Trip" is set aside completely in exchange for an excuse to mistakenly associate it entirely with Layne's death, even adding that it "plays out like a slow death" (1). Caught up in the irony of a Jerry Cantrell album released containing lyrics such as "faded rock star" and the death of a former band mate, audiences may very well misinterpret the real inspiration behind the album ("Eonline" 1). As Cantrell said in an interview for Guitar World magazine, "['Degradation Trip'] just kind of described the whole place I was in, the whole journey I've been through... This is myself" (Phalen 2). The situation, then, changes the original meaning of the material from a true testimonial to a "bitter eulogy" ("Eonline" 1).

The situation concerning Staley even affected audiences' views of Cantrell himself. After the tours for his first album, "Boggy Depot" were over in 1998, Jerry disappeared from the limelight for years, and "tumors ran rampant" that "like Staley, Jerry was mired in drug abuse" (Gulla 1). These rumors could be seen as barriers of the rhetor. In a Guitar One interview, Jerry had to address these rumors which were changing people's opinions of him to a recluse and drug junkie: "I feel like I don't have to answer at all to people asking me where I've been. Just plug [Degradation Trip] in, and you'll understand. I've been making this record" (Gulla 6). These barriers needed to be addressed to correctly interpret and understand the song material.

Although this piece of rhetoric is a song, it uses more rational argument strategies than one would expect. Cantrell logically describes how self-abuse eventually progresses to insanity and death. First, it starts with a feeling of hopelessness ("there's no out"). Next, this person decides to "indulge the beast" of self-pity. the subject becomes "unclean and defiled" while a "ghost awaits" for the inevitable. Finally, after the "will to fight" is gone, "insanity takes" the subject into dark, hopeless oblivion ("so black its untrue").

Persuasive evidence is also used in the form of testimony. It describes the self-deprecation firsthand, as a personal example. The song is written in first person when it describes the subject's suffering ("I indulge the beast awhile"; "my own ghost awaits"). And as if speaking from experience, uses second person when giving "advice" in a cautionary part of the song ("take the time to pull the weeds choking flowers in your life... or seal your doom").

Dilemma between the audience's two options also demonstrates the rational argument in this piece. One option is to keep "hurting yourself" because "there's no out" and "nothing familiar in sight" and give up. The other, contrasting option is to "take the time to pull the weeds choking flowers in your life" and fix your own problems before "insanity takes you". Cantrell does a good job recognizing both sides of the issue, acknowledging that self-abuse may "feel right" while warning at the same time what it has the power to do, and offering instead the requested action.

The least surprising strategy used in this song is of course, aesthetic appeal. The general sound of "Solitude" changes with the lyrics. It actually sounds hopeless when it describes the subject's "downside up for good" situation, with empty-sounding echoing voice effects which emphasize the idea of solitude itself, as if they are really being sung by someone "locked inside a room". When Cantrell offers hope, however, with "take the time to pull the weeds choking flowers in your life", the guitar part builds up dramatically and the melody actually sounds happier. As soon as the subject slips back into hopelessness with "or seal your doom", the melody drops back again into sadness, repeating the same depressed tune for each line of the chorus: "or seal your doom/cold transparent blue/locked inside a room/in solitude".

Cantrell's songwriting ability is also put to use with a few linguistic strategies. Descriptive, metaphorical language appears throughout, likening the insanity of self-destruction to a beast ("Insane... so I indulge the beast awhile"). It is later personified as well, as a thing evil, dark and all-consuming ("Insanity takes you/so black it's untrue"). The descriptive line "cold transparent blue" also helps to paint a mental picture of emptiness and emotional frigidity. The requested action in this piece is also metaphorical, telling the audience to "take the time to pull the weeds choking flowers in your life", or take control of their lives.

Another linguistic strategy used in "Solitude" is allusion and underlying enthymeme of death as the final result of self-deprecation. Cantrell refers to "sealing your doom" and explains how his "own ghost awaits" for something that isn't explicitly stated-- death. References of "no flesh" and ending the song with an image of hopeless darkness also reinforces the enthymeme of death as the end result of self-abuse. There is also an allusion in the line "lust, sloth, not my only sins" to the seven deadly sins, again emphasizing death in the song.

Cantrell appears to fear and the human need for comfort and relief with an appeal to self-interest. The requested action, to "pull your weeds", will keep solitude and insanity from overcoming you and bringing you to death. The enthymeme of death as the consequence of self-abuse could certainly instill fear in the audience. Other fears used could be being alone and beyond help once you've "sealed your doom". Cantrell is trying to scare the audience into taking care of themselves.

One thing Jerry Cantrell had going for him was credibility. Bob Gulla of Guitar One magazine called him "rock's most wanted guitarist" in June 2001, and a man who "defined the sound of rock guitar in the 90's" (1). Although rumors flew at his disappearance after "Boggy Depot" in 1998, Cantrell was still regarded as the "guy who now shoulders the career of a once mighty rock band entirely on its own", meaning Alice in Chains (Gulla 1). Well, this highly credible artist who "brings with him the weighty expectations of a superstar band" opened the "Degradation Trip" tour to an "eager, sold out crowd" in San Francisco (Gulla 2).

Overall, I found this piece of rhetoric to be very persuasive. Although it is very possible that most of the audience did not do the research I did to find out that the song material is not about Layne Staley, as Andrew Smith of Ultimate Metal Reviews.com puts it, this shouldn't "detract from what Cantrell has accomplished here... the disc will likely benefit from [the coincidental memories it brings of Layne], as unfortunate as its terms may be" (1). Cantrell also did an excellent job making this piece expressive and artistic, effectively persuading the audience by fear appeals and an enthymeme of death as a real consequence of isolation and self-abuse. The irony that Layne Staley passed away as a victim of these same circumstances at around the same time actually improves the effectiveness of the song to illustrate these consequences. I believe that a combination of the ironic situation and Cantrell's powerful strategies make this song effective, memorable, and persuasive.

Works Cited

E! Online Reviews. "Jerry Cantrell, Degradation Trip". E! Entertainment Television, p.1 http://www.eonline.com/Reviews/Facts/Music/Rev1D/0,1107,2722,00.html April 3, 2004.

Gulla, Bob. "Into the Flood Again". Guitar One. June 2001. p.1-6. (via http://adbdesign.com/aic/articles).

"Kerrang Tribute to Layne/AIC". Kerrang! April 26, 2002. p.1-4 (via http://adbdesign.com/aic/articles).

Phalen, Tom. "The Long, Strange Trip". Guitar World. Aug 2002. p.1-3 (via http://www.adbdesign.com/aic/articles).

Smith, Andrew. "Jerry Cantrell- Degradation Trip". Ultimate Metal Reviews.com. p.1 http://www.metal-reviews.com/c/cj-dt.htm. April 3, 2004.

Snow, Dina. "Jerry Cantrell's Anger Rising". The Album Network for 92 KSJO. July 2002. p.1-3 (via http://www.adbdesign.com/aic/articles).