JERRY CANTRELL Releases Deluxe Version Of "I Want Blood" With Spoken Word Tracks – UK & EU Tour Dates This Summer

Jerry Cantrell kicks off his first North American tour in support of his recently released album, I Want Blood, tonight in Niagara Falls, Ontario. These dates precede the newly announced UK & European tours this summer, including an appearance at Download Festival and a headline show at The Forum in London in June.

The tour launch coincides with the arrival of a deluxe version of the nine-track collection. Featuring spoken word versions of each of the songs on I Want Blood, the Cantrell-narrated pieces also feature their own unique score with contributions from producer Joe Barresi, engineer Maxwell Urasky, 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.

An animated video series featuring graphics from Boy Tillekens can be viewed here.

“I wanted to do something special 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,’” Cantrell recalls in a recent interview with Scott Lipps.

“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.’ 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.”

I Want Blood was recorded at Barresi’s JHOC Studio in Pasadena, Calif., and features contributions from Duff McKagan (Guns N’Roses), Mike Bordin (Faith No More), Robert Trujillo (Metallica), Greg Puciato (Better Lovers, ex-Dillinger Escape Plan), Gil Sharone (Team Sleep, Stolen Babies), and Lola Colette.

The album is available on CD, digitally, and multiple 2LP vinyl variants: https://bio.to/JerryCantrell.

Jerry Cantrell UK & EU Tour Dates:

31/05 Padua, IT @ Hall 

01/06 Milan, IT @ Magazzini Generali 

04/06 Krakow, PL @ Mystic Festival 

06/06 Berlin, DE @ Columbia Theater 

07/06 Nüremberg, DE @ Rock im Park 

08/06 Nürnberg, DE @ Rock am Ring 

10/06 Zagreb, HR @ The Culture Factory 

12/06 Nickelsdorf, AT @ Nova Rock Festival 

13/06 Hradec Kralove, CZ @ Rock The People 

14–15/06 Donington Park, UK @ Download Festival 

17/06 London, UK @ O2 Forum Kentish Town 

19/06 Amsterdam, NL @ Melkweg 

20/06 Dessel, BE @ Graspop Metal Meeting 

22/06 Clisson, FR @ Hellfest Open Air Festival 

24/06 Paris, FR @ La Machine du Moulin Rouge 

25/06 Nijmegen, NL @ Doornroosje 

26/06 Hamburg, DE @ Gruenspan 

28/06 Oslo, NO @ Tons of Rock

Tickets are available now at jerrycantrell.com/tour

I Want Blood tracklist:

DISC 1

1. Vilified 

2. Off The Rails 

3. Afterglow 

4. I Want Blood 

5. Echoes Of Laughter 

6. Throw Me A Line 

7. Let It Lie 

8. Held Your Tongue 

9. It Comes

DISC 2

1. Vilified (Spoken Word) 

2. Off The Rails (Spoken Word) 

3. Afterglow (Spoken Word) 

4. I Want Blood (Spoken Word) 

5. Echoes Of Laughter (Spoken Word) 

6. Throw Me A Line (Spoken Word) 

7. Let It Lie (Spoken Word) 

8. Held Your Tongue (Spoken Word 

9. It Comes (Spoken Word)