Birth name Sean Howard Kinney Name Sean Kinney Occupation(s) Musician Role Musician | Years active 1976–present Education Liberty High School Labels Virgin, EMI | |
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Instruments Drums, piano, percussion Similar People Profiles | ||
Interview alice in chains jerry cantrell and sean kinney about layne staley
Sean Howard Kinney (born May 27, 1966) is an American musician, best known for being the drummer and co-founder of the rock band Alice in Chains.
Contents
- Interview alice in chains jerry cantrell and sean kinney about layne staley
- Vater percussion sean kinney of alice in chains
- Alice in Chains
- Other projects
- Alice in Chains rebirth
- Artwork
- Kit
- Cymbals
- Sticks
- Discography
- References
Kinney's interest in music was developed at an early age. He got his first drum kit when he was 5. By the age of 9, he was keeping the beat for his grandfather's band, The Cross Cats, and traveling the Northwest playing small venues. Kinney grew up in Renton, Washington, where he attended Liberty Senior High School in the Issaquah School District.
Vater percussion sean kinney of alice in chains
Alice in Chains
Kinney met up with Alice in Chains when he was dating the sister of bassist Mike Starr, Melinda. Guitarist Jerry Cantrell wanted to form a new band after his band Diamond Lie broke up, so his roommate Layne Staley gave him the phone number of Kinney's girlfriend, so that Cantrell could talk to him and set up a meeting. Kinney and his girlfriend went to the Music Bank where Cantrell lived and listened to his demos. Cantrell mentioned that they needed a bass player to jam with them, and he already had someone in mind: Mike Starr, with whom Cantrell had played in a band in Burien called Gypsy Rose. Kinney then mentioned that his girlfriend was actually Starr's sister, and that he had been playing in bands together with Starr since they were kids. Kinney called Starr and a few days later he started jamming with him and Cantrell at the Music Bank, but they didn't have a singer. Cantrell, Starr and Kinney wanted Staley to be their lead singer, so they started auditioning terrible lead singers in front of Staley to send a hint. The last straw for Staley was when they auditioned a male stripper – he decided to join the band after that.
Since the band's inception, Kinney has been the only drummer. He also sang chorus vocals through a megaphone on the hidden song from Sap entitled "Love Song". The album was named after a dream Kinney had about the band recording some light acoustic songs for an album they name Sap, because it's "sappy."
Kinney plays a large role in the presentation of the band, having helped design artwork and stage setups for most of the band's albums and tours.
Other projects
Through the decline in grunge popularity during the mid-nineties, Kinney was a member of a Willie Nelson tribute band. The tribute band also included Johnny Cash, Kim Thayil of Soundgarden, and Krist Novoselic from Nirvana. Kinney also played drums for his Alice in Chains band mate Jerry Cantrell's solo album, Boggy Depot. Four years later, he founded the short-lived project Spys4Darwin with friend and fellow Seattle musician Chris DeGarmo of Queensrÿche fame. Joined by Mike Inez (AIC's bassist since 1993) and Sponge vocalist Vinnie Dombroski, they recorded and released the 6-track EP, microfish, in May 2001.
Since 2009, Kinney co-owns the club Crocodile Cafe in Seattle with Alice in Chains' manager Susan Silver, and Capitol Hill Block Party co-founder Marcus Charles purchased the establishment.
Alice in Chains rebirth
In 2005, Kinney reunited with the other two surviving members of Alice in Chains—performing at a benefit concert for the 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake and tsunami. On March 6, 2006, they again performed together at VH1's Decades Rock Live concert, honoring fellow Seattle musicians Ann Wilson and Nancy Wilson of Heart. That night they played "Rooster" with Comes with the Fall vocalist William DuVall and Ann Wilson. DuVall joined Alice in Chains as lead singer shortly thereafter. Since that time, Kinney has drummed for AIC at numerous events and concerts. From May 16–17, 2009, Alice in Chains was part of the annual rock festival, Rock on the Range at the Columbus Crew Stadium in Columbus, Ohio. The album Black Gives Way to Blue, the first without Staley, was released on September 29, 2009. Their fifth studio album, The Devil Put Dinosaurs Here, was released in 2013.
Artwork
In 1995, Alice in Chains was contemplating making a third studio album. When it was official, Kinney drew out artwork for the cover and liner notes. The cover features a three-legged dog, reason being, according to band lore, "there was a dog with three legs that always used to chase Sean around when he was doing his paper routes, it creeped him out!" In the music video for "Grind", it shows a three legged dog (similar to the one that allegedly used to chase Kinney) walking up a stairway with an elderly man. The dog used in the video belongs to Jerry Cantrell, named Sunshine, after the Alice in Chains song.
The cover art of Black Gives Way to Blue (2009), an illustration of a heart surrounded by a black background, was Kinney's basic concept.