“Down in a Hole,” from Dirt, 1992,

Alice in Chains, Jerry Cantrell.

We set our clocks ahead--

Prepare us for the advent of spring.

But the longer days are no warmer,

And winter continues to cling.

I listen to the music; let it free my soul,

Its somber chords play a special role,

And poetic words oddly console,   

When winter keeps me down in a hole.

“Down in a Hole”

Bury me softly in this womb
I give this part of me for you
Sand rains down and here I sit
Holding rare flowers
In a tomb... in bloom

Down in a hole and I don't know if I can be saved
See my heart I decorate it like a grave
You don't understand who they
Thought I was supposed to be
Look at me now a man
Who wont let himself be

Down in a hole, feelin' so small
Down in a hole, losin' control
I'd like to fly,
But my wings have been so denied

Down in a hole and they've put all
The stones in their place
I've eaten the sun so my tongue
Has been burned of the taste
I have been guilty
Of kicking myself in the teeth
I will speak no more
Of my feelings beneath

Down in a hole, feelin' so small
Down in a hole, losin' control
I'd like to fly but my
Wings have been so denied

Bury me softly in this womb
Oh I want to be inside of you
I give this part of me for you
Oh I want to be inside of you
Sand rains down and here I sit
Holding rare flowers (oh I want to be inside of you)
In a tomb... in bloom
Oh I want to be inside...

Down in a hole, feelin' so small
Down in a hole, losin' my soul
Down in a hole, feelin' so small
Down in a hole, outta control
I'd like to fly but my
Wings have been so denied

“Down in a Hole” by Alice in Chains is indeed an intriguing, haunting

piece of music.  Jerry Cantrell, lead guitarist of the group, is the

composer.  He states that the song is about his troubled relationship

with his long-time girlfriend.  However, it has also been written that

Cantrell publicly offered this explanation of the song’s meaning as a

cover to avoid further questions, as the song is just too personal, deep,

and almost prophetic of the future, as two of the musicians in the

original recording, lead singer, Layne Staley, and bassist, Mike Starr,

both later died of drug overdoses.

As listeners though, we should remove anything we may know of the

personal lives of the artists, and look at the lyrics as written at face

value.  I feel that these poetic lyrics lend themselves to several plausible

interpretations.  Please do enjoy this song and see what it brings to mind

for you.

 Bury me softly in this womb
I give this part of me for you
Sand rains down and here I sit
Holding rare flowers
In a tomb... in bloom

From this gentle first verse, I hear that someone or something important

has died or ended.   The speaker expresses a wish to communicate, “I

give this part of me for you.”  The sadness is burying him, “sand rains

down and here I sit.”

Down in a hole and I don't know if I can be saved
See my heart I decorate it like a grave
You don't understand who they
Thought I was supposed to be
Look at me now a man
Who wont let himself be

“Down in a hole and I don’t know if I can be saved” seems to refer

to the speaker’s spirits which are so low, he feels as if nothing can

lift them.  His heart is barren “like a grave.”  He feels that he has not

risen to the expectations of others, and now he is just going through

the motions of his life like a machine “who won’t let himself be.”

Down in a hole, feelin' so small
Down in a hole, losin' control
I'd like to fly,
But my wings have been so denied

The lines of the chorus tell us that the speaker is in the pit of

depression, feeling “so small…losin’ control.” He wants to escape from

it, “I’d like to fly,” but is unable to, “my wings have been so denied.”

.

Down in a hole and they've put all
The stones in their place
I've eaten the sun so my tongue
Has been burned of the taste
I have been guilty
Of kicking myself in the teeth
I will speak no more
Of my feelings beneath

The speaker remains trapped “down in a hole” because “they’ve

put all the stones in their place.” He feels that he’s done all he can,

“I’ve eaten the sun so my tongue has been burned of the taste” and

he doesn’t feel anything anymore.  He acknowledges that he has

become his own worst enemy, “I have been guilty of kicking myself

in the teeth.” It does no good to talk about it, nothing is going to

change, “I will speak no more of my feelings beneath.”

The best part of the song comes next; the lyrics of the first verse are

repeated, sung with the line “Oh, I want to be inside of you,” backing

lead vocals by Staley and Cantrell.  It’s mesmerizing, almost hypnotic,

and haunting.  The words can certainly have a sexual connotation, but

in the context of the rest of the song, it seems that the speaker is simply

giving up.  He sees the “hole” of his depression as a comforting womb;

he finds solace there.

Is “Down in a Hole” by Alice in Chains a song of lost love, of drug addiction,

of depression?  It may be about none or all of these.  I only know that it is

a fine piece of poetry in a beautiful song that I never tire of.