"Your Decision" is a song by
Alice in Chains
Alice in Chains (often abbreviated as AIC) is an American rock band from Seattle, Washington, formed in 1987 by guitarist and vocalist Jerry Cantrell and drummer Sean Kinney, who later recruited bassist Mike Starr and lead vocalist Layne ...
, featured on their fourth studio album, ''
Black Gives Way to Blue'' (2009). Written by
Jerry Cantrell
Jerry Fulton Cantrell Jr. (born March 18, 1966) is an American guitarist, singer and songwriter. He is best known as the founder, lead guitarist, co-lead vocalist, and main songwriter of the rock band Alice in Chains. The band rose to internation ...
, who also sings lead vocals on the song, it was released as the second single from the album on November 16, 2009 in the
UK,
and on December 1, 2009 in the
US. The single reached No. 1 on the ''
Billboard
A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...
''
Hot Rock Songs
Hot Rock & Alternative Songs (formerly known as Rock Songs and Hot Rock Songs) is a record chart published by ''Billboard'' magazine. From its debut on June 20, 2009, through October 13, 2012, the chart ranked the airplay of songs across alternati ...
and
Mainstream Rock
Mainstream rock (also known as heritage rock) is a radio format used by many commercial radio stations in the United States and Canada.
Format background
Mainstream rock stations represent the middle ground between classic rock and active rock ...
charts,
and No. 4 on the
Alternative Songs
Alternative Airplay (formerly known as Modern Rock Tracks (1988–2009) and Alternative Songs (2009–2020)) is a music chart in the United States that has appeared in ''Billboard'' magazine since September 10, 1988. It ranks the 40 most-played ...
chart.
"Your Decision" was featured on ''
CSI''s season 10, episode 8, "Lover's Lane".
Lyrics
In an interview for the making of the video of "Your Decision", singer
William DuVall
William Bradley DuVall (born September 6, 1967) is an American musician best known as the current co-lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist for the rock band Alice in Chains. He joined Alice in Chains in 2006, replacing the band's original lead si ...
stated that "This song is all about choices and their consequences".
Many fans believe this song was written from
Jerry Cantrell
Jerry Fulton Cantrell Jr. (born March 18, 1966) is an American guitarist, singer and songwriter. He is best known as the founder, lead guitarist, co-lead vocalist, and main songwriter of the rock band Alice in Chains. The band rose to internation ...
to the late
Layne Staley
Layne Thomas Staley (born Layne Rutherford Staley; August 22, 1967 – April 5, 2002) was an American musician, songwriter and the original lead singer of the rock band Alice in Chains, which rose to international fame in the early 1990s as part ...
, who couldn't kick his addiction to drugs and died in 2002.
DuVall and drummer
Sean Kinney
Sean Howard Kinney (born May 27, 1966) is an American musician, best known as the drummer and co-founder of the rock band Alice in Chains. Kinney also founded the short-lived supergroup Spys4Darwin, and has collaborated with other artists such a ...
stated that the song has a simple message:
DuVall: "Consequences, you know. It's your decision. You've got to sleep in the bed you make, you know. Things happen, and it's just funny how one little left or right turn in your life can just totally take you off on a tangent that can be so bizarre and unanticipated, you know."
Kinney: "I've taken a lot of lefts and a lot of rights. I'm sure we all have. You've got to deal with it when you get there."
Music video
The music video was released on December 1, 2009 via
iTunes
iTunes () is a software program that acts as a media player, media library, mobile device management utility, and the client app for the iTunes Store. Developed by Apple Inc., it is used to purchase, play, download, and organize digital mul ...
Music Store, and was directed by Stephen Schuster, who had previously directed the music video for "
A Looking in View".
It was shot at an ornate Malibu mansion and pays homages to
Stanley Kubrick
Stanley Kubrick (; July 26, 1928 – March 7, 1999) was an American film director, producer, screenwriter, and photographer. Widely considered one of the greatest filmmakers of all time, his films, almost all of which are adaptations of nove ...
films, such as ''
The Shining'' and ''
Eyes Wide Shut
''Eyes Wide Shut'' is a 1999 erotic mystery psychological drama film directed, produced, and co-written by Stanley Kubrick. It is based on the 1926 novella '' Traumnovelle'' (''Dream Story'') by Arthur Schnitzler, transferring the story's sett ...
''.
It also references
1 Corinthians 10:23, the first verse of a passage giving guidelines about eating meat which has been offered in sacrifice to idols. According to drummer Sean Kinney, there were at least three different endings for the video.
The video features Californian-based model Sarah Stage and ''
Project Runway
''Project Runway'' is an American reality television series that premiered on Bravo on December 1, 2004. The series focuses on fashion design.
The contestants compete with each other to create the best clothes and are restricted by time, mater ...
'' season three model Amanda Fields.
The video depicts the band playing at a party at a large mansion. The narrative portions of the video are shot in first person; the protagonist is invited to the party by a card dropped at their door by Stage. At the party, Stage lures the protagonist upstairs while a bald man follows them; the protagonist sees many bizarre and vaguely sexual activities in the rooms upstairs. They finally enter a room at the end of the hall where Stage starts to remove her clothes, but the protagonist is knocked out by the bald man, and wakes up to see Stage approaching them with a tray; she brands them with a number. It is revealed that the party guests correspond to various numbers on a menu for a group of older men eating human meat in a back room; the protagonist's heart is shown being eaten by Stage at the end.
In January 2010, Alice in Chains released a behind-the-scenes video about the making of the music video.
[Alice In Chains - The Making of "Your Decision"](_blank)
/ref>
On February 10, 2010, the band launched a contest in partnership with PopCult and Devil's Due Publishing to give the fans a chance to add their own chapter to the storyline depicted in the video. Fans were challenged to post suggestions for what they think should happen in the next chapter in 150 words or less. Fans were encouraged to post their submissions via Facebook and Twitter. Once approved, all new chapter posts were made viewable to the public. They could be read, commented on, and "liked" by other users. At each chapter stage the submission with the most "likes" was the winner. The winners had their chapters illustrated by PopCult/Devil's Due and immortalized into the "Your Decision" comic book. The Grand Prize winner was chosen by the band and included a flyaway trip for two to New York to see Alice in Chains play a sold-out concert at Terminal 5 on March 9, 2010, two nights accommodations and the chance to meet the band. The four runners-up got a limited edition illustrated "Your Decision" comic lithograph signed by the band. The finalized comic (comprising six chapters) was offered as a free PDF download to everyone.
Appearances in other media
The song was featured on the TV show '' CSI'', on season 10 episode 8, "Lover's Lane".
On January 12, 2010, it was released as downloadable content for the Rock Band
A rock band or pop band is a small musical ensemble that performs rock music, pop music, or a related genre. A four-piece band is the most common configuration in rock and pop music. In the early years, the configuration was typically two guita ...
video game series.
Track listing
CD Single (509994 58606 2 1)
# "Your Decision" (radio edit) – 4:00
# "Your Decision" (album version) – 4:43
Personnel
*Jerry Cantrell
Jerry Fulton Cantrell Jr. (born March 18, 1966) is an American guitarist, singer and songwriter. He is best known as the founder, lead guitarist, co-lead vocalist, and main songwriter of the rock band Alice in Chains. The band rose to internation ...
– lead vocals, lead guitar, acoustic guitar
*William DuVall
William Bradley DuVall (born September 6, 1967) is an American musician best known as the current co-lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist for the rock band Alice in Chains. He joined Alice in Chains in 2006, replacing the band's original lead si ...
– vocals, rhythm guitar, acoustic guitar
* Mike Inez – bass
*Sean Kinney
Sean Howard Kinney (born May 27, 1966) is an American musician, best known as the drummer and co-founder of the rock band Alice in Chains. Kinney also founded the short-lived supergroup Spys4Darwin, and has collaborated with other artists such a ...
– drums
Charts
Weekly charts
Year-end charts
See also
*List of number-one Billboard Rock Songs
Hot Rock & Alternative Songs (formerly known as Rock Songs and Hot Rock Songs) is a record chart published by ''Billboard'' magazine. From its debut on June 20, 2009, through October 13, 2012, the chart ranked the airplay of songs across alternati ...
* List of Billboard Mainstream Rock number-one songs of the 2000s
References
External links
*
*
*
{{Alice in Chains
2009 songs
2009 singles
Alice in Chains songs
Rock ballads
Songs written by Jerry Cantrell
Virgin Records singles
Song recordings produced by Nick Raskulinecz