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With new singer William DuVall, Cantrell and Alice In Chains are forging a new path (© Kelly A. Swift/Retna Ltd./Corbis)

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You would think that Jerry Cantrell might have no dreams left to realize. With his band, Alice In Chains, the guitarist played a huge role in defining the 'grunge' sound of the early '90s, selling over 17 million albums in the process.

But when the reunited band recorded their new album, Black Gives Way To Blue, Cantrell got to live out a boyhood fantasy when his idol, Elton John, agreed to play on the title track.

"Mind-blowing," is how Cantrell, 43, summarizes the experience. The group was recording in Las Vegas, and as it turned out, Sir Elton was working in the same studio. Figuring he had nothing to lose, Cantrell contacted John and sent him the track, asking if he might consider playing on it. A week went by with no response, and Cantrell all but gave up hope.

And then John contacted Cantrell and said that he loved the song. A fan of the band, he was especially moved that the number was an elegy for Alice's late singer, Layne Staley, who succumbed to a heroin overdose in 2002. Sure, he said, he'd be honored to play on the cut.

Cantrell describes the feeling of hearing Elton John perform one of his songs as "one of those really cool things that you never expect to happen." Belying his reputation as a diva, John's gracious attitude and musical contribution made a huge impression on Cantrell: "Not only did he lend his voice and made the song jump up a level by his input, he didn't take it over either. He became part of the band."

Of course, in 2010, many are surprised - and no doubt delighted - that there even is an Alice In Chains. After Staley's death, it seemed almost unthinkable that they could go on, and for a time, they didn't. But a tsunami benefit concert in 2005 led the group (which also includes drummer Sean Kinney and bassist Mike Inez), with Cantrell's new friend singer William DuVall, to slowly rebuild.

DuVall and Cantrell make a strange kind of magic together, echoing the vocal harmonies of the Alice In Chains of old. Cantrell admits that he doesn't hear the similarity ("the writing style and the players are the reasons it sounds the way it sounds"), but he's thrilled to be carving out a new chapter with the group he and Kinney founded 23 years ago.

Cantrell sat down with MusicRadar recently to discuss Alice In Chains' reformation, his thoughts on Layne Staley, his approach to practicing the guitar (he doesn't!) and the undiminished coolness of Elton John.

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The new record is stunning. This is Alice In Chains' first album in, what, 15 years or so?

"It's been a long time…for obvious reasons. But we've been doing shows for a couple of years, and during that time we were coming up with ideas. It's really cool that we were able to come together with something that's fitting of the legacy that we left before…and a good starting point to begin again."

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