Cardboard Vampyres: a Billy Duffy and Jerry Cantrell cover band
Upon first hearing the names of Billy Duffy of The Cult and Jerry Cantrell of Alice in Chains, you might think that the two guitarists have very little in common. This is because, at face value, both musicians represent two distinctly different periods. Duffy is one of the most distinguished guitarists of the 1980s, and Cantrell is that of the 1990s, with both acting as central figures in highly successful bands.
However, artistically speaking, they are very similar. Although their bands denote two different generations, there’s only a five-year age difference between the two men, with both being born during the 1960s. More importantly, though, is that both are best described as distinguished guitarists in the realms of hard rock and heavy metal — but this might need some clarification.
When discussing The Cult, the focal point of reference is their 1985 hit song ‘She Sells Sanctuary’, taken from their second album, Love. The track is a goth rock masterpiece carried by guitarist Billy Duffy’s busy, melodic playing style, with his mesmerising performance on the Gretsch White Falcon amongst the most influential of the era.
Nevertheless, what some people tend to forget about The Cult is that they’re much more than this one popular track. Over their career, the band developed from a goth-leaning act into one of their day’s foremost hard-rock/heavy metal outfits. Via the Love track ‘The Phoenix’, they emerged from the psychedelic-inflected sounds of ‘She Sells Sanctuary’ and started their metamorphosis, one which would deliver more muscular records such as Electric, Sonic Temple and The Cult, with Duffy starting to shred more.
As for Jerry Cantrell, he’s the lead guitarist and current frontman of grunge pioneers Alice in Chains. Together with the band’s late vocalist, Layne Staley, he formed a formidable partnership, with their first two records, 1990’s Facelift and 1992’s Dirt, utterly timeless. He fuses the influence of earlier players, such as Jimi Hendrix, with an alternative metal sensibility to create a dark, unyielding sound. His highlights reel is an extensive one, boasting cuts such as ‘Man in the Box’, ‘It Ain’t Like That’ and ‘Them Bones’.
As both men have such glittering reputations, there’s no surprise that they’re close friends. However, what is unexpected is the period of time that they temporarily joined forces. In 2004, the pair had the idea after Cantrell made a handful of guest appearances with the all-star covers band Camp Freddy, a group which featured Dave Navarro of Jane’s Addiction, Matt Sorum of Guns N’ Roses, Red Hot Chili Peppers drummer Chad Smith and Billy Idol’s guitarist, Billy Morrison. This inspired Cantrell and Duffy to form their own covers band, which they eventually named the Cardboard Vampyres after the Alice in Chains man’s pet cats.
They debuted under the moniker the Jerry Cantrell-Billy Duffy Band for a three-show series for the Sweet Relief Musicians Fund at The Troubadour in Los Angeles in April 2004. Alongside a host of covers, they played a selection of Duffy-penned Cult songs and some of Cantrell’s Alice in Chains pieces. Speaking to the Hollywood Reporter before, Cantrell told fans what to expect: “It’s straight up old hard-rock stuff. We’re having a lot of fun with it.”
The group also featured vocalist John Corabi, formerly of Mötley Crüe, bassist Chris Wyse and drummer Josh Howser. They played throughout the US, performing covers of bands such as Led Zeppelin, AC/DC, The Stooges, Black Sabbath, and Aerosmith. “This band is really just about having fun and playing tunes that we were fans of growing up,” Cantrell explained.
No formal albums were released by the Cardboard Vampyres, but do not fret. Footage exists of them live in action, with one of the best coming from their 2004 show at Slims in San Francisco. View some of those clips, below.
