With Alice In Chains sound-a-likes such as Puddle of Mudd and Godsmack ruling rock radio, tonight Crowbar, 420 E. College Ave., will showcase one of the men who started that sound.

Jerry Cantrell, former guitarist and principal songwriter of Alice In Chains, will headline the show tonight, which begins at 9.

Cantrell is fitting the show into his busy schedule, which includes opening for biblical rockers Creed.

"The only reason Jerry could be here is because it's a night off in between his Creed shows," said J.P. Mills, co-manager of Crowbar.

Cantrell's tour with Creed began July 15 and runs until Sept. 2, with recent stops in Hershey and Cincinnati.

The tour will resume Saturday in Saratoga, N.Y.

Alice In Chains earned its dark reputation during the early '90s grunge scene with Cantrell-penned songs like "Rooster," "Them Bones," and "Would?"

Cantrell released his second solo album, Degradation Trip, in June, just two months after the death of Alice lead singer Layne Staley.

Degradation Trip finds Cantrell returning more to his earlier sound than his first solo album, Boggy Depot.

"An Alice fan would know my name, but some guy who just likes Alice tunes may not know me," Cantrell said in a press release.

"I found that when people saw the Alice In Chains MTV Unplugged show, they realized how much I sang and how many of the songs I'd written in Alice.

"I realized how much Alice was, and is, a part of me and how proud I am of that band. And with Degradation Trip, you know who it is when you listen to the record."

Mills offered similar sentiments.

"People are wanting more Alice," Cantrell said, describing the appeal of the concert.

Cantrell described the process by which he created his new album in the press release: "In '98, I locked myself in my house, went out of my mind and wrote 25 songs."

Fourteen of those songs make up his Roadrunner Records debut, which clocks in at a massive 73 minutes.

The rest of the 25 songs will be released sometime in 2003, Cantrell said in the release.

The first single from Degradation Trip, "Anger Rising," has received significant rock radio airplay.

Opening tonight for Canrtrell at Crowbar are Comes With The Fall and Mad At Gravity.

Tickets are $20 and are available at Crowbar, Mike's Music, 226 E. College Ave., Arboria Records, 119 E. Beaver Ave., and City Lights Records, 316 E. College Ave.

Doors open at 8 p.m.