Article Database

Welcome back to your nightmares!

"He's back, the man behind the mask, and he's completely mad" (He's back, Alice Cooper).

As in the most manic horror films (Friday the 13th, Halloween, Opera of Terror, etc.), Alice Cooper is immortal. We thought he'd disappeared from the music scene forever. But no, he's back with his seventeenth album, 'Constrictor'.

The career of this American, born on 4 February 1948 in Detroit, is taking on a new lease of life. Without Vincent Furnier (Alice Cooper's real name), rock would never have been what it is today.

THE KING OF INNOVATION

Bands like Motley Crue, WASP, Kiss and many others would probably never have existed without Alice Cooper.

"We were the first to use make-up and costumes on stage."

It was Cooper who brought the theatrical element to a rock concert. In addition to special effects and sophisticated lighting concepts, he integrated elements of horror into his shows. Boas, electric chairs, guillotines and gallows were all part of Alice Cooper's demented world.

"It's the whole reality of the American middle class that we want to reflect, but in a monstrous way. We make them come. And if their pleasure comes from us pissing on them, so much the better..."

AND IT CONTINUES

With "Welcome to my nightmare", Cooper made the first full-length video. The video for the song "Elected" (1972) is probably the first music video with a script as in the big productions.

Twisted Sister must have wanted to pay tribute to Alice Cooper with the cover of "Come out and play". Some of Furnier's records had very spectacular covers. "School's out" (a school desk with the record wrapped in women's underwear), "Killer" (a detachable calendar showing a hanged Alice Cooper), "Billion dollar babies" (a snakeskin wallet containing a trillion dollar bill) and "Muscle of love" (a large cardboard box).

SPEAKING OF MONEY

The "Billion Dollar Babies" tour was, at the time, the highest-grossing series of concerts in rock history. This tour set a precedent for all the shows that followed. Quality standards had risen dramatically. Alice Cooper completely changed the rules of show business.

For the "Constrictor" tour, Vincent Furnier worked with the specialists who produced the special effects for the films "Aliens" and "The Fly".

THE RETURN

Kane Roberts (guitarist-composer) and Alice Cooper met in New York.

"As soon as we met, we started writing songs. Kane and I both love loud rock'n'roll and movies with lots of blood, plus we have the same sense of humor."

This association will help bring Alice Cooper back to life.

"I always imagined Alice Cooper as a sweet little girl who hid an axe behind her back, always ready to do some serious damage."

Vincent Furnier responds to those who doubt the importance of his comeback with these words: "We have the best production team in the world behind this tour, and if after a few years' rest I'm back to being as diabolical as before, well, maybe we'll give bibs to the audience in the front rows so they can avoid the avalanche of blood...".

And yes, Alice is back... just like old times.

"I'm a teenage Frankenstein, the local freak with the twisted mind" (Teenage Frankenstein, Alice Cooper).

ALICE COOPER AT VERDUN

Over the years, a number of beasts of the stage have shown great talent. Guys like Peter Gabriel, Rob Halford and Dee Snider. With "The Nightmare Returns" tour, Alice Cooper proved, at 39, that he's undeniably the best.

In a Verdun Auditorium filled to capacity, Cooper put on an excellent show. Probably the best stage performance we've seen since the beginning of this decade. The American delivered the goods.

All the elements were there: a sold-out, jam-packed amphitheatre, a dense crowd, Alice Cooper look-alikes and big, juicy, perverse rock. An atmosphere of complete stupidity.

THE OLD REPERTOIRE

As promised, Cooper focused on his old songs. Opening the show with numbers like "Welcome to my nightmare", "Billion dollar babies", "No More Mr. Nice Guy", "Be My Lover", and "I'm Eighteen" (in a blistering version), Cooper was sure not to miss the boat.

THE SCENE

The stage was set in a dilapidated alleyway. A beautiful scene with many details. Streams of Christmas tree lights, a refrigerator, bits of mannequins, a few crutches and lots of garbage were all part of Alice Cooper's paraphernalia. An unusual scene, not unlike the Police's "Synchronicity II" video. Very impressive.

ALICE'S NIGHTMARE

Alice Cooper put on quite a show. Some big stars would have made do with a few make-ups, a costume and a pile of pyrotechnics. But it's with Cooper that the word show takes on its full meaning. A real play.

The great master of horror, who composed the theme song for the sixth chapter of the film "Friday the 13th", gives us an eyeful. He mutilates a baby, manipulates the sword, spanks a blow-up doll (which was in the fridge), strangles a nurse and, as if that wasn't enough, kills a photographer with his microphone stand. Quite a death toll!

A small part of the stage is reserved for the musicians, leaving the rest to Vincent Furnier's fantasies.

One of his well-known fantasies is the famous guillotine during the song "I love the death". The American singer's trademark. A jewel of special effects. An executioner brings the evil Alice to the Last Judgment, puts his head in the guillotine and "crunch"! Like a good magic act, it's hard to figure out what the trick is. The executioner kisses Alice's severed head-and sprays the crowd with the blood. A thirsty crowd. Gripping!

Another surprise effect is the famous robot in the play "Teenage Frankenstein". Alice builds his own Frankenstein out of pieces that are scattered around the stage. Suddenly, the creature starts to walk; it's clear that there's someone underneath the supposed robot. Frankenstein then gives Cooper quite a beating. He stands still, and Alice takes advantage of the lull to tear the robot to pieces. What happened to the person under the robot? There's no way of knowing. An act worthy of the best magicians.

Oh yes, a giant boa was also present. A real boa. Continuing a tradition established many years ago.

THE MUSIC

Fortunately, Alice Cooper didn't inundate us with his new music. Only "Give it up", "Teenage Frankenstein" and "The world needs guts" from the "Constrictor" album were on the program.

The poor acoustic quality of the Verdun Auditorium has always been mentioned: Cooper, however, has silenced any doubts with a remarkable sound quality.

Among the musical highlights, even though all the songs were excellent, were "I'm Eighteen", "Goes to hell", "Teenage Frankenstein", "I love the death" and a superb version of "School's out", far superior to the original. As an encore, we were treated to "Elected", and "Under my wheels". The only complaint was Kane "Rambo" Roberts' interminable guitar solo. We could have done without it.

Unfortunately, not all future shows will be of the same quality.

An electrifying return for Alice Cooper!

A WORD ABOUT SWORD

Opening the show was Quebec band Sword, who put on quite a performance. Hughes, Larock and Plant presented a number of new compositions that were much appreciated by the 5,000-strong crowd. Sword continues to evolve, and brilliantly so.

---

INTERVIEW WITH ALICE COOPER

Q.: How long have you been on the road?

Alice: Yes, since last October. We've visited 85 cities so far (before Montreal).

Q.: How do you feel after so many concerts?

Alice: For my part, I have to say that things are going very well. I'm in better physical shape and I've never had such a good band. It's a very exciting tour. I think it's the most enjoyable tour I've ever been on.

Q.: When you say you're in better shape, do you mean you've stopped drinking?

Alice: Yes, absolutely, I haven't had a drop in four years. I'm feeling great, and I can face long tours without any problems. I'm definitely ready to resume my place on the music scene.

Q: Does your show feature numbers from your previous tours?

Alice: (laughs) Well, I'm accompanied by a twelve-foot boa constrictor. There's also the guillotine. You know it's a real blade that weighs about forty pounds. As it falls, it comes within about eight inches of my head.

Q.: Isn't that a bit dangerous?

Alice: It's very dangerous! But it's all calculated. It's a bit like a circus show. The trapeze artists work without a net for every performance. That's dangerous too. It's a calculated risk. If anything goes wrong, I imagine it's going to be quite a show.

Q.: Your new LP "Constrictor" is much harder than "Dada", for example. Do you plan to continue in this vein?

Alice: Definitely. Over the last few years, I've been trying to find a new look for Alice Cooper, and experimenting musically too. But in the end, I realized that what I wanted, and what the public wanted, was the '70s character. I believe this character will defy time. Musically, I felt the need to return to more direct, energetic rock.

Q.: Perhaps you've noticed a change in your audience over the course of the tour?

Alice: Yes, that's true. About 75% of the audience must be between 15 and 20 years old. The rest are mostly fans who've been following me for over ten years.

Q.: Any plans after this visit to Canada?

Alice: I've got another twenty or so shows in the States, then after that I'm taking a few weeks off. Then we go into the studio for the new album, which should be out in June. I intend to go back on tour as soon as the record is out.

Q.: Do you plan to work with the same team as for "Constrictor"?

Alice: It'll be the same musicians, but I'm not sure about the producer yet. I've got three names in mind, but for the moment I'd rather not talk about them too much.

Q.: Musically, will it be in the same vein as "Constrictor"?

Alice: Yes, direct, merciless hard rock (laughs). There will also be three strange pieces (laughs) in the style of "Dada". It's a kind of trilogy.

Q.: Do you feel that Alice is as disturbing as she was in the '70s?

Alice: It's funny you should ask me that. I was thinking about it recently and I realized that my character is still controversial. Let's just say it's not like 1973 or 1974. Today, it's the famous story of diabolical music. I think some people take rock far too seriously. People come to see me because they're hoping for a good show. It's a bit like a Halloween party. It's a show and nothing more. We're not connected in any way with any Satanist movement or whatever.

Q.: I imagine you must have had offers to act in a few films?

Alice: I receive scripts quite regularly, but I have to admit I'm not really interested. I'm not saying no, but at the moment I'm mainly interested in music.

MICHEL BILODEAU

(Translated from the Canadian-French language publication, November 2023)