Article Database

The Rock Monster Rages Like in Old Times: Alice Cooper

It has been quiet around Alice Cooper for two years. He had a total break: "I had to recover from myself first. I played golf. Met friends, got married and developed new ideas."

He has been back on stage for a few weeks now. With a crew of 43 people, he is touring the USA and Canada for 32 concerts until the end of August. "I don't do freak shows anymore!", Alice shouts in a tracksuit to the 45,000 fans in Anaheim Stadium near Los Angeles, "Today there's only one thing: clean entertainment and fun..."

He must be making fun of himself! Because in his 75-minute show, he shows everything that has made him famous: He has himself "executed" by guillotine, is chased by giant spiders, buried alive, performs with the snake "Angel", disguises himself as Inspector Escargot and is beaten up by gangsters in the process.

Alice pulls out all the stops: from "Black Widow", "School's Out", "Lace and Whiskey" to his new hit "You and Me", he offers his fans a total of 17 songs. Only the best of the best, the super hits from his past shows.

And then comes the finale: Alice presents himself as the new guy: he comes on stage in a gray suit and floppy hat: he, the rock devil who made rock theater popular, plays the good guy. Unadorned, as "Mr. Nice", he no longer terrifies anyone. That's what groups like Kiss and the punks do today.

Is Cooper slowly but surely saying goodbye to scary rock? Anything is possible, because Alice is known for surprising decisions.

(Translated from the original German language publication, February 2024)