ALBUM REVIEW: Alice Cooper keeps pushing down the ‘Road’ on live-ish album

Alice Cooper, Alice Cooper Road

Alice Cooper, “Road.”

Alice Cooper offers up a re-introduction on the opening track of his latest album, Road.

Road
Alice Cooper

earMUSIC, Aug. 25
7/10
Get the album on Amazon Music.

“The master of madness/ The father of fright/ I’m Alice!” Cooper declares.

The 75-year-old shock rock icon is showing no signs of quitting, continuing to make music and tour relentlessly. Are released previous LP, Detroit Stories, just two years ago.

For his latest record, the Rock & Roll Hall of Famer brought his live band, including guitar virtuoso Nita Strauss, to the studio to create a collection of songs that capture the spirit of his concerts. “I’m Alice” serves up the riffs and dark lyrics, but also throws in a harmonized bridge and spoken-word breakdown.



Decades into his career, Cooper clearly still has a passion for keeping the spirit of rock and roll alive. He and has band sound particularly cohesive on upbeat rocker “Welcome to the Show,” which has a natural live feeling and would most certainly lend itself to opening up a show.

“All right band, put your hands in,” Cooper says, in a call to action.

Cooper’s signature rasp is alive and well on “All Over the World,” with a bluesy swagger that fuses riffs and horns. Album title Road is fitting. Many of these songs are a lyrical homage to his over-the-top devil-horns-up-to-the-sky tribute to roadshow.

“Never be our final show/ Never be our final shot/ We give it everything we know/ We get it everything we got,” he sings on top of a chorus of gang vocals.



Cooper and company offer up Sabbath-esque riffs on “Dead Don’t Dance,” a self-referential track about what the singer might be doing if not for music. Road never takes itself too seriously, but also packs a punch. The latter song particularly offers up a tasty shredded solo. Then there’s “Go Away,” a tongue-in-cheek tune about an over-aggressive suitor.

“She spams me every night/ She calls, she texts, she writes,” Cooper sings.

“White Line Frankenstein” is full on ’80s riffing and lyrics about being a “road rat” with no allegiances other than touring. The sentiment keeps rolling on “Big Boots,” a bluesy rocker with a call-and-response chorus. “Rules of the Road” covers the unwritten rules of touring, with the top three being “Always get the money.” A veteran of both the road and the studio, Alice Cooper knows where his bread is buttered, delivering fun tracks that will resonate with existing fans.



The riffs seem to get bigger and more bombastic on “The Big Goodbye,” about a one-night stands that hits surprisingly hard. “Road Rats Forever” offers a different perspective, taking on the view of the roadies that make the show happen every night. The dirty blues track is a fun, rollicking anthem for the group of often unsung heroes. The tempo shifts dramatically for “Baby Please Don’t Go,” trading in the distorted guitar lines for a decidedly mid-tempo acoustic ballad. It’s a refreshing change, even in its earnest vocals, and it works well.

The record concludes with the spaced-out blues of “100 More Miles” and hard-rocking “Magic Bus,” the latter with a full-on drum solo by Glen Sobel that adds fireworks to the grand finale, much as you might expect at a concert.

Follow writer Mike DeWald at Twitter.com/mike_dewald.

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