Any time there is an official Deep Purple archival release coming out, diehards have to pay attention. The current library of vintage live CDs is the Official Deep Purple (Overseas) Live Series. A mouthful. Live in Paris was the first in the series, followed by Copenhagen 1972 (which I missed but have to catch up on). Graz 1975 is the third, and it has a long history of incomplete releases going all the way back to 1976! Some songs were used on the single LP Made in Europe in that year. In 1996, five songs were remixed and included on Mk III: The Final Concerts. Now the entire April 3 show in Graz, Austria has been remixed again and released in its completion.
As a guy who owns virtually every single official Deep Purple release and catching up on the rest, I’m amazed at how crisp and fucking essential this new mix of “Burn” is. The liner notes call it “surely the best version of this song, ever.” Paice and Blackmore both play with an excitement and energy that is even above their standards. Lord too, but my God are Ian and Ritchie fueled up, laying down fill after fill that were of that moment. Ritchie was on the verge of leaving — he was gone after only two more shows. Even if you’ve heard this exact same recording of “Burn” from Mk III: The Final Concerts before, you haven’t heard it like this. This new mix kills the prior ones, rendering them almost obsolete. Ditto with “Stormbringer”, which captures all the energy that that was missing from Made in Europe.
I’m always pleased to hear “The Gypsy” from Stormbringer, an underrated track from an underrated album. Glenn Hughes’ young pipes are achingly powerful, drowning out David Coverdale. An unreleased “Lady Double Dealer” is the last short song before the show progresses on to long 10 minute or more jams. Ritchie’s manic pick scrapes are deliciously perfect. This usually isn’t one of my go-to Deep Purple songs, but this absolutely smokes any version I’ve heard before.
The first long bomber is Ritchie’s blues centerpiece, “Mistreated”. I confess I usually snooze through this one. This version will be familiar as one of the “bonus tracks” on Mk III: The Final Concerts. Ritchie is the main focus of “Mistreated”, and he stretches out far and wide, using bits from “Lazy”, “Sail Away” and classical melodies. Coverdale is much stronger vocally than he tends to be on this song. A ramshackle “Smoke on the Water” is also dull by comparison with the first part of the set. Its highlight is a long, building and breaking Jon Lord organ solo, which leads into “With a Little Help from my Friends”. “You Fool No One” is over 10 minutes, and it gives Ian Paice a chance to strut his stuff. Paice is one of those drummers that it pays off to focus on and really listen to, because he is always doing something interesting. All of this is outshined by a 20 minute “Space Truckin'”. Richard Strauss’ “Thus Spake Zarathustra” is a suitably bombastic segue, for a band of Deep Purple’s stature. They also detour into “Child in Time”. If you’re not wiped out by now, you will be by the end.
Gotta say that those responsible do a great job with these Deep Purple products. Absolutely no qualms about this release at all. Not essential to anyone but fans of Deep Purple Mk III.
RECORD STORE TALES MkII: Getting More Tale #353: Hotter Than Hell
Grade 8 was a shitty year. I couldn’t wait to get the hell out of that shitty school. I had it up to here [holds hand right below chin] with the bullies and teachers. I had a fight with a bully at the beginning of the year, which at least kept that one off my case for the rest of it. That was also the year I got mono! The only thing that really helped get me through was rock and roll, and especially Kiss. Way back in Part 3 of Record Store Tales, I acquired Hotter Than Hell on LP, in very bad condition. I almost immediately traded it away for a bunch of other records and swag, but not before dubbing a copy on a terrible Scotch blank tape. As explained in great detail in Part 3, I grew to love Hotter Than Hell despite its flaws. Sonically, it was arguably Kiss’ worst album. I was listening to a scratched LP via a 120 minute Scotch tape that was prone to stretch and warble. I had Kiss’ worst sounding album on the worst sounding format! Yet something about it kept drawing me back.
Sound issues aside, there’s no denying Hotter Than Hell is a powerful record. Perennial Kiss klassics such as “Got to Choose”, “Hotter Than Hell”, “Parasite”, and “Let Me Go, Rock and Roll” can be found right here. It also has one of Peter Criss’ best tunes (albeit written by Paul Stanley) called “Mainline”. I found myself immediately hooked on Peter’s raspy voice. I surmised that “Mainline” wasn’t a hit, since it neither appeared on Alive! nor Double Platinum. I couldn’t figure out why. “If Kiss have songs this good that never became hits,” I reasoned, “the rest of their albums must also be pretty good.”
Right after “Mainline” was another amazing song that I fell for: “Coming Home”. This Stanley ode to the road was chosen many years later as the opening track for Kiss’ MTV Unplugged. Back then, to me it was another classic that should have been a hit. The nucleus of the album became four key songs that I could not get enough of: “Coming Home”, “Mainline”, “Hotter Than Hell” and “Got to Choose”. Later on, “All the Way” expanded that list to five.
Those tunes kept me going. If I was having a rotten day at school, I could hum “Coming Home” to myself and feel better. For a French assignment, we had to record an introductory paragraph about ourselves, approximately 30-60 seconds long. We were allowed to do this with music in the background. I chose the opening riff to “Got to Choose” for mine. First chord — then, “Je m’appelle Michèle…” I talked for the instrumental part, and was finished before the opening line of the song. But I kept the tape running for a moment longer before I did a fade-out: “Baby, you know I heard the neighbors say…” Just so I could work a little bit of Kiss into my French class. I was probably the only one who noticed.
The bullies picked on me pretty hard in grade 8. I was assigned “flag duty”, which meant I was the guy who had to put the flag up every morning. Drawing attention to myself was never a fun thing in grade 8, and I had to do it every morning. Walking down the hall to the coughs of “Fag Boy” — a clever name derived from “Flag Boy” — was a daily torment. They also liked to make fun of my boots, which today would have been cooler than hell, since they were vintage, but then just added to misery. Thursdays were wood shop class, which meant a bus ride to another school downtown. That bus ride was without a doubt the worst part of each week. I was prone to getting sick on Thursdays, for some reason….
When I got mono (for real) I missed most of the end of grade 8, but not before being shamed in front of the entire class by my teacher. “Shame on you!” she said, because I picked the wrong school. We all had to choose which highschool we wanted to go to. We were usually expected to choose the Catholic school, but there was no way in hell I was doing that. You couldn’t have dragged me along with those kids, believe me. There was just no way. I chose Grand River Collegiate, which was closer. Plus my best friend Bob, who was two years older than me, went to that school. It would be cool to see him every day at lunch time. We never had any classes together for obvious reasons, but we conspired to get lockers side by side once. We had a great time in highschool. Those were the golden years!
Certainly better than grade 8. I’ve never told all of these stories publicly before. It is what it is, and all is certainly forgiven now. The interesting thing is how these experiences collided to really galvanize my love of that Hotter Than Hell album. Listening to it today still brings back memories of gym class, waiting for it to finally end, humming “Coming Home” to myself. And that, friends, is why such a terrible sounding record is so important to me!
Everybody seems to have their favourite kind of content. My buddy Thussy comes here mostly for the WTFs! Every once in a while, I’ll send him a list of all the weird and wacky search terms that have (somehow) lead people to mikeladano.com. As he did inWTF Search Terms XV, he’s picked his favourites. Please welcome back Thussy for this Guest Shot edition of WTF Search Terms.
WTF Search Terms XXIV: Fan Favourites – First Grade Math edition
It’s been a year since my last installment of WTF search terms so here it is: My list of fucked up shit people want to see on the internet and then somehow make it to Lebrains blog. And when I say shit it sometimes literally means shit.
10. share this click to email this to a friend
I had to include this one because how the hell does this get you to a blog about music?
9. i don’t exist
Then don’t google yourself.
8. wild party
I am a wild party.
7. shower poop guy
Why do people keep searching this?
6. swedish made penis
This sort of thing aint my bag baby.
5. first grade math
Is this the answer to the question, “what did Lebrain fail in school?”
4. orangie took like 6 shooters and some bong tokes
Excellent season, the Boys still have it.
3. porn mcgangbang
It is definitely food porn.
2. Japanporn
If this is anything like Japanese imports they are way too expensive.
MOTLEY CRUE – Saints of Los Angeles (2008 Motley Records, Japan)
Man, if there was one band due for a comeback, it was the Crue. I mean, seriously! They went from the top of their game in 1991, coming off of Feelgood and Decade, only to have their lead singer abruptly leave. Then of course the awesome new album with the new singer flopped, because he wasn’t the old singer. Vince came back, Tommy left, and the band released the mediocre New Tattoo. After a hiatus, Tommy Lee returned again for a big successful reunion tour, and the Crue finally managed to put out an album. Saints of Los Angeles was better than expected, and did hearken back to the good old days.
You hear that a lot; “hearkens back to the old days”. Aside from the overly glossy production, this album sounds like the natural followup to Dr. Feelgood and “Primal Scream”. Of course, it was contrived that way. Nikki talks about this being a concept album following the the storyline of their book The Dirt, but really that is just an excuse to revisit the old (successful) Motley sound. Sure, why not? I’ll buy that.
Despite all odds, this album does succeed. From the opener “LA.M.F.” (which is an obvious homage to “In The Beginning” from the Shout album and “T.N.T.” from Feelgood) to the final track “Going Out Swinging”, there’s hardly any filler here. Just about every song kicks. No ballads, unless you want to count “The Animal In Me” (which I don’t). Hey, and think of it: Sharp fans will recall that Feelgood itself was originally conceived as a concept album with no ballads. Interesting.*
Guitar riffs are kicking, Vince is singing as good as you could hope, and all the songs shine. There’s even the odd female backing vocal, recalling the Nasty Habits. Only the production drags this down to a lower level, I simply find it too processed and glossy. Bob Rock would have added more thud, but that’s just my opinion. Song wise, winners include the title track and first single. Other highlights are the glam “Down At The Whiskey”, “Face Down In The Dirt” (see, The Dirt is in the title!), the swaggering “What’s It Gonna Take”, and the chugging “Just Another Psycho”. Those would be my favourites on an album of consistent song quality. All but “Welcome To The Machine”, which sounds like a transparent ripoff of Ace Frehley’s “Shot Full Of Rock”. I can’t believe I seem to be the only one pointing this out.
I was disappointed by one thing: look at those writing credits. Mick Mars has just one co-write, ditto Tommy Lee. Vince Neil: No writing credits at all. Instead, the album was mostly written by Nikki and his Sixx AM cohorts James Michael and DJ Ashba along with hired songsmith Marti Frederiksen. So, is this a Crue album or another Nikki Sixx solo album featuring Motley Crue? You decide. It sounds like Motley, but c’mon. Both Mick and Tommy were cornerstones of this band’s songwriting. It feels like Nikki just got his buds to write like Mick and Tommy.
There’s one item I’d still like to get, related to this album. I want to track down the CD single for “Saints of Los Angeles”, which lacks the CrueFest nobodies’ “gang vocal”. Maybe it’s just me, but I don’t think that a bunch of nobodies from Trapt or Papa Roach need to be on a Crue album. So I’d like to hear that one.
Other than these minor complaints, Saints wins. When you’re listening you’ll forget who wrote the songs, and you’ll just dig the fact that Tommy is back on drums and Mick is playing better than ever. God bless Mick Mars — that man is a rock and roll machine. He is the MVP on Saints of Los Angeles.
OH! And the Japanese bonus tracks, let’s not forget those. The liner notes tell us nothing about where or when they were recorded, but they are obviously more recent. “Kickstart My Heart” is the first, and Vince Neil sings with that annoying habit of singing every other word. He lets the audience take lines when he can’t. “Saints” slams, though.
4/5 stars. Crue fans will love it.
*It’s true. According to a 1989 Hit Parader interview, not only were the band considering a concept album, but Nikki Sixx stated that he wanted Feelgood to be all hard rock, no ballads. The ballads they had collected such as “Rodeo” and the newer “Without You” were to be included on a second new album to be released in 1990 called Motley Crue: The Ballads. Bob Rock reportedly talked them out of the “no ballads” concept. Then the concept was recycled for what would become Motley Crue (1994). Before Vince bailed/was fired, Nikki said there were to be no ballads on the next Crue album.
RECORD STORE TALES MkII: Getting More Tale #352: “It’s All Helix’ Fault!” — The Story Of My Tooth
I know I’m not alone, among men who once had an intense fear of the dentist. As soon as I was old enough to refuse to go, I stopped going. (Prior to that, I simply hid the reminder cards that periodically arrived in the mail!) I’m not saying that was a smart thing. It wasn’t. I’m over that fear now, but as these old journals reveal, that phobia later came back to bite me in the ass…with a weird connection to the rock band Helix.
Date: 2006/11/25 17:28 Title: The Big Update: “It’s All Helix’ Fault! — The Story Of My Tooth”
So just to get up to speed:
Until today, I haven’t seen a dentist since 1989. I have an intense fear of doctors and dentists. That has kept me away, until now.
This morning Jen and I headed out to United Rentals to drop off a CD I burned for one of the ladies there (Bon Jovi hits & B-sides). From there we went to the grocery and candy stores to mow down on a feast of goodies. And that is where this story truly begins.
I was chewing on some Laffy Taffy, and it was terrific. After I was done, however, I felt a throbbing in my upper left jaw. It was my troublesome wisdom tooth. It’s been causing me mild to medium pain for a little while. Normally, I’d just kill it with Advil and it’s fine. I knew the tooth was impacting on the other teeth, because when it was sore, they were all sore. Being the stubborn person I am, I just popped Advil. I knew it would have to come out one day. I kept putting it off because of that phobia.
Lately the tooth hadn’t even been bothering me. I think I’ve had one toothache in the last month. All seemed well for the forseeable future.
I should have known there would be an imminent problem when Jen presented me with our Helix tickets for next Friday. You see, last time we saw Helix, she had to have an emergency tooth extraction just before. She was still in pain by the day of the concert. It really hampered her enjoyment of the show, but she still gave them an R.
So here she’s presenting me with the Helix tickets. The very next day I’m in agony with a fractured wisdom tooth! I don’t blame the Laffy Taffy, I have only myself and Helix to blame!
I sat here in agony for a short time this morning. When I say “agony” I am not kidding. Those of you who’ve had this problem know what I’m talking about. The entire left side of my face was paralysed with pain. The upper and lower jaw were throbbing, and there was a stabbing from the wisdom tooth. Jen started calling dentists that are open weekends.
After probably an hour of calling around, she found a doctor that did extractions on Saturdays, but was booked solid. That doctor referred her to the hospital, who referred her to a guy named Dr. A. Jones. Dr. Jones had no bookings today. My dad drove us down because I couldn’t even see straight.
The whole way there I was freaking out, because I couldn’t even remember what a dentists office looked like. But we got in, and it wasn’t so bad. The doctor was good, he pumped me full of painkillers, and pulled that dirty cocksucker out of my mouth. I’m here now and the painkillers are only starting to wear off. I’m going to pop a T3 soon. I’m about to try to eat. Life is good once again.
MICHAEL HUNTER – River (1995 Racket Records, 2013 reissue)
99% of people who stumble upon this review won’t know who Michael Hunter is, and that’s fine. He’s one of Marillion’s crew. He’s Mark Kelly’s keyboard tech, and he’s a producer in the studio as well. This album came to be when Marillion were looking for some ambient music to open their Brave tour. The wanted to set the mood right for that dark concept album, played in its entirety. If you own one of the live albums from that tour, (though not Made Again disc 2), then chances are you’ve heard a little bit of River.
According to the liner notes by Marillion’s Steve Hogarth, the album was composed and performed, not merely programmed! The bits of music used are lifted from Marillion’s Brave, and other records, and re-composed into a 42 minute album. There are no songs, but the music is divided into seven numbered tracks (I – VII). There’s no point discussing them individually. Sometimes you can’t even tell when one section has ended, and another has begun. Sure, there are changes in mood and texture, but River remains a largely monolithic block of music. It’s watery sounding, and very atmospheric.
I had River going when I was playing a computer game (called Lux, which is the same as Risk, but with infinite maps to conquer). River felt appropriate to the video game setting, in fact it reminded me of some of the music in the old Rama video game from the 90’s. Unfortunately the CD is mixed quietly by today’s standards so I had to crank it a bit to get the listening balance right.
Bits and pieces are familiar. If you know Brave, then you have heard some of these keyboard and guitar sounds before. It doesn’t feel like “Brave remixed” any way, however. Somehow Michael Hunter used those sounds to actually compose an original piece of music that stands as its own work.
Fans started requesting that the Brave live intro music be made available on a CD, so Marillion released the Michael Hunter album on their own label Racket Records and made it available to order in 1995. That sold out, and they re-released it as a Front Row Club optional release (FRC-006). That meant that members of Marillion’s Front Row Club subscription service could get the album, but it wouldn’t be sent to them automatically. They had to “opt in” to get it, since it wasn’t a “new release” but a reissue. Some members already had it. I did not, but for whatever reason I didn’t opt in to get it. I considered it outside of the Marillion discography, and in many respects it is. In 2013 it was reissued once more (each time with slightly altered cover art), and I finally decided to snag it as part of my annual Marillion website order.
I’m glad I did. While I wouldn’t listen to this frequently, since I don’t often crave long ambient pieces, it definitely will come in handy.
RIVAL SONS – Great Western Valkyrie (2014 Earache)
From Long Beach, California, here are the Rival Sons! They have come to save hard rock. Gene Simmons is a fan, so let’s check ’em out. Great Western Valkyrie is their fourth album, but until last year I’d never heard of them.
Rival Sons are groove. They are old fashioned. I hear early influences from as far and wide as Sammy Hagar and soul rock. “Electric Man” exemplifies this. If the guitar player were the flashy type, you could mistake this for a new Chickenfoot composition. Radio loves this kind of song right now. It has vibes of the Trews and Royal Blood; the groove of bands like Death From Above 1969 but with a bluesy singing voice. They apply a distortion and reverb to the lead vocal, which does sound cool but strikes me as a bit gimmicky.
I found the second track, “Good Luck” to be a bit dull. Rival Sons seem to have psychedelic rock influences too, which isn’t really my bag, baby. “Secret” features singing Jay Buchanan doing his best Robert Plant blues voice, and it’s another ferociously grooving track. The riff is similar to “High Time” by Leadfoot, and the groove recalls “How Many More Times” from Led Zeppelin I. “Let me tell you a secret, and I know you’re gonna keep it!” screams Buchanan over a killer bass groove. Then “Play the Fool” utilizes a simple, stop-and-start rock riff, and a wicked time change. “Good Things” has a dusky nightclub feel. This is the song on which I’ll step out and take a pee. It’s still playing when I get back, because it’s almost six minutes long.
Track 6 is “When the Levee Breaks”…Err, I mean the single “Open My Eyes”. Sounds suspiciously like Zeppelin there. You may have heard this one on the radio (I have). It’s a great track, but undeniably based entirely upon Led Zeppelin. The echo on the drums is lifted directly from Bonham and there are even acoustic breaks. Back in the 1980’s there was a band called Kingdom Come that got raked over the coals for copping some Zep influences and milking it, but that’s nothing compared to “Open My Eyes”. It’s a Zeppelin rip pure and simple! That’s fine…enough time has passed that nobody cares anymore (plus Zeppelin ripped off everybody else).
“Rich and Poor” slows the pace, bringing us back to the psychedelic 60’s. If the Doors had a different singer, maybe this is how they would sound. I don’t particularly like the Doors, so onto the next one, “Belle Starr”. This song goes from fast to slow sections…just when I thought they were givin’ ‘er again, they slowed it down. I’m just itching for some rock again. Oh, there it goes! This track is almost grungy, especially with that rolling bass underneath recalling Soundgarden. I hear Rush influences too. I’m not 100% sold on “Belle Starr”. Not yet, anyway. Led Zeppelin is all over “Where I’ve Been” too, in an epic quality. Finally “Destination on Course” closes the album on a distinctly bluesy note. Singer Buchanan really blows the doors off, and the angelic backing vocals have me forgetting that “LZ” band for a change. The bluesy guitar solo is icing on the cake — just awesome. On a track like this, Rival Sons establish their own sound.
Great Western Valkyrie is an album I look forward to checking out more in the future. I think it has potential. I know there are bonus tracks on other editions, which I have not investigated. If I end up liking the band enough, I will check them out.
RECORD STORE TAKES MkII: Getting More Tale #351: Three Concerts in One Week
I love digging through old journals. I don’t get out to concerts very often anymore, but these journals bring back memories of an awesome week featuring three different concert experiences. Dig it! Some interesting autobiographical facts:
1) These journals record the date that I met Brent Doerner of Helix, thus beginning a long buddy-ship (December 1 2006).
2) I noticed that there was something in here about the flu shot. I got sick immediately afterwards. I was feeling it during the Jim Cuddy concert and got full-blown flu right after. Never had the flu shot since.
Date: 2006/11/29 06:13
Tonight we have second row seats to see BRENT BUTT! (Corner Gas) I’m sure it will be awesome and I’ll be sure to write about it later.
Then Friday is Helix…
Then Sunday is Jim Cuddy (Blue Rodeo).
Talk about an awesome week.
Date: 2006/11/30 06:55
Brent Butt was awesome, hilarious, 90 minutes of pure Canadian humour. True stuff, like, “In America, there’s no corresponding word for ‘touque’. I could understand it if they had their own word for it. Like, ‘oh, that’s what we call a nurn!’ But no, they say, ‘hey you got one of them wool knit winter cap things!’ If we said that in Canada, our brains would freeze by the time we could get out the door. ‘Honey, could you get my wool knit winter cap thing?’ zoink, you’re frozen.” So true.
There was an opening act by the name of Jamie Hutchison, guy from the Maritimes. Equally hilarious!
Date: 2006/12/01 06:14
Tonight Helix! We’ll be giving them an R around 11 o’clock at Molly Bloom’s. Helix are one of the best shows I’ve seen, and this will be my fourth or fifth time seeing them. Hopefully they’ll play their new single “Fill Your Head With Rock” which is garnering some record company interest….
Flu shot today too. Ugh.
Date: 2006/12/02 00:39
Helix were AWESOME! Right when we walked in the door, there was Brian Vollmer. He saw my vintage-style Helix shirt, walked up and said “hi”. He was so cool. He said, “I just have to go make the rounds and say hi to everybody here, but thanks for coming and have a good time tonight!”
So we wandered around, saw a couple old friends (The Infamous Taylor Brothers) and lo and behold…there was Bruce Arnold (original Helix drummer 1974-76)! A glance around the room revealed the Doerner brothers and Keith Zurbrigg as well! There were five current Helix guys on stage and four ex-Helix in the audience! I introduced myself to Brent and told him how much I liked his new CD.
Track list, to the best of our memories:
No Rest For The Wicked
Get Up
Baby Likes To Ride
Running Wild In The 21st Century
Heavy Metal Love
Boomerang Lover
Dirty Dog
You Keep Me Rocking
Make Me Do Anything You Want
Deep Cuts The Knife
Wild In The Streets
Kids Are All Shakin’
Animal House
I Believe In Rock And Roll
Does A Fool Ever Learn (dedicated to some schmuck at EMI (“Every Mistake Imaginable)
Rock You
I know I’m missing a couple in there, but it was a totally awesome hits night. Right now my ears are ringing and I’m buzzing!
Date: 2006/12/04 06:19
The Cuddy show was awesome, thus ending my three-concert-week. It was a three hour show. The opening band were a part of the whole show as Jim brought various members back out to augment his own songs. He played two songs from his first record, most of the second record, and about six Blue Rodeo songs. He threw in a Neil Young cover, bassist Bazil Donovan sang one of his own, and they also performed one by the opening band!
So terrific show, there were even two Blue Rodeo guys in his backing band. However the real star of his band was violinist Anne Lindsay. She was on fire!
ALICE COOPER – Raise the Dead: Live from Wacken (2CD/1 Blu-ray, 2014 UDR)
This beast of a set was a gift from the ever-faithful Aaron, and I do thank you so much for it. Alice Cooper in 1080i hi-def, 5.1 surround sound. The CD has more songs than the Blu-ray, so I’m going to review both simultaneously, but let you know when it’s a track that’s exclusive to CD. Let’s give’r!
“Hello Hooray”! It’s still daylight in Wacken, when Alice proclaims to “let the show begin, I’ve been ready”. Alice is resplendent in his sharp red and black stripped tux. Australian beauty Orianthi has a drip of blood in the corner her mouth, and smears of it on her guitar and arms. “Hello Hooray” leads directly into a modern version of 1989’s “House of Fire”. With the three guitars live, it has a lot more bite to it, and neat six-string twists. (“House of Fire” briefly segues into the riff from “With a Little Help From My Friends”. Remember that. That’s important.) Not letting up for a second, it’s into “No More Mr. Nice Guy” and then immediately “Under My Wheels”! There’s simply no let up as the crowd starts surfing. Alice’s six piece band are visual and boast three lead soloists.
Newer song “I’ll Bite Your Face Off” is one of only two songs from Welcome 2 My Nightmare. The cool thing is how easily Orianthi digs into the vintage guitar stylings of it. She is an absolute natural. Even though there are four other talented musicians on stage, she commands attention without even trying. Alice chases her around the stage, as she casually throws down classic guitar licks. He has changed into a black leather jacket.
“Billion Dollars Babies” takes the focus temporarily back to the oldies. Alice wields a sword impaled with money, taunting the crowd. The wheels temporarily come off with “Caffeine”. I always welcome newer material, but I’d prefer just about any other song from Welcome 2. Alice has traded the sword for a giant coffee mug that he holds dear like his “precious”. Thankfully Orianthi lays down a blazing solo (actually two) , because otherwise I’d say this is my song on which to pee. But, I wouldn’t want to miss the classic “Department of Youth” from the original Welcome to my Nightmare, one of my top 10 Alice tracks of all time.
I like a rock show with variety, so I’m glad Alice pulled “Hey Stoopid” out of his 1991 hat. In the 5.1 mix, I don’t like the way some of the guitars just kind of drop out in the verses of this arrangement. I’ll have to listen to that again. It didn’t sound right. Otherwise it’s great with plenty of shredding. “Dirty Diamonds” was another surprise. I saw Alice play that one here in Kitchener on the Dirty Diamonds tour. That whole album is excellent, but the title track has a smoking riff. Drummer Glen Sobol gets a moment in the spotlight, accompanied by bassist Chuck Garric. A drum solo in the middle of an Alice Cooper show is not always a good thing, but this is actually a cool, worthwhile solo. There’s some crazy hand-over-hand stuff, tricks with sticks, and interesting cymbal work. Then it’s Orianthi’s turn. She is, without a doubt in my mind, one of the best guitar players out there today. Every note is worth something. The whole band come together at the front line, and the crowd goes nuts! Meanwhile….
As good as the solos are, in the context of the Alice Cooper show, they were merely a distraction. Where did Alice go? The opening strains of “Welcome to My Nightmare” indicate Act II has begun. He has emerged as the Showman. Weilding a dagger in one hand, he leads the charge into 1976’s “Go to Hell”. The two songs serve as a wicked intro to the theatrical part of the show. Alice attacks lead soloist Ryan Roxie with a whip, but it doesn’t phase the guitarist who safely evades him.
Out of Alice’s trick bag comes “He’s Back (The Man Behind the Mask)” the legendary campy 80’s theme from Friday the 13th Part III. Stripped of the keyboards and drum machines, it functions as a living, rocking entity. The three guitars enable the band to fill the spaces previously played by synths in the studio. Orianthi’s guitar solo just leaves my jaw on the floor. Keeping with the monster theme is “Feed My Frankenstein” from Hey Stoopid and Wayne’s World. Alice has changed into a blood smeared smock. He is strapped to an evil looking device by “Igor” and electrocuted! Then a monster-sized Franken-Alice appears to finish the song! The real Alice returns in a straight jacket for the still haunting “Dwight Fry”. This most intense Cooper classic is well served by three guitarists, loaning a “Freebird” epic quality to it live. “I’ve gotta get out of here!” screams Alice with the agony he manages to muster for every performance. Breaking free of his bonds, he attacks Nurse Sheryl, only be executed to the tune of the exit music from “Killer”. It’s the guillotine again for Alice Cooper. His head is hoisted into the air by a black-clad executioner to a chorus of “I Love the Dead” (Alice singing off-stage). Act II is over. Act III is beginning.
Though uncredited, the opening music for “DaDa” (from 1983’s DaDa, a cool cameo) plays as Alice is surgically resurrected in the graveyard of the Hollywood Vampires. The Hollywood Vampires were the drinking club down at the Rainbow…the teachers and the students. Lennon and Keith Moon passed down the ways of drinking to the likes of Vincent Furnier and Marc Bolan. A voice booms to Alice, “What are you going to do? Raise the dead?” So that’s what Alice does….
First it’s Morrison. The Doors’ “Break on Through” finally has balls to it! I never liked the Doors. I like Alice doing the Doors, so they can’t be all that bad. What’s interesting is how Alice can morph his voice to suit these covers. He uses a lower, howling early Alice voice to do the Doors. For the next track, “Revolution” (exclusive to CD) he uses his nasal Cooper voice, to cop that Beatles feel. He also does the opening McCartney scream…of course. You have to have that. The band hit the high backing notes perfectly too. The classic riff to “Foxy Lady”(exclusive to CD) indicates that Jimi Hendrix is the next Hollywood Vampire to be honored. Another cool connection is that both Alice and Jimi were important musical icons honored in the movie Wayne’s World. And the song was “Foxy Lady”. Next it’s Keith Moon and “My Generation”. Chuck Garric gets a moment to shine on those glorious Entwistle bass licks. It’s quite a bit more modern and slick than the Who’s, but the backing vocals are remarkably authentic.
Thematically “My Generation” connects to “I’m Eighteen”. Ryan Roxie and Orianthi both play solos on “Eighteen”, and smoke each one. Then, “Poison” is the final song of the set, a slick reminder that Alice Cooper survived the 1970’s only to become more popular than ever in the 80’s, 90’s and present. “Poison” has stood the test of time. It’s not a particularly simple song; just listen to those backing vocals. They have to be right, they can’t be off. Although I hadn’t really thought of “Poison” as a set closer, it does work in that slot and ends the show on a celebratory note.
The encore of “School’s Out” is the real celebration of course; the stage ablaze with lights and Alice clad in gold. It’s a mash-up with “Another Brick in the Wall”, proving again that mash-ups can sometimes produce fascinating results. I love Alice’s stage introductions for the musicians. “In a world where evil has a name, and that name is…Orianthi! And playing the part of Alice Cooper tonight…me!”
But Nurse Sheryl returns to the stage one last time and stabs Alice! I have a feeling our anti-hero will be back to terrorize us again on another tour….
There is only one Blu-ray bonus feature. The pre-Wacken interview with Alice is cool because it’s completely uncut. It’s only 20 minutes, but it’s insightful. Cooper is always a pleasure to listen to. The concept behind Raise the Dead revolves around his old, long gone buddies from the Hollywood Vampire. With this show, Cooper is paying tribute back to those guys, his idols and friends. The show has some history to it, he says. A little bit of a lesson. But the kids already know the songs, says Alice. The tunes like “Foxy Lady” and “Break on Through” are already familiar to them. Every kid seems to own a classic rock T-shirt.
Cooper muses that his live show is probably as close to Broadway as many of his new young fans will ever see. He reminds us that he has his own Broadway influences — “Gutter Cat vs. the Jets” from West Side Story, for example. His own solo band is so tight now that he doesn’t have to worry about the music part. Alice can get on with the show and performance, because the music is in good hands. He has particular praise for the stage presence and chops of Orianthi. As for the show, It’s no longer about shock, says Alice. You can’t shock the audience anymore. Now, it’s about entertainment. Give them something entertaining and of good value.
The hidden theme in the show is that everything is connected. The kids pick up on the connections behind the music. “School’s Out” and “Another Brick in the Wall” are presented as a medley. Who produced both songs? Whose kids are on both songs? Bob Ezrin. Connections!
The Blu-ray also has a substantial booklet included, the kind of thing that people who buy physical product still care about. I’d rather have this than a crappy photo slide show or text on a DVD. My only quibble is that I was underwhelmed by the 5.1 mix. I may have had my setting messed up, and I will have to try again. It was “Hey Stoopid” where this was particularly unpleasant to me. I’ll have to check that and try again. There is absolutely nothing wrong with the CDs, which sound friggin’ great.
For the Top Whatever of No Pre-Determined Amount from two of Canada’s most knowledgeable rock gods, stay tuned right here. From Meaford Ontario, weighing in at XXX lbs, it’s Iron Tom Sharpe, who turns it up to 11.
Tom’s Top Eleven of 2014
11. Various Artists – RONNIE JAMES DIO: This Is Your Life
10. JUSTIN TOWNES EARLE – Single Mothers
9. MASTODON – Once More ‘Round the Sun
8. EARLY MAN – Thank God You’ve Got the Answers For Us All
7. OPETH – Pale Communion
6. JOHN GARCIA – John Garcia
5. ST. PAUL & the BROKEN BONES – Half the City
4. sHEAVY – The Best Of sHeavy – A Misleading Collection
3. DRIVE-BY TRUCKERS – English Oceans
2. BRANT BJORK and the LOW DESERT PUNK BAND – Black Power Flower 1.ORANGE GOBLIN – Back From The Abyss
Saving the best for last, here’s Uncle Meat. For added rocket sauce he’s also given me his top movies of 2014.
Meat’s Top Eight of 2014
8. MASTODON – Once More ‘Round the Sun
7. ECHO AND THE BUNNYMEN – Meteorites
6. FOO FIGHTERS – Sonic Highways
5. “WEIRD AL” YANKOVIC – Mandatory Fun
4. FLYING COLORS – Second Nature
3. BRANT BJORK and the LOW DESERT PUNK BAND – Black Power Flower
2. DRIVE-BY TRUCKERS – English Oceans 1.ORANGE GOBLIN – Back From the Abyss
Meat’s Top Twelve Movies of 2014
12. Lucy
11. X Men : Days of Future Past
10. St. Vincent
9. Interstellar
8. The Lego Movie
7. The Grand Budapest Hotel
6. Captain America: The Winter Soldier
5. The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies
4. Guardians of the Galaxy
3. Get On Up
2. Birdman 1.Whiplash
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