Photos by Fred Blocher, The Star
Alice Cooper lost his head Wednesday night in Independence. But he got it back.
This show was billed as a Halloween party and a chance for fans to indulge in some ghoulish fashion. As it turned out, however, most of the escapism was done on stage by two men who have mastered it in two different ways.
Performing before a backdrop that beamed his first name in red letters that looked scrawled in blood, Cooper took his fans on a tour through his music catalog and his legendary stage theatrics. He would die a few times, suffering some horrific fates, including a beheading and hanging, only to resurrect himself to indulge in more heavy music and staged mayhem.
The set showcased both his stamina physically and vocally -- Cooper will turn 63 in February -- and his stature as a pioneer rock showman. It also proved how durable and influential some of his music has been. You could hear the strains of a horde of metal and hair bands who flourished in his wake, though none have done it with quite the same mix of flair and hyperbole.
The crowd showed some loud appreciation for the entire set, even his lattter-day material, like "Vengeance is Mine," but especially the classics, like the opener and "No More Mr. Nice Guy," the ballad "Only Women Bleed," "Billion Dollar Babies" and the teen-freedom anthem, "I'm Eighteen."
A word needs to be said about the sound in the arena, which was surprisingly crisp for such a loud show. It helped a lot that the floor was full beyond the sound board; all those bodies absorbed a lot of sound.
After a break that lasted 30 minutes or so, Zombie took the stage and unleashed his usual bag of audio and visual tricks and treats. His music may be redundant -- several shades of jackhammer industrial/metal disco -- but his visual presentation is anything but. There were plenty of videos and film clips, most of those from bad-B movies, especially black and white horror flicks. It also featured some impressive two-story creatures who took the stage for brief reigns of terror.
His setlist included some of his best-known tracks, like "Living Dead Girl," "Superbeast" and the irresistible "Dragua" from the "Hellbilly Deluxe" album, plus a few from his White Zombie days, like "More Human Than Human."
Throughout the set, he prowled the stage while his band, which still features Marilyn Manson alumnus John 5, provided the soundtrack to his choreography. As sophisticated as the video presentation is, the music is equally primal and relentless. It makes for an entertaining show, one that needn't be much longer than the 85 or 90 minutes he typically gives it.
He ended with "House of 1,000 Corpses," which is also the title of one if his films. The lyrics are typical Zombie poetry -- "I cut the flesh and make it bleed / Fresh skin is what I need." Ghoulish? Sure. But no one's taking it seriously (after all, in real life the guy's a vegetarian). Like the annual holiday this show was celebrating, this tour is about fantasy and theater, about a world where the dead rise and live another day. Could there be a happier ending than that?
Setlists
Alice Cooper: School's Out; No More Mr. Nice Guy; Wicked Young Man; Ballad of Dwight Fry; Go To Hell; Cold Ethyl; Poison; From the Inside; Nurse Rozetta; Only Women Bleed; I Never Cry; Vengeance Is Mine; Dirty Diamonds; Billion Dollar Babies; Killer; I Love the Dead; Feed My Frankenstein; Under My Wheels; I'm Eighteen.
Rob Zombie: Jesus Frankenstein; Superbeast; Scum of the Earth; Living Dead Girl; More Human Than Human; Sick Bubble-Gum; Demon Speeding; Mars Needs Women; Pussy Liquor; Devil Man; Thunder Kiss '65; School's Out; Werewolf Women of the SS; Dragula; House of 1000 Corpses.
| Timothy Finn, The Star
Man that was a fun show ! and Alice Cooper sold the live show after the concert, wish Zombie did the same
The people on the floor were just nuts :)
Posted by: Gary Dean | October 07, 2010 at 09:21 AM
That was a really fun show. It was within a few weeks of 29 years to the day that I first saw Alice, and got to say he's even better now than he was then. He is such a great showman and the vocals and music sounded awesome.
Zombie had more pyro than Metallica and was entertaining.
You didn't mention Murderdolls, and they were fun too. Hope they come back through on a club tour.
Posted by: CH | October 07, 2010 at 11:18 AM
Tim,
The Zombie song you have listed as "Devil Man" is a White Zombie tune titled "Super Charger Heaven"
Maybe it was just my enthusiasm for Zombie, but I wouldn't label Alice as who the crowd was there to see.
Posted by: Ryan | October 07, 2010 at 01:49 PM
Crowd looked more like maybe 4,500 to me. Glad I decided to attend this event. Price of $45 for a floor seat is quite affordable by 2010 standards. Did anyone ELSE notice that ALICE'S voice sounded rough UNTIL he apparently walked off stage for a few minutes WHILE the band extended the later segment of - I believe it was "Go To Hell"? After that he did appear to sound better.
Posted by: Bubba Brown | October 07, 2010 at 01:50 PM
Alice can't hit the high notes he used to, but his voice still seems pretty strong.
And I'm one of the ones who was there to see Alice more than I was Zombie.
Posted by: CH | October 07, 2010 at 03:19 PM
Glad to see more shows going to the IEC arena. Several acts going to the IEC this time went to the SC on prior tours. Glad this area has a smaller arena to get extra shows.
Posted by: Kurt | October 07, 2010 at 03:28 PM
Just wanted to add to the comment about the sound in this arena. Looks like they have installed sound absorbing materials in the ceiling and along the walls which also really helps with the sound quality. Looking forward to more shows at this venue.
Posted by: Axevictim | October 07, 2010 at 03:47 PM
of the dozen or so people i talked to before the show, i'd say 9 said they were there to see alice, who they had seen before, and none of them had never seen zombie. unscientific, i know. but the crowd for AC was big
Posted by: Tim Finn | October 07, 2010 at 04:34 PM
Well, I really believe the $45 floor ticket price had something to do with the decent-sized turn-out. Both times ALICE has been at the Ameristar for $45 + ROB was at the Uptown last November for like $40 a ticket. This 'Gruesome Twosome' tour featured 75 minute headlining shows from both performers. ALICE, I believe he had cut five songs from his first Ameristar show. Very few major concerts (these days) are ACTUALLY worth the price of what they charge, anymore.
Show was A-W-E-S-O-M-E!!
Posted by: Bubba Brown | October 07, 2010 at 05:32 PM
Well,I really like your post.Very interesting.Thanks
Posted by: ghd | October 07, 2010 at 10:53 PM
Show was great from what i saw of it. Our $50 seats gave us a great view of all the stage rigging. I tried going to the empty section next to us to get a better view but security didnt like that even though there were employess sitting in the same area. Why would the idependence event center sell seats that are that crappy. I was going to the show expecting to see one of the top 3 concerts of my life time but with that seating it didnt rank top 10. Ill never attend another event at the Idependence event center ever again.
Posted by: Jeff | October 07, 2010 at 11:46 PM
Jeff, was the seat on your ticket 117?
Ours was and security said that they moved 117 seats to 116, and then the GA seats started at 115. We could see great, but if they hadn't moved us we wouldn't have been able to see anything either.
Posted by: CH | October 08, 2010 at 07:22 AM
I liked the fact that the Independence Event Center had food items at an afforable price, not LIKE other area venues. Parking is a breeze, sound is great + the only downside is that if you're coming from the Kansas side is it takes awhile to get there - SPECIALLY during the rush hour.
Posted by: Bubba Brown | October 08, 2010 at 03:25 PM
Hey CH, Yes our was on the isle in 117. But they had 117 closed down so we were in the isle of 116 and the stage rigging of speakers were right in the way. I would of rather of gone GA floor but was told I couldnt......117 was the section they had closed off and I kept sneaking over there to have a unobscured view but it wasnt more than 2 minutes id have flash lights in my face telling me to go back to my seat.
Very dissapointing. But on the bright side at least i could say i was there and got to listen to a bad ass concert.
Never again independence event center! Unless you refund my tickets that is.........yeah right
Posted by: Jeff | October 08, 2010 at 09:38 PM
What a treat, seeing such an amazing show and incredible music. Bonus; Alice is up for Rock and Roll Hall of Fame status this year! Overall, I had a good experience with the venue, price and performers.
Posted by: Frebird | October 09, 2010 at 08:28 AM
I LOVED the concert.. and was in section 117 as well.. but as luck would have it.. I had an EXCELENT view and got some excellent picture! My 18 year old son managed to get on the floor and had a wonderful time as well! He said the pit was kinda lame, but as he got up next to the stage, he wasn't complaining. I was there more for Alice, my son was for Zombie!
Posted by: plspla | October 09, 2010 at 08:51 AM