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Alice Cooper Plays Pay-Per-View Show At Moody Theater in Austin

The king of shock rock Alice Cooper put on a special show at ACL Live at the Moody Theater. Not only was the evening devoted entirely to the Alice Cooper band, no openers, the group recorded the show for pay-per-view. It was a special night for me because this was my first Alice Cooper show. It would not be one of those shows that made me say I wish I saw him when he was younger. Vincent Damon Furnier may have just turned 67 but he performed with the gusto of a young man. His voice was in peak condition and held up the entire hour and a half.

Of course Alice didn’t do it all himself. He had a really good supporting cast. It was clear each member was having fun and that fun translated into the audience. The three guitarists gave quite a dynamic to the show, trading off leads and constantly switching places on stage. One guitarist in particular, Nita Strauss put on a compelling performance. Cooper snatched Nita from The Iron Maidens just over the summer. She played a wicked solo. She made her whammy bar scream. She also led the group in their shredding rendition of Jimi Hendrix’s “Foxy Lady.” The drummer also deserves praise for his performance, especially his solo. He created a beat by twirling his sticks into the kit. Then he shot a bolt of light from his stick! Phenomenal!

The tour is dubbed “Raise the Dead” tour, which has a couple of meanings. It surely refers to the band’s covers of dead rock stars such as Jimi Hendrix, The Beatles, The Who and The Doors. Their cover of The Doors “Break On Through” was their best as Alice perfectly hit the low notes.

“Raise the Dead” also refers to the band’s theatrics. Alice was forced into a machine that turned into a giant Frankenstein during “Feed My Frankenstein.” He also had his head chopped off by a guillotine during “The Ballad of Dwight Fry.” Then members of the asylum carried his head around the stage and even kissed it while the band played “I Love the Dead.” His headless corpse was wheeled out on a gurney only to see Cooper come back to life under the bloody sheet.

Props were used masterfully. There were dolls lined up on stage right, mostly inside a baby carriage. The back drop and bass kit showed Alice’s mascara-painted eyes. Cooper clutched a massive mug during “Caffeine,” which defended vehemently from his band mates.

“Welcome to my Nightmare” was a particularly creepy song. It changed the whole vibe of the set. Alice’s snake coiled around his body during this track. “Dirty Diamond” wasn’t so dreary. It was like Mardi Gras as fans clamored for Alice to throw them pearl (fake pearl) necklaces. He threw one necklace so high it landed on a light fixture and did not fall down to the audience.

He brought out his crutch during “I’m Eighteen.” The band played “School’s Out” as an encore to bubbles and confetti swirling throughout the venue. Large balloons were tossed around the crowd and Alice popped them with his sword. At one point in the song the band switched between “Schools Out” and Pink Floyd’s “Another Brick in the Wall.” Both songs sing about education, so it just made sense. Alice brandished a whip during “Go to Hell.” He swung it at his band members who twirled around to avoid the lashes before Cooper lightly hit their legs. It was campy. It was cool. It was everything I expected.