O/T: The Alice Cooper show: Polaris Amp. Columbus, OH 10/04

TD

HAS INTEGRITY
Well, the weather was, in my mind, perfect for Mr. Cooper: windy and rainy, yet still warm. However, the 3 haunted houses were not open due to the weather. I thought that was bullsh*t really. So we were left with 2 hours to kill until the show, and decided to go to the VIP Club, which had been turned into the RIP club. I haven't been drinking much, so a few Gordon Biersch's had me rather loopy. Then on to the Coop. Where to start. First off, I wish it were still the 1970's. Both Ozzy and Alice are now charicatures of what they once were. That being said, Alice still entertains, has a very extensive back catalog of songs from which to draw, and believe it or not, still makes good new music. The new tunes from "Brutal Planet" and "Dragontown" were actually good. The only bad thing about the show would be the backing band. Alice should reunite the original band one more time for a tour, or put his hacks off where you cannot see them. Stage presence isn't thier forte. Eric "scab Catman" Singer blows, and so does Pete Freezin. Also, Alice seems to be running his show on a shoe string budget, so things that could be really really cool (think Maiden or KISS) come across has just plain cheesy. Non-the-less, it was cool to kick off the halloween season w/ 4,000 Alice Cooper fans jamming away to "Department of Youth," "Billion Dollar Babies," "Under My Wheels," "I Never Cry," and the rare gem "Nurse Rosetta." If Alice comes to your town and you're a fan, go check it out. If you are not already a convert, I don't think the 2002 Cooper band and stage show are gonna win you over, but I may just be little jaded, because I remember Alice scaring the bejeebus out of me in 1986, and it just isn't the same anymore. But, I'll be back next year if Alice decides to come to town.