LIVE: ALICE COOPER – April 28, 2023

Venue: Soaring Eagle Casino

City: Mt. Pleasant, MI

Dates: April 28, 2023

Review and Photographs by: Todd “Toddstar” Jolicoeur (www.toddstarphotography.com)

After driving from Florida to Michigan, there are few artists that would prompt me to get back in a car for a 5-hour roundtrip… but Alice Cooper is one of those artists, especially when it is the opening show of what Cooper has dubbed the Too Close For Comfort tour.  The show at Soaring Eagle Casino has been sold out for weeks and the anticipation was in the air the minute I stepped out of my car and was greeted by other fans that had made the trek for the show.  After getting situated an inside the venue, I braced myself for what was to come.  I had no idea exactly what to expect for the show and setlist, but there are staples and parts of the show that have been consistent for tours, years, and decades and tonight was no different.  The show kicked off with a shortened musical interlude, a truncated version of “Lock Me Up” and it set the pace for the set, show, and night overall.  Digging back to classic Cooper tracks to help keep the musical ball rolling, Alice and his long-time band ripped through the perfect trio of “No More Mr. Nice Guy,” “I’m Eighteen,” and “Under My Wheels.”  Sonically the trio of guitarists Tommy Henriksen, Ryan Roxie, and recently returned Hurricane Nita Strauss formed a wall of sound that perfectly highlighted each track.  Over the next few tracks, there were musical surprises and some stage performance that demonstrated Alice is still on top of his game and delivering a killer show.  Jumping into a musical time machine, Cooper and band jumped from 1989’s “Bed of Nails” back to 1973’s “Billion Dollar Babies” – complete with Alice dollars – and then forward to the newest track in the set, “Fallen in Love” from 2017’s Paranormal.  The track opened with guitar solos from the trio of Henriksen, Strauss, and Roxie as well as matching harmonica solos from Ol’ Black Eyes himself.  Dusting off a tandem of reptilian related ideas, Alice and his snake hit the stage and he ripped into a version of 1991’s “Snakebite” that took me back over 30 years singing every word along with him.  His voice sounded as good tonight on all of the songs as they ever have, but hearing this track (played live for the first time since 1991) it was evident that Coopers voice and sound are seemingly timeless.

The material from the different incarnations of the band and history was perfectly anchored by the rhythm section of longtime bassist Chuck Garric and drummer Glen Sobel, including “Be My Lover” and two ’90s gems “Lost in America” and “Hey Stoopid.”  Other than two monster hits from the 80’s with “Poison” and “Feed My Frankenstein,” the second half of the show was classic Cooper and featured killer tracks, stage antics, and characters that have proven effective and entertaining year after year for the last nearly 50 years.  The first disc of Alice’s I fell in love with back in the mid 70’s when I was discovering rock and roll was the highlight of the last half of the show with “Welcome to My Nightmare” kicking off a run of tracks from the platinum album of the same name and played to perfection by the group on stage tonight.  With Alice in full control and his energy off the charts he led the group and crowd through the duo of “Cold Ethyl” and its perfect live partner “Only Women Bleed” before leaving the stage and allowing his band to rip through an elongated version of “Black Widow.”  As the setlist started winding its way to the end, Alice was led back to the stage in his straitjacket and proceeded to treat us to “Ballad of Dwight Fry” and the song sounded as crisp and fresh tonight as it did in the early 1970’s.  Once again Cooper’s queen Sheryl assumed one of her many roles and took Alice to the guillotine for “I Love the Dead” before a reinvigorated, reenergized, and reassembled Alice performed another of my personal favorites “Escape.”  As has been customary for a few tours now, the set closed out with arguably the biggest hit from the classic early albums “School’s Out” as well as band introductions (as if it were necessary).  The stage was cleared and reset for the band to reemerge, and Alice took his place elevated and proceeded to close the show and send us all into the night with “Elected” running through our heads.  I am already checking the tour route looking for another show or two to hit before the summer winds down.

SETLIST: Lock Me Up – No More Mr. Nice Guy – I’m Eighteen – Under My Wheels – Bed of Nails – Billion Dollar Babies – Fallen in Love – Snakebite – Be My Lover – Lost in America – Hey Stoopid – Welcome to My Nightmare – Cold Ethyl – Only Women Bleed – Poison – Feed My Frankenstein – Black Widow Jam – Ballad of Dwight Fry – I Love the Dead – Escape – School’s Out – Elected

[Show as slideshow]

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Category: Live Reviews, Photo Galleries