Alice Cooper - Welcome 2 My Nightmare

[Captain Howdy]

Surprised people havent discussed this one on here that I have seen.

Picked it up when it came out and have been listening to it ever since.

I must admit I wasnt too sure of it at first, as I didnt think it was as good as Along came a spider, which was one of my fave Alice albums in recent years, but the more I listen to it, the more I love it.

Its got such a mix of styles on it, and I am sure some of the songs will put people off being that he has incorporated a lot of styles that dont necessarily pop up on a rock release, but thats probably one of the main reasons why its surprised me how much I like this one.

Considering some of the great albums I have bought recently such as Anthrax and Seb Bach, it surprises me that so far this is probably my album of the year (although it still has Reckless Love and Steel Panther to compete with once I get them).

 

Amazingly, my favourite song on the album is probably one I should hate being that it features Ke$ha and autotune, but its such a great song that I can forgive it these sins.

Songs like Last man on Earth show just how versatile Alice is.

The congregation has a distinct Beatles vibe to it, and Alice actually reminds me of Donnie Vie on the opening verse.

 

Theres a bit of surf rock, some mock disco and a whole lot of classic rock, but somehow it all works.

 

Something to remember me by was actually written in the 70s, but Alice refused to record it due to his vocals not being able to handle the song, but Ezrin loved the song so much that he finally forced Alice into recording it, which is a damn good thing as its another typically brilliant Alice ballad in the vein of Only women bleed and I never cry.

For such a shock rocker, its amazing that Alice actually has some of the best ballads out there.

[66 mustang]

and the song Ghouls Gone Wild remeinds me of a song that should be in a Scooby-Doo episode / movie.

[Geoff]

Theres a bit of surf rock, some mock disco and a whole lot of classic rock, but somehow it all works.

Yeah, sorry mate, but I haven't even considered checking this out and that's just been cemented by these words. I already knew long ago when I read the previews for this that it was not my thing.

 

I think for me my releationship ends and begins with 'Trash' and 'Hey Stoopid' and the die-hards can enjoy the rest. Like Cher and Heart and Cheap Trick etc, I liked him/them when he/they sold out and caved in to the trend for those couple of albums at the end of the 80's / early 90's, but otherwise he/they are definitely not my kind of artists.

[Captain Howdy]

Alice never caved, he has always done exactly what he wants to do. Yes he does move with trends, but thats what has made his catalogue such a breath of fresh air.

While I dont like everything he has done (his new wave era for example), at least with him I know I am not gonna get the same album over and over and over again.

With Spider (and Eyes to a lesser extent) he moved back to his 70s roots, but still had that 80s sheen he picked up along the way, but on this one he has mixed it up even more.

Bit of 70s here, bit of 80s there, bit of other stuff as well.

 

There are tracks on this you would probably really like, but yes, stuff you would hate as well.

 

Like you, my top albums for him are Trash and Hey stoopid, but this is probably a close third for me.

[Jez]

Alice never caved, he has always done exactly what he wants to do. Yes he does move with trends, but thats what has made his catalogue such a breath of fresh air.

While I dont like everything he has done (his new wave era for example), at least with him I know I am not gonna get the same album over and over and over again.

With Spider (and Eyes to a lesser extent) he moved back to his 70s roots, but still had that 80s sheen he picked up along the way, but on this one he has mixed it up even more.

Bit of 70s here, bit of 80s there, bit of other stuff as well.

 

 

Exactly the reason I have kept up with him over the years. Like you, I wasn't mad on some of his early 80's new wave stuff, although I still have a strange fascination with 'Special Forces' for some reason.

 

'Welcome 2' is a spot on album though, took me ages to get past the first track 'I Am Made Of You' which has to be one of the best Alice ballads yet (a Desmond Child Co-write I suspected and once I checked up, confirmed). It is indeed a great mix of stuff on offer, which makes every play a delight so far. I genuinely think this is his best album in many a year and many other people, so it seems, are on those lines too.

[Captain Howdy]

My first exposure was Trash, and bought every single album since then, but only started back tracking the pre-Trash stuff in the last two years or so.

While I certainly dont rate the early stuff as highly as some would, there were some real gems in the 70s that dont usually get included on compilations from the era, and of three 70s bands that I got into in the 80s (Kiss and Aerosmith being the other two), I find Alice to be the strongest purely based on better "non hit" songs, and a wider variety of styles.

 

I know this is a sequel to a 70s album, and that his recent stuff is a throwback of sorts to that era, but it still sounds fresh because of all the other influences he has picked up over the years.

 

I totally agree that it is the best album he has done in years, even though all his albums in recent years have been good.