If It's Too Loud...

Photo by Jenny Risher For the third single off his upcoming album, Alice Cooper leans into his 80's metal era more heavily than the two previous ones. "Welcome to the Show" may be more than a little 80's metal, but other Cooper eras are sprinkled in as well. There is some of his earlier garage rock/proto punk, particularly in the guitars, as well as some unexpected prog rock, particularly in the keyboards and backing vocals. Plus, a song called "Welcome to the Show" is going to be pure Alice Cooper, as it's just a song about putting on a show. It sounds like it's going to be the perfect set opener for his upcoming tour. Alice Copper says of his new single: “'Welcome to the Show' is just that: Telling the audience here it is. The show is ready to go and we are fully loaded. Here it comes!" You can listen to "Welcome to the Show" below. Road is due out August 25 on earMUSIC, and is available for pre-order here . For more on Alice...

Photo by Jenny Risher For a couple of decades now, Alice Cooper has been a guilty pleasure of mine. I always feel the need to explain that his earlier 70's music is much better and an important example of proto-punk, but that might change with his upcoming album. The latest single from that album, "White Line Frankenstein," once again merges his earlier Detroit proto-punk sound with his 80's era metal for a sound that will work for fans of all periods. Plus, it's fantastically theatrical, which is a must for any true Alice Cooper song. If you're looking for an extra level of coolness, the song also features Tom Morello on guitar! "White Line Frankenstein" is pure rock 'n' roll with the only excess being killer metal riffs, and you just can't go wrong with that. Alice Cooper says of his new song: “White Line Frankenstein is a monster that we created. It’s a truck driver who’s been out there a long time. He's the king of the road. He do...

Photo by Jenny Risher At the risk of losing all of my indie cred, I'm a huge Alice Cooper fan. My best friend since high school is quite possibly his biggest fan. He finally convinced me to go to a show in 2000, and I've been hooked ever since. I definitely prefer his earlier garage rock/proto-punk albums like Love it to Death and Killer  to his 80's metal era, which is why I'm thrilled about his new single. "I'm Alice" sounds like a career spanning track. It throws back to his earliest days, includes some 80's metal riffs, and even seems to acknowledge his forgotten punk/New Wave era heard on albums like Flush the Fashion. Plus, "I'm Alice" is his most theatrical song he's done in decades, to the point that it sounds like it could have been written for an Alice Cooper jukebox musical. It's as if it was written specifically for the stage show, and has me more excited for a new Alice Cooper album than I ever thought I could be. Ali...

I love Halloween. It's by far my favorite holiday, but musically it always gets the shaft. Sure, you're going to hear "Monster Mash" roughly 1000 times this weekend, but not much else. Last year, I snagged Rodney Anonymous of The Dead Milkmen's Halloween playlist , but this year I decided we needed our own. While metal is always an obvious choice, I tried to keep it to a minimum (Danzig), while focusing on our alternative classics (Jane's Addiction, The Magnetic Fields, The Jon Spencer Blues Explosion), classic rock (Alice Cooper, Screamin' Jay Hawkins), and some of our newer favorites (Brown Bird, Speedy Ortiz, Walter Sickert & The Army of Broken Toys). Running at just around two hours, it's perfect to put on in the background for parties this weekend or while you're handing out candy on Monday. Enjoy!