Saturday 05/12/09 Alice Cooper @ Brighton Centre

With numerous un-innovative ‘indie’ bands adopting a more understated approach to their performances - maybe it’s lack of funds in the recession or something to do with a conceited pretence that their music speaks for itself - it’s no surprise that Alice Cooper’s Theatre of Death tour turned out to be a tour-de-force spectacular of set-design and showmanship, as he is not one for being subtle, even in the most pernicious of economic times.

Like a character from The Nightmare before Christmas, Alice Cooper is the American version of Ozzy Osbourne and the predecessor to the image-conscious Marilyn Manson, but clearly with more of his wits intact, judging by his unwavering command of the stage, which is remarkable for someone who has battled alcoholism, and now in his 60’s considers himself as ‘getting on a bit’.

The title of his current tour was apt for the performance for this well stage-crafted show at the Brighton Centre which was pure stadium rock, on a smaller scale perhaps, but with all the trimmings. One of the early highlights saw Alice captured for unreservedly impaling his stooge and guillotined French-revolution style for his crime; this was just a start of many executions of him, including a giant syringe, old-fashioned hanging and very modern iron maiden. With all the death in the show, it is easy to see how his on-stage persona can offend the more puritanical or squeamish of us. There was a larger than usual police presence at the show, perhaps the legacy of Ozzy Osbourne and his tasty bat or bird-head or a testament to the reputation of Alice to be entertaining that got Brighton’s police officials all scrambling to put their names down to ‘patrol’ the night.

Fans of Alice Cooper classics were not disappointed as he opened with the instantly recognizable School’s Out, kicking the night off flawlessly. Hits followed with I’m Eighteen, No More Mr. Nice Guy, Billion Dollar Babies and my personal favourite Poison, a song guaranteed to get the fans singing along in a not-so Sound of Music like fashion. The only slow song of the evening, by Alice Cooper standards anyway, was Only Women Bleed, which offered a small opportunity for the serious head-bangers to give their neck-bones a deserved rest. For the encore, he played School’s Out a second time, a sign that he is aware of his songs own popularity, but between  the aforementioned pertinent songs, he continues to perform the whole set with enthusiasm, conveying the ever-returning conflict in his songs between the darker and lighter side of growing up.

The fans were as eclectic as they come, with old and young alike, which is a testament to his burgeoning relevance, wide appeal and un-diminishing longevity. The more hardcore metal-heads and rock enthusiasts were at the front, donned in black leather, colourful tattoos and Alice Cooper t-shirts, whilst the more demure fans were at the back with less energy to spare but with just as much adulation for the legend. One fan couldn’t believe his luck when Alice threw his cane into the audience and landed it straight between his eyes, completing his fandom.

As expected, there were many look-a-likes, dressed like their hero circa 1975, or circa 1985, or in fact Alice circa any decade, as he is no Madonna in the image-change department. But his trademark eyes, gloves and whip have served him well over the years and going by the number of under 25’s in the audience, dancing away, oblivious to the fact the X-factor semi-final was on back home on their plasma-screen TVs, it's clearly as relevant today as it was way back when, so why change a good thing?

The show in photos: