"supergroups" aint cool...but I don't care.

[66Atlas]

I like it, I don't care what anybody says. 

[Dave W]

Impressive lineup. Not my cup of tea, though.

[uwe]

Needless to say, I have it, heard it in the car over the weekend. It's an "Alice Cooper does covers" album in all but name. Aunt Alice sings all tracks or co-sings them and to be fair - as cover albums go - there is not a single track that is awful. And Alice manages to even give a chestnut such as Whole Lotta Love a new angle. Funnily enough, I like what he does with (or to!) The Doors best, maybe that is because Alice C. is like the great late Jim M. essentially a non-singer with a one-of-a-kind voice. When I heard it I thought that the remaining Doors should have perhaps toured with him.

Johnny D is btw an adep(p)t guitarist, the few non-covers are written by him, Alice and Ezrin, the guitar playing is suitably raunchy.

In many ways a tribute to Alice's 60ies influences. Pleasant, but hardly mandatory. He has his old rhythm section of Dunaway/Smith on School's Out which is largely unchanged except for the Brian Johnso co-vocals and the interpolation of Floyd's Another Brick which Alice has been playing in his live set for ages.

If you lilke Alice's voice, like I do, then you will neither be disappointed nor elated by this release. I personally prefer him when he is more edgy. Oh yeah, the romp through Come And Get It with Sir Paul is good fun though you wonder what the Scouser made of it all. They've taken all the upbeatness of the Badfinger version out of it and grunged it up a little.

[Psycho Bass Guy]

Funnily enough, I like what he does with (or to!) The Doors best, maybe that is because Alice C. is like the great late Jim M. essentially a non-singer with a one-of-a-kind voice. When I heard it I thought that the remaining Doors should have perhaps toured with him.

He opened for the Doors back in the day.

[Granny Gremlin]

It's not all covers though is it? I see Johnny Depp has songwriting credit on a handful of album tracks (including the above, which does not sound familiar to me at all, as meaningless as that is given my knowledge or classic/glam rock, and does sound more like their theme song subjectwise).

Not bad, some typical classic rock everything too-synched-up / staccato moments for my taste (especially if in a song as slow as this; you have the space; make it interesting) but Alice always had some of that.  Sounds like they dropped a lot on studio time and production generally.

I'll check out some of the other cuts.

... I prefer Schools Out with (more) reverb on the vocals  (as per the orignal) this version is coughing dry all around I guess (must be an old age thing ... or the producer, the age of wet mixes is over, at least as regards mainstream stuff).  Alice has still got it though; it's a pretty good performance and nearly spot on for the original in terms of hair and intensity.  But who is that singing the second verse ( it's a reasonably good Brian Johnson impression - please tell me that's not Johnny Depp)?

[uwe]

It is him! Brian Johnson!!! He also sings on Whole Lotta Love.

Bob Ezrin got a lot of stick in the past for his productions being too echo-y. He is still my favorite producer. He can make a band of mediocre abilities (Kiss, Hanoi Rocks, Alice Cooper Band) sound like a billion bucks. And he can make excellent albums with talented, experienced people too (Pink Floyd, Peter Grabriel and, yes, Deep Purple).

Deep Purple have recorded dozens of studio albums, but their sonic melée - let's face it: no instrument within DP takes a backseat to the others - never sounded as good as here, 45 years after their formation:



Not all covers, but about 80%. On the Vampires album I mean.

[66Atlas]

I've listened to the whole record about a half dozen times, I think I actually enjoyed the couple originals as much if not more than the covers.  Could it be they're modern but at the same time refreshingly vintage? Makes no sense but then again I rarely do.

They're "touring band" for the handful of shows they're doing is to include Duff McKagan and Matt Sorum from Guns and Roses.  If Mr. Depp would give up on that mediocre acting career he has going maybe they could do an actual tour.  They're not going to change the face of music or anything but I bet they would be a fun group to see interact on stage.

[Granny Gremlin]

That's really Brian, wow, it's some producer that can make him sound like an immitator (albeit a good one).  Trying to not steal the limelight from Alice I suspect (not as full throttle a voice; nobody is - hard to duet with Johnson for that reason; he's naturally overdriven and compressed).

[Highlander]

It's nice he used the original ACG rhythm section on some of the material...

Fat chance of a UK tour...