ALICE COOPER — Welcome To My Nightmare (review)

ALICE COOPER — Welcome To My Nightmare album cover Album · 1975 · Hard Rock Buy this album from MMA partners
5/5 ·
thellama73
Alice Cooper's masterpiece. His first solo album and for me the best thing he ever did. After the break up of the Alice Cooper Band, Alice was undeterred, and quickly recruited a bunch of studio musicians and recorded Welcome To My Nightmare. The result contains many of his most memorable songs.

The title track is a catchy disco funk number that introduces the album perfectly, preparing the listener for the tongue in cheek horror movie imagery to follow. Alice is characteristically witty when dealing with taboo and macabre topics. "Devil's Food" is about cannibalism, and "Cold Ethyl" is about necrophilia. Despite his reputation as a "shock rocker" Alice deals with these subjects tastefully and with enough humor that's it's obvious he does not intend to be taken seriously. "The Black Widow" features a vocal cameo by horror movie legend Vincent Price. His voice is so distinctive that it's a real treat to hear him here. "Some Folks" is a high-kicking music hall number that's quite catchy and "Department of Youth" is a powerful rocker. There's a even a hit single, the surprisingly sensitive power ballad "Only Women Bleed" (it's about domestic violence, despite what you might expect from the title.)

However, the jewel in Alice's crown comes with the three part "Steven" suite, a running storyline that goes through "Years Ago," "Steven," and "The Awakening." The story deals with a poor insane boy named Steven and the disturbing inner workings of his mind. Insanity is Alice's favorite lyrical subject and this suite surpasses even "The Ballad of Dwight Fry" for its vivid creepiness. The character of Steven will reappear on several other Alice Cooper records, but this is where he was born and it's his best moment.

Finally, the tension built by "The Awakening" is released by the catchy lightweight rocker "Escape." It's such a fun song that it almost makes me forget about all the great tracks that came before. There's not a weak moment here and while instrumental virtuosity is not on the menu, all the musicians play well. Most of all, Cooper's songwriting would never again be quite so inspired and energetic as it is here.
Share this review
more

Review Comments

Post a public comment below | Send private message to the reviewer
Please login to post a shout
No shouts posted yet. Be the first member to do so above!

Review Index

Member Zone

Username:
Password:
Stay signed in

Metal Subgenres

Artists Alpha-index

MMA TOP 5 Metal ALBUMS

Rating by members, ranked by custom algorithm
Albums with 30 ratings and more
Master of Puppets Thrash Metal
METALLICA
Buy this album from our partners
Paranoid Heavy Metal
BLACK SABBATH
Buy this album from our partners
Moving Pictures Hard Rock
RUSH
Buy this album from our partners
Powerslave NWoBHM
IRON MAIDEN
Buy this album from our partners
Rising Heavy Metal
RAINBOW
Buy this album from our partners

New Metal Artists

New Metal Releases

The Goblin Sessions Heavy Metal
THEM
Buy this album from MMA partners
Tormenta De Arena Metalcore
VORAGO
Buy this album from MMA partners
Infinite Metalcore
FUTURE GHOST
Buy this album from MMA partners
Heretic Melodic Death Metal
SUNCINDER
Buy this album from MMA partners
The Skull Burned Wearing Hell Like A Life Vest As The Night Wept Mathcore
FRONTIERER
Buy this album from MMA partners
More new releases

New Metal Online Videos

Future Ghost - Wolves (Official Music Video)
FUTURE GHOST
Bosh66· 1 day ago
Future Ghost - Nemesis Game (Official Music Video)
FUTURE GHOST
Bosh66· 1 day ago
Harrowed TwentyTenVideo
HARROWED
Bosh66· 3 days ago
Sunmancer - Realms of Dilemma (Official Visualizer)
SUNMANCER
Bosh66· 8 days ago
Sunmancer - Lower Cavalier (Official Visualizer)
SUNMANCER
Bosh66· 8 days ago
More videos

New MMA Metal Forum Topics

More in the forums

New Site interactions

More...

Latest Metal News

members-submitted

More in the forums

Social Media

Follow us
Follow us on Twitter Become a Facebook fan RSS Feed