Alice Cooper – “Paranormal” Album Review

It’s been 6 long years since Alice Cooper’s previous pretty good album “Welcome 2 My Nightmare” was released. And now the indefatigable king of shock-rock, who will turn 70 (!) next year, pleases us with his new album – “Paranormal”.

For those who are not fluent in English, just in case: when it comes to the title of the new Alice Cooper album, “Paranormal” can be translated as “Paranormal” or “Paranormal Phenomenon”.

The producer of the record is Bob Ezrin, who has been working with Cooper since the seventies and who recently helped the old guys from Deep Purple to record and release a worthy album – “inFinite”. The place of recording is Nashville – the city where many rockers have their creative epiphany (just remember Jack White and his projects The Raconteurs and The Dead Weather, as well as the new Accept album The Rise of Chaos).

It is noteworthy that the second Alice Cooper digipack “Paranormal” Deluxe Edition contains two tracks (“Genuine American Girl” and “You And All Of Your Friends”) which Alice Cooper composed and recorded together with the three (still alive in 2017) members of the original band of the same name – Dennis Dunaway (bassist), Michael Bruce (rhythm guitar) and Neal Smith (drums). There are also six high-quality live recordings from the concert of Cooper’s current line-up, which took place in early May 2016 in the capital of the state of Ohio.

Another interesting point: guest rock stars – Billy Gibbons (ZZ TOP), Larry Mullen (U2) and Roger Glover (Deep Purple) participated in the recording of “Paranormal Apparition”.

A review of the contents of Alice Cooper’s new album “Paranormal”

Despite his age, Alice Cooper sounds as strong and energetic on “Paranormal” as he did half a century ago when he made his debut on the rock scene. Except that in the song that gave the release its name, he seems a little tired. “Paranormal”, on the other hand, boasts a selection of prog-metal notes, grandiose ominous riffs and dark vampire lyrics.

Case in point: my 4-year-old daughter asked me to put this song in her player so she “could fall asleep to it.” And the fact that her playlist before that had only included children’s songs is a real confirmation that Grandpa Alice is conquering even the very young hearts of today.

“Dead Flies”. A grotesque track in which Cooper skilfully jumps from cannibalism to privacy issues in the digital age. It’s all accompanied by bluesy “jams” in the best ZZ Top tradition.

The song “Fireball” is so atmospheric, that while listening to it you can easily imagine the apocalyptic fervor that Cooper is trying to bring us. In fact, it’s about a bad dream about the end of the world, waking up from which you see the same things in real life.

In “Paranoiac Personality,” Alice Cooper suggests that we all have something dark lurking in the back of our minds, that we are all following him, spreading false rumors and conspiring behind his back. He finally figured it out! (devilish laughter should sound here).

“Fallen In Love” is another great track with a classic blues-rock bent. Well, it looks like Billy Gibbons was invited to work on the new Alice Cooper album for a reason.

“Dynamite Road” (“Heroin Road”) is the highlight of the “Paranormal” album, in which Alice not so much sings as exercises the conversational genre with quality rhythmic hard rock, telling the story of a deadly encounter with the devil and attempts to fight him. And he does it, I’ll be honest, very well – A+.

It’s perfect for an active road trip of some kind. Also this track could be successfully used as an accompanying soundtrack for computer games. I wouldn’t be surprised if we hear it in the next Need for Speed.

“Private Public Breakdown” is one of the most unsightly songs on Alice Cooper’s new album. It’s not that it’s bad, it just loses a lot against the background of the previous and following songs. Take a listen and you’ll see what I mean.

“Holy Water” is a totally unexpected, slightly dark vaudeville story whose rhythms make my feet want to dance (I was surprised to notice it somewhere in the middle of listening to the track, when I banged on the system unit under my desk beating the beat). Listening to it, you can just imagine ominously smiling, tap-dancing Cooper in his trademark cylinder hat, with a cane in his hands and accompanied by cabaret girls. For me, this song and “Dynamite Road” are favorites of Alice Cooper’s new album, Paranormal.

“Rats” is a very energetic, almost “teenage” classic rock ‘n’ roll. Not at all what you’d expect to hear from a 70-year-old rocker. Though perhaps this is another way for Alice Cooper to shock – what else is there to do when dark, ominous imagery doesn’t surprise anyone anymore?

“The Sound of A” is a peculiar way of paying homage to Pink Floyd. Those who are into it will understand. Perfect as the closing track of the “Paranormal” album (if you don’t count the bonus CD/plate).

“Genuine American Girl.” I’d call it “rock ‘n’ roll for girls” with a dash of doo-wop straight out of the ’50s. Although the “boys” might also like it for its rhythm and lightness. But that is if you don’t get into the gist of the song, which in fact is about a transsexual guy who is not afraid to tell the world about his peculiarities. Yeah, Cooper turns out to be a master of banter, too.

“You And All Of Your Friends” is a kind of message to all the elderly rockers who have decided to settle down because they have reached the age where they have to be serious.

As for the live recordings from the Deluxe Edition of Alice Cooper’s “Paranormal” album, I don’t see any point in reviewing them, because they are mostly updated versions of well-known hits.

There is still powder in Alice Cooper’s powders

There are no bad songs on the new Alice Cooper album “Paranormal”, and not even any “average” ones. I was just a little upset by the fact that the “paranormality” of this work is mostly expressed in genre experiments rather than in mysticism and trademark ominousness of the music and lyrics.

I’m not saying that’s a bad thing. It’s just that because of the pre-released singles and the cover art featuring Cooper with two heads, it was expected to be a little different.

The way it came out wasn’t bad either, though. The album was just a little bit creepy and mostly, I don’t know, neat or something (it’s hard to find the right word).

In “Paranormal” the king of shock-rock does almost the impossible: offering a lot of “tasty” for the Alice Cooper fans of the 70’s, he continues to indulge in no less appetizing “tastes” for those fans who agreed to visit his recent “nightmares” (“Welcome 2 My Nightmare”). Not many rockers of the same “vintage” as Cooper can boast such a skillful fusion of past and present.

I would venture to say that Alice Cooper’s record “Paranormal” in 2017 can well claim the title of the best rock album of the year among the legends of the 70-80’s who do not want to retire. And the fact that instead of the expected shock-rock we got quite a lot of quality hard-, blues-, psychedelic-, glam- and prog-rock, as well as heavy metal and rock-n-roll with inclusions of dance and pop genres of the 50-70s, does not prevent it at all.

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