Alice looks in black mirror
DARK ROCKER COOPER MOCKS HIMSELF
ALICE Cooper gets “roasted” by the original Alice Cooper on his new album.
Out on Friday, Detroit Stories is a celebration of the golden era of rock that emerged from his home city.
It also features the original Alice Cooper band – minus late guitarist Glen Buxton – on the track Social Debris, and my personal favourite I Hate You.
Alice said: “I Hate You, it’s funny. We don’t hate each other but we took a shot at each other on it.
“So [guitarist] Mike wrote a verse about [drummer] Neil;
Neil wrote a verse about me. It was great because we roasted each other on this song.”
It can get confusing to the casual fan understanding that there was a band called
Alice Cooper before the solo artist, but Coops says the difference is plain to hear.
He explained: “When the original band play, they play a lot more dangerously and I sing differently. There’s more drama and more anger, more darkness in how they play, and the audience loves that because that’s the original Alice sound. “So on the last three or four albums they’ve been on there.”
The original line-up played their final show in 1974. Alice said: “We’d broken The Rolling Stones’ record for attendances and we were all burned. “Everyone felt it was time to separate, not divorce. There was no bad blood or lawsuits. When Glen passed away, that was like if Keith Richards passed away. It was harder to get back together. [But] in the last 10 years we have done a lot of work together.” He might be 73 but Coops shows no signs of slowing down, adding: “I feel like I’m 40. I’ve never felt better in my life. When the Covid thing is over, we can’t wait to get on tour.”
ASS1ST fter a bitterly cold snap, it was a pleasure to feel the rise in temperatures and a sense that spring may be on the way.
So whether you are working from home and need a little break from staring at the computer or you haven’t been doing much gardening over the winter, it’s time to venture outdoors!
First of all, take stock of your equipment. Good tools will make light work of heavy jobs. A sharp and strong pair of secateurs is an invaluable tool for pruning jobs. The secateurs I’d recommend are the Classic Felco No 4 and they will last a lifetime. Spades, shovels and forks should have long handles which will save your back from too much bending. Keep a stiff brush and clean rags in your garage or potting shed to brush soil or garden debris off the tools after use. A quick wipe with the cloth prolongs the life and performance of your tools.
A spongy mat or kneeler can be a great benefit if you’re on your knees for hours on end planting or weeding. A sharp pair of garden shears are good for trimming hedges and cutting back larger areas of plant growth. They’re typically used for cutting back or shaping shrubs and ornamen