Alice Cooper: The Nightmare Returns

Captured live in Detroit in 1986, glam/shock rock legend Alice Cooper brings his trademark woman-abusing, guillotine-beheading, baby-impaling act (very similar to the one in Alice Cooper—Brutally Live [VL-3/04], filmed 14 years later) to another appreciative audience in this 17-song set comprised of the same hits (“I'm Eighteen,” “School's Out,” “No More Mr. Nice Guy,” “Only Women Bleed”) and only a couple of misses (including “The World Needs Guts” from his then-current album Constrictor). As I mentioned in the earlier review, despite the lurid themes of Cooper's stage show, this is pretty mild (and more than a little musty) stuff, firmly played with a KISS-length tongue-in-cheek. And early fans (including moi: I own all of Alice Cooper's 1971-1974 CDs) will not be disappointed with the song selection, as he serves up gems including “Ballad of Dwight Fry,” “Under My Wheels,” “Billion Dollar Babies,” “Elected,” and the early goth classic “Sick Things,” among others. Unfortunately, the Dolby Digital 5.1 and PCM stereo sound fairly reeks (one need only listen to the bonus music videos for “Teenage Frankenstein” and “Freedom” to hear the difference), coming across as both muddy and attenuated. Not recommended. Aud: P. (R. Pitman)