matzaballman's Full Review: Killer by Alice Cooper
Killer, which was released in 1971, saw the original Alice Cooper Group at an early peak. Not only is this is my favorite Alice Cooper album, it's also one of my favorite hard rock/heavy metal albums of all time. I first heard Killer in 1977, which was the year that I got into hard rock groups like KISS, Queen, Nazareth, Rush and Black Sabbath. I was a wee lad of nine when I first got introduced to this and for some reason, the picture of Alice on the back cover with his "spider" make-up scared me!!
This is a "family" album to me...I have many fond memories of me and my brothers singing songs from this. John,Tom and I sang this album on the way to Massachusetts in August of 2003 while on the way to watch one of our sisters get married, even though we were exhausted after singing Halo Of Flies....Tom and I used to perform Be My Lover and Desperado at open mikes together(those were the days!)... we impressed our brother Kevin with a version of Desperado at my oldest sister's house on Christmas...And last but most, I remember the two of us singing the end of Dead Babies,(which consists of people yelling in a courtroom) at a park in Ithaca and getting very embarrassed when some cute girls passed up by as were doing so!
I love every song from Killer. I also think the album sports a very loud and clear and slightly sophisticated production. The album hasn't dated at all for me....I still enjoy it now as much as I did when I first listened to it all them years ago!
The songs are:
Under My Wheels
- The album actually starts off with my least favorite song. Though I do like Under My Wheels, it's a bit too fifties rock-n-roll for me, especially with all them horns during the second half. I guess I never really cared for this side of the band. Still, this really is a catchy hard rock-n-roll song....Alice rips out his vocal chords on this, Neil Smith gets in some nifty drum fills and I like how the song modulates on the last verse. The riff is nice-n-crunchy, just like the Crackling Oat Bran I had for breakfast!
Be My Lover
- A harmless little song from rhythm guitarist Michael Bruce. The first verse was written about the sister of the band's PR man Ashley Pandel and the second verse came out of a conversation the song's writer had with a woman on an airplane. I find it interesting that of all the Michael Bruce songs that Alice changed the lyrics for, that he didn't change the lyrics for this one( especially since he says "And I played guitar in a long haired rock-n-roll band" during the second verses). Maybe it's because he says the name "Alice" on it! Anyhoo, this is a very enjoyable hard rock/pop song, with a very simple chord progression during the verses that even a monkey like me can play! Don't you just love Alice's Mae West impersonation at the end?
-Halo Of Flies
- YIPPEE! YAHOO! This is my favorite Alice Cooper song!!! This is the original Alice Cooper at their most progressive...the song has many parts to it, but they all fit together quite nicely.... and I love almost every second of it. I like how Alice sings the line "Daggers and contacts and bright shiny limos" to the tune of My Favorite Things. The lyrics seemed to be inspired by James Bond movies and spy novels. I love Neil Smith's drumming on this...from the beginning, where he plays a very interesting pattern on the cymbals, to his drum solo, which is my favorite drum solo of all time. This is maybe the only drum solo that you can sing along with( or that I can sing along to) and it's fun to drum along with, as well. Smith doesn't play very fast( until the end), but I like what he plays and how he plays it. A Moog synthesizer pops up in one place and a Mellotron pops up elsewhere.... The only criticism I have with Halo Of Flies ( and it's a microscopic one at that) is the ending, which is a tad on the wimpy side, especially when compared to the rest of the song.
Desperado
- Another terrific song. This tale of two gunslingers getting ready for a showdown was supposedly written about Jim Morrison. Alice croons in his lower register during the verses, portraying the first gunslinger and sings in his crunchy rock voice during the heavier parts.( I forgot who sang what part when Tom and I performed this!) I like the string arrangements by producer Bob Ezrin, I love the acoustic guitar melody and once again, I like Neil Smith's drumming and how he barely plays at all at first, then lays down a straight 4/4 drum beat later on, which he would do to even more dramatic effect in Dead Babies.
The second half of the album starts off with two of its more simple hard rock numbers. You Drive Me Nervous is a loud hard rock tune, with another interesting drum beat from Neil Smith. Yeah, Yeah, Yeah, the most goofy song on the album, is redeemed by its unusual, but exciting instrumental section, which features a harmonica solo by Alice( who mentions his name again during one of the verses). Both of these are rather lightweight compared to some of the other songs on the album, especially the last two frightening numbers! They are:
Dead Babies
- "Our most misunderstood song", Alice says in the liner notes for his boxed set, but he only has himself to blame. His onstage presentation of this song( which had him chopping up baby dolls) really didn't help people understand it any better. A shame, really, for those put off by that and the song title are missing out on a terrific and genuinely frightening progressive heavy metal tune.
In a recent interview in the magazine Goldmine, bassist Dennis Dunaway says the band were rehearsing right next to a prison farm during the recording of this album and when they finally got the final arrangement of this song down, all the inmates cheered! Alice gives a very soft, haunting vocal delivery during the verses and sings in that crunchy voice of his during the rest of it. I love the heavy guitar riff after the second refrain and the instrumental section that follows. I also like how drummer Neil Smith barely plays at all on the first verse, then lays down a straight beat during the second verse.....much like he does in Desperado. GREAT SONG! It leads right into...
Killer
- The title track ends the album on a very scary, eerie, frightening, chilling, breathtaking, bone chilling, spine tingling, dangerous, etc... note! Alice sings in that wonderful lower register of his during the first verse. The second verse has my Dad's favorite lyric.."Nothing came easy, nothing came free/ and nothing came at all until they came after me!" (told you it was a "family" album!). This whole song is very dangerous, especially the ending, which is supposed to be someone in the electric chair. I like the jamming near the beginning of the song and I like that part with the church organ and drum rolls, where the "killer" is either in confession or being given his last rites. A great song...what a way to end the album, eh?
Bottom line...
If you don't own this album, then I want you to buy it RIGHT NOW!! It is going to scare you. And entertain you.And make you laugh.
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