Alice Cooper kills in Idaho Falls concert

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IDAHO FALLS — Off stage he is a father, golfer, restaurant owner and author. On stage, he sometimes plays a psychopathic killer condemned to die by hanging.

Legendary rock star Alice Cooper performed for thousands of satisfied fans at Sandy Downs in Idaho Falls on Wednesday night.

In true rock star fashion, Cooper made a grand stage entrance. A large, back-lit curtain covered the back half of the stage so that only a silhouette could be seen. Minutes later the flag was yanked away and Cooper came out singing.

One of his first songs was fan favorite “Eighteen.” He turned the microphone to the crowd several times during the song, and fans had no problem singing along.

Cooper used a crutch as a stage prop during the song, even leaning on it at times as if to make fun of his age. Toward the end of the song, however, he used the crutch as a sort of staff, pointing at fans as if to say, “I don’t need this thing yet!”

The theatrics of the show got bigger and better as the sun began to set. Cooper’s 27-year-old daughter Calico came out on stage for one of his earliest hits, “Only Women Bleed.”

At that point, the show was transformed from just a concert to a theatrical experience. Cooper is an actor just as much as a singer, and he slipped into the role of a psychopath. During the show, he commits various crimes from battery to murder before being put into a straitjacket by several masked characters.

He soon breaks free, only to be apprehended by two more characters depicting grim reapers. A large prop covered with black cloth was wheeled onto stage as Cooper was being restrained by the black-cloaked characters. When the cloth was pulled away, a gallows and hangman’s noose were dangling.

The crowd gasped and cheered at the same time as it was revealed what was about to happen. Then, sure enough, Cooper’s character was condemned to die for his crimes and was “hanged.”

No rock show would be complete without a drum solo, and this one was no different. However, the art of the drum solo has been revamped in recent years to keep it from getting stale.

Cooper’s drummer led the solo for several minutes, then two guitar players joined in, each playing to either side of the drum kit.

Unexpectedly, Cooper introduced not only daughter Calico, who has performed with him for several years, but his youngest daughter, Sonora, and his wife, Sheryl, as well.

Cooper performed all of his major hits, saving favorites “Million Dollar Babies” and “Poison” for the encore.

Several things stood out on Wednesday night. One was the age range of the fans in attendance. There were fathers who hoisted young sons onto their shoulders to give them a better look of the music Daddy grew up with.

There were people in their 60s who had been Alice Cooper fans since before he became a solo artist. I saw two women who, if I had to guess, were more than likely in their 40s or 50s, wearing full Cooper-inspired face paint and black T-shirts with the words “I’m eighteen.”

Balancing out the two extremes were the teenagers. Although they have not been around for 90 percent of Cooper’s career, they came to get a glance at the legend and his live performance.

I doubt that anyone walked away disappointed by Alice Cooper on Wednesday night.

Though he is 60 years old and has performed for five decades, this rocker displayed more energy than a lot of younger musicians and maintained a down-to-earth and friendly stage presence.

When you watch him play golf on TV, wearing plaid pants and a sweater vest, it may be hard to believe he is the same guy who launches fake blood onto his fans at live shows.

And yet, after watching him smile and interact with fans on Wednesday night, it is clear that while he has mastered the art of wowing and shocking audiences, he has also been able to separate it from his personal life.

Jenny Wixom is the online and arts and entertainment editor for the Idaho State Journal.

By Jenny Wixom

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