Nita Strauss Album Details and Ryan Roxie Events

Nita Strauss Album Details and other news.

Nita Strauss has officially announced the title of her forthcoming second solo album ‘The Call Of The Void’. The album will be released through Sumerian Records on July 7th and the latest single ‘The Golden Trail’ featuring Anders Fridén if In Flames can be seen here.. You can pre-order now through AmazonUK and AmazonUS on vinyl, CD and streaming.
Nita has been talking to Soundsphere and Kerrang! about the album, working with Alice and more.

Ryan Roxie will have a busy week in Fort Wayne, IN in July when he has two solo events taking place.
The first is on July 27th when he will be hosting a ‘Master Class’ evening including a 2 hour chat and Q&A, talking about his career, somgwriting, touring and anything else that comes to mind. Tickets for this exclusive event are $100 and available here.

Secondly Sweetwater Studios will be holding a 2-day ‘recording workshop’ with Roxie on July 28th-29th. This is a more technical two-day class with day one titled ‘The Basics of Tracking a Session’, and day 2 ‘Mixing to Yield Professional Sounding Results’, and during that time Roxie will actually be recording a new solo single! Places for this event are extremely limited and can be booked here.
If anyone on here is going to attend, email PerfectWave@USA.com letting them know you’re from SickthingsUK so they will "add on some special benefits" for you!

Rhino have posted a new track from the forthcoming ‘Killer’ deluxe edition. This one is ‘You Drive Me Nervous‘ record at the Mar Y Solo festival in 1972.

The Hollywood Vampires have released yet another clip from the forthcoming ‘Live In Rio’. This time it’s their version of Hendrix’s ‘Manic Depression’ which you can see here. ‘Live In Rio’ is due June 2nd from earMusic.

Dennis Dunaway and Michael Bruce have been interviewed for a new article about ‘Billion Dollar Babies’ in the June issue of ‘Vintage Guitar‘ which should be on the news shelves soon. The issue you want has Samantha Fish and Jesse Dayton on the cover.

The Rock Pit has a review and photos of the Mystic Lake Theatre show last week which you can read here. Smile Politely has a review and photos of the Champaign show.

Neal Smith has been talking to the Akron Beacon Journal about his life and career here.

Classic Rock/Louder have posted a long article about the early days of Alice Cooper (possibly reposted from a earlier magazine article) with quotes from Dennis Dunaway.

New Vampires Show and Nita’s Solo Tour

The Hollywood Vampires have added an extra show to their European tour. They play
Summerstage Autostadt – Wolfsburg, Germany on July 21st. Tickets go on sale Monday May 8th at 10AM CET.

Nita Strauss has announced two months of US solo shows for June and July. The ‘Summer Storm’ tour, which will feature opening act ‘Lions At The Gate’ runs as follows:

June 13th Nashville, TN @ Exit/ In
June 14th Atlanta, GA @ The Loft
June 15th Greensboro, NC @ The Hangar 1819
June 17th New York, NY @ The Meadows
June 18th Toronto, ONT @ Horseshoe Tavern
June 19th Mechanicsburg, PA @ Lovedrafts
June 21st Harrison, OH @ The Blue Note
June 22nd Flint, MI @ The Machine Shop
June 23rd Angola, IN @ The Eclectic Room
June 24th Bloomington, IL @ The Castle Theatre
June 25th Madison, WI @ The Majestic Theatre
June 26th Omaha, NE @ The Waiting Room
June 28th Denver, CO @ The Bluebird Theater
June 29th Salt Lake City, UT @ Urban Lounge
June 30th Boise, ID @ Neurolux
July 1st Portland, OR @ Hawthorne Theatre
July 2nd Vancouver, BC @ The Rickshaw Theatre
July 3rd Seattle, WA @ El Corazon
July 5th Sacramento, CA @ Goldfield Trading Post
July 6th Los Angeles, CA @ Whisky A Go Go
July 8th Las Vegas, NV @ The Space
July 9th Phoenix, AZ @ Crescent Ballroom
July 11th San Antonio, TX @ The Rock Box
July 12th Dallas, TX @ Trees
July 13th Houston, TX @ Scout Bar
July 14th New Orleans, LA @ The Parish at House of Blues

OnMilwaukee has a short interview with Alice. Of amusing note is their reference to his ‘Pretty Things’ album… obviously meaning ‘Pretties For You’. A mistake copy and pasted to AC.com!

WANE has the story of Alice and Sheryl out shopping in in Fort Wayne and buying a new sword, which sure enough you can see during the opening of that nights show. Unfortunately their report and videos are geolocked to prevent the information reaching Europe…

Mike Allen’s new book ‘Living and Touring with Alice Cooper and Other Stories‘ has apparently been selling well and Mike has been on Hudson River Radio chatting about it, and his time with the original band. Check it out here.

‘I’m Always Chasing Rainbows’ from ‘Goes To Hell’ is featured on the new ‘Guardians Of The Galaxy’ mixtape and possibly the film as well. check out the full list here.

Lastly Classic Rock recalls the old story of Alice and Joe Perry trying to write songs for ‘Monster Dog’ in a haunted house. An oldie, but to be fair one not repeated as often as many other old stories. Alice is also featured in the latest issue of Classic Rock Magazine.

Too Close For Comfort

The Too Close For Comfort Tour Begins

We’re now three shows into the new ‘Too Close For Comfort’ US tour and there’s plenty of video appearing on YouTube. As promised the tour features a completely new stage set which heavily relies on video screens showing close ups of Alice and the band, as well as pre-recorded clips to illustrate certain songs. Sadly the new setlist is rather predictable, with only a couple of real surprises, and there seems to be minimal theatrics, although the snake is back for the first time in some years. The tour also sees the return of Nita Strauss after she sat out the fall tour last year.
Ultimate Classic Rock have a full review of the Mount Pleasant show with photos and lots of spoilers, while Seth Lewis has posted some excellent photos from the same show. More photos can be found at PennLive.

To mark the start of the tour April 29th was named ‘Alice Cooper Day’ in Youngstown, MI by radio station WYFM and the Mahoning County Commissioners who presented Alice with a proclamation in honour of his 50 years playing shows in the area and a custom painted trash can! You can see a copy of the document here while WYTV has video and a report but it’s region locked.

Nita Strauss has been talking to Loudwire about touring with Alice and Demi Lovato, plus her new solo album which is due this summer.

Rhino Announce Deluxe Killer and School’s Out

Rhino Records have announced new deluxe editions of both ‘Killer’ and ‘School’s Out’ to be released on June 9th

Rhino Records have announced new deluxe editions of both ‘Killer’ and ‘School’s Out’ to be released on June 9th and have posted a live version of ‘Be My Lover‘ to promote them. Both albums will come on double CDs or 3LP vinyl sets and feature newly remastered versions of the original albums plus a live show recording, although strangely ‘School’s Out’ includes a show that is also from the ‘Killer’ tour.
AmazonUK has pre-order pages up now for ‘School’s Out’ (CD and Vinyl) and ‘Killer’ (CD and Vinyl).

While the AmazonUS pages are ‘School’s Out’ (CD and Vinyl) and Killer (CD and Vinyl). Below is the official blurb:

KILLER (DELUXE EDITION) introduces a newly remastered version of the original release, which peaked at #21 on the Billboard albums chart. Along with the singles “Under My Wheels” and “Be My Lover,” the record also includes “Yeah, Yeah, Yeah,” “Desperado,” and the prog-rock-inspired epic “Halo Of Flies.” The bonus material features alternate takes for “You Drive Me Nervous,” “Under My Wheels,” and “Dead Babies.”
The collection also gives fans an [officially] unreleased live recording of the band’s performance at Mar Y Sol Pop Festival in Puerto Rico on April 2, 1972. Recorded a few months before the band returned to the studio to make School’s Out, the show previews “Public Animal #9” from the upcoming album. The band played most of Killer during the concert, including “You Drive Me Nervous,” “Under My Wheels,” and “Halo Of Flies.” They also tapped the group’s 1971 album, Love It to Death, for live versions of “Is It My Body?,” “Long Way To Go,” and the smash hit “I’m Eighteen.”

SCHOOL’S OUT (DELUXE EDITION) begins with a newly remastered version of the 1972 original, which peaked at #2 on the albums chart. Essential tracks like “Luney Tune” and “Alma Mater” are joined by “Gutter Cat vs. The Jets.” The latter is an homage to West Side Story, a significant influence on the band. The song incorporates lyrics from “Jet Song” from the 1957 musical, which led to an unlikely songwriting credit for Leonard Bernstein and Stephen Sondheim on an Alice Cooper track.
The Deluxe Edition contains rarities like the single versions of “School’s Out” and “Gutter Cat vs. The Jets.” Two previously unreleased tracks are also included, an alternate version of “Alma Mater” and an early demo for “Elected,” a song that would appear in 1973 on the band’s first #1 album, Billion Dollar Babies.
Alice Cooper’s concert in Miami on May 27, 1972, adds even more unreleased music to the collection. The show was recorded a few weeks before the band entered the studio to record School’s Out. The live performance features standout versions of “Halo Of Flies,” “School’s Out,” and “Yeah, Yeah, Yeah,” a song that gives Cooper a chance to show off his impressive harmonica skills.

The vinyl versions for both Deluxe Edition recreate the original album sleeves down to the smallest detail. For Killer, that means a gatefold sleeve that opens to reveal a detachable 1972 calendar with a photo of Cooper in the gallows. The cover of School’s Out looks like a wooden school desk and opens to reveal the LP wrapped in a pair of panties. The band stopped including the underwear following a controversy as to whether or not they were flammable. Thankfully, the lacy unmentionables in the new Deluxe Edition are not a fire hazard.
Both sets come with booklets that include track-by-track commentary by band members and former Creem Magazine editor Jaan Uhelszki, plus liner notes by Bill Holdship, also a former Creem Magazine editor.

Alice was on SiriusXM’s ‘Hair Nation’ a few days ago and spoke about the new album which is due later this year. According to Blabbermouth it’s still going under the working title of ‘Road’ and he confirmed it’s still an album designed to show off the talents of the current live band – “I said, ‘I wanna show this band off.’ So we did an album in the studio, and very, very, very few overdubs in it, because the band’s so tight. And I wanted them to all do the writing with me. I said, ‘Everybody, bring in songs, ‘cause I want everything in-house.’ And Bob Ezrin produced it. I mean, it’s a great guitar-driven rock and roll album. I’m very, very proud of this album. And it’s coming… It’ll be out this year.”

Alice has also taking ‘Road’ and the new show to Ultimate Classic Rock which you can check out here.

Killer 2023
School's Out 2023

SiriusXM Celebrates 50 years of Billion Dollar Babies

SiriusXM Celebrates 50 years of Billion Dollar Babies

Ozzy’s Boneyard, with Jay Hudson on SiriusXM Ch. 38 in the USA spotlights 50 years of Alice Cooper’s influential album ‘Billion Dollar Babies’ from today at 8am ET through to Monday and 11pm ET including songs and album insights from Alice Cooper and Dennis Dunaway every hour all weekend.

Dennis Dunaway will be hosting at Q&A with Mae Pang at a screening of ‘The Lost Weekend: A Love Story’, a film based on Pang’s books detailing her relationship with John Lennon. It takes place on April 26th at the Angelika Theater on Houston Street in New York City. Tickets are available now.

Hollywood Vampires US Dates

Hollywood Vampires Announce US Dates

The Hollywood Vampires have added three US shows before their European dates in June. Pre-sales start tomorrow and the public on sale Friday April 7th. The dates are as follows:

May 30th 2023 SNHU Arena, Manchester, NH
May 31st 2023 Wang Theatre-Boch Center, Boston, MA
June 1st 2023 Bethel Woods Center For The Arts, Bethel, NY

Hollywood Vampires Release Live Rio Clip

Hollywood Vampires Release Live Rio Clip

The Hollywood Vampires have released a clip for ‘I’ve Got A Line On You’ from the forthcoming ‘Live In Rio’ album/film. You can check out here or below.

Alice was interviewed for 96.1 KLPX this week promoting the Coopstock event in Phoenix tomorrow which you can listen to here.

Nita Strauss was on the ‘Appetite for Distortion’ podcast this week talking about her new single ‘Winner Takes All’ which features Alice on vocals. Check it out here.

Dennis Dunaway could be heard on radio WPKN’s ‘Rock Therapy’ earlier this week. You can listen in from around 62 minutes here.

Neal Smith has released two tracks from his new Killsmith album ‘Killsmith Goes West’ which you can find on his YouTube channel.

Designer Ernie Cefalu has released an interesting video interview talking about creating the classic ‘Old School’ box set a few years ago, which you can check out here.

New Nita Strauss Single Features Alice Cooper

Nita Strauss releases new single featuring Alice Cooper

Nita Strauss has released a third single from her forthcoming second solo album and enlisted her boss to sing on it! The song is called ‘Winner Takes All’ and you can check out it out on YouTube or below.

Kane Roberts has been talking to ‘The Shoe’ podcast clearing up some confusion over his role in the last tour and standing in for Nita Strauss. Check it out on YouTube.

Also worth checking out is video of Alice, Ryan, Tommy and Sheryl rehearsing for the recent private acoustic show earlier this month. It’s something you don’t see very often! That’s also on YouTube. The same channel also has a short clip of the Q&A with Alice talking about the Hollywood Vampires, plus clips of Under My Wheels and Eighteen from the show although the sound is poor.

Hollywood Vampires Release Rio Show

he Hollywood Vampires will release their 2015 ‘Rock In Rio’ show on CD, vinyl and blu-ray on June 2nd.

The Hollywood Vampires will release their 2015 ‘Rock In Rio’ show on CD, vinyl and blu-ray on June 2nd. The show, supporting their first album; saw the band play in front of over 100,000 people and includes guest appearances from Lzzy Hale, Andreas Kisser (Sepultura) and Zak Starkey (The Who). You can pre-order via AmazonUK and AmazonUS now. The full track listing is as follows:

1. Raise The Dead
2. My Generation
3. I Got A Line On You
4. Cold Turkey
5. Five To One / Break On Through (To The Other Side)
6. Manic Depression
7. 7 And 7 Is
8. Whole Lotta Love
9. Jeepster
10. I’m A Boy
11. School’s Out
12. Billion Dollar Babies
13. Train Kept A-Rollin’
14. Brown Sugar

Alice has been talking to Ultimate Classic Rock about the forthcoming "Road" album, which features the current band, and also a possible original band album.

"Well, there’s a new album coming out with my touring band right now. I wanted to show off the touring band, so we wrote songs, went in the studio, and I said, “Here’s the deal on this album: No overdubs.” I said, “Everything has to be done in the studio live because the whole idea of this album is showing off how good this band is live.” So when you hear this album, it sounds like a studio album, but it’s actually them playing live in the studio. That album will be coming out, and then, the thing with the original band is when we broke up, we never broke up with any bad blood. We went to high school together, we were on the cross country and track team together, things like that. There was never bad blood between any of us, and we always… I mean, I would ask Dennis [Dunaway], “Dennis, could you come in and play bass on this song?” “Yeah. Could you sing on this song? I’ve got a thing going on with this band that I’m in.” “OK.” So there was never that like, “Oh, I’m never gonna talk to him again,” or “I’m never gonna work with him again.” So we’ve always been writing. “Neal Smith will send me three or four songs and I’ll do some writing lyrics on it and send it back to him, and he has his own band. Dennis is in two or three bands. Mike [Michael Bruce], they’re always working musicians. So when we write 10 or 12 songs, I don’t know exactly what that’s going to be, but I know that those songs exist now. So I’m thinking about in the future, that would be kind of a cool thing."

Tommy Henriksen’s Crossbone Skully has launched a kickstarter campaign for an official comic book, ‘Thing #1’, based on the forthcoming album. There are as usual various levels of support beginning with a simple digital pdf from just $5. You can find all the information here.

Distortions Unlimited, the company that builds many of the props used in the Alice Cooper show, have posted a ‘Behind The Monsters’ video demonstrating some of their creations, including one that has so far not been used on stage. Check it out here. The company also has a couple of old Alice related items for sale online here.

Ryan Roxie is the guest on ‘The Guitar Coach’ podcast which you can watch on YouTube.