Personnel: Alice Cooper (vocals); Bob Marlette (guitar, keyboards, bass); China, Phil X, Ryan Roxie (guitar); Eric Singer (drums); Sid Riggs (programming); Natalie Delaney (background vocals).
Recorded at the Blue Room, Woodland Hills, California and A&M Studios, Los Angeles, California.
Brutal is the key word here, as the chugging opening chords of the title track show this isn't your father's TRASH-era Alice Cooper. Alice's outraged vocals are balanced nicely by the melodic Natalie Delaney on this concept album about modern society's waste-strewn path to doom. "Sanctuary" is a slab of heavy arena rock in the classic Alice vein, and "Eat Some More" focuses on America's food obsession while much of the world starves. Lest this subject matter prove too utterly depressing, "It's the Little Things" includes a hard-nosed White Zombie-like riff, in a somewhat more optimistic offering about the restraint needed in every day life to avoid going postal. Producer Bob Marlette also handles bass duties, while the band is completed by Metal Edge regular Ryan Roxie and ex-Kiss skinsman Eric Singer.
BRUTAL PLANET notably marks Alice's first reunion with executive producer Bob Ezrin (Kiss's DESTROYER, Floyd's THE WALL) since WELCOME TO MY NIGHTMARE. Part vintage '70s era Alice Cooper, with a dash of glam metal combined with a major dose of White Zombie/Marilyn Manson, BRUTAL PLANET will delight long time Cooper-heads, while also appealing to the Ozzfest generation.
Professional Reviews
Entertainment Weekly (6/9/00, p.79) - "...Finds [Cooper] spinning characteristically grim fables as his backing band gamely grinds out old-school hard rock and metal cliches....AC is one of the few fogies who can make this shameless self-pastiche palatable." - Rating: B-
Q (7/00, p.112) - 3 stars out of 5 - "...A slow grower, but certainly Cooper's best since '89s TRASH..."
CMJ (5/29/00, p.29) - "...A welcome reminder of his unwaning power....fleshed out by some thoroughly chunky riffs..."
Melody Maker (7/11/00, p.49) - 3 stars out of 5 - "...A rather exciting little album....the batty old loon's still putting up a good fight."
