"A much smarter and more socially conscious band than their image and stage show might have you believe": The Alice Cooper Band conjure up a twisted classic on Killer

”The telephone is ringing…” kicks off the superb Under My Wheels, which in turn kicks off the freewheeling, revved-up rock’n’roll album that many would point to as the peak of Alice Cooper’s achievements.

For gut-level shock rock thrills, nothing before or since can match the raw death trip power of Killer. From the enclosed 1972 calendar of Alice twisting gorily from a rope, to the astonishingly bleak doom epic Halo Of Flies, to a mind-scrambling stab at gallows-black humour called Dead Babies, Killers is arguably the first and most vital punk rock album; a still-menacing slice of primo American ugly at the dawn of the feel-bad decade.

Killers also ends with the jarring, mean-spirited jab of a whining electric drill noise that can throw you into panic if you’re not prepared for it. So maybe Alice Cooper invented industrial music too. Somebody ask Throbbing Gristle.

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Every week, Album of the Week Club listens to and discusses the album in question, votes on how good it is, and publishes our findings, with the aim of giving people reliable reviews and the wider rock community the chance to contribute.

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Other albums released in November 1971

• Hooteroll? - Howard Wales and Jerry Garcia
• Barclay James Harvest and Other Short Stories - Barclay James Harvest
• Madman Across the Water - Elton John
• The Low Spark Of High Heeled Boys - Traffic
• Nursery Cryme - Genesis
• Farther Along - The Byrds
• Gonna Take a Miracle - Laura Nyro
• A Nod Is As Good As a Wink... to a Blind Horse - Faces
• There's a Riot Goin' On - Sly & the Family Stone
• Muswell Hillbillies - The Kinks
• Fragile - Yes
• Funny How Sweet Co-Co Can Be - Sweet
• IV - Led Zeppelin
• Deuce - Rory Gallagher
• Anticipation - Carly Simon
• "Babbacombe" Lee - Fairport Convention
• Bless the Weather - John Martyn
• Bonnie Raitt - Bonnie Raitt
• Brain Capers - Mott the Hoople
• Choice Quality Stuff/Anytime - It's a Beautiful Day
• Do You Like It Here Now, Are You Settling In? - Man
• Dog Of Two Head - Status Quo
• E Pluribus Funk - Grand Funk Railroad
• Flowers of Evil - Mountain
• For Ladies Only - Steppenwolf
• Good and Dusty - The Youngbloods
• Lost in the Ozone - Commander Cody and His Lost Planet Airmen
• Nazareth - Nazareth
• Nilsson Schmilsson - Harry Nilsson
• Performance Rockin' the Fillmore - Humble Pie
• Pictures at an Exhibition - Emerson, Lake & Palmer
• Quicksilver - Quicksilver Messenger Service
• Sanctuary - Dion
• Sunfighter - Paul Kantner and Grace Slick
• There's Gotta Be a Change - Albert Collins
• Whatevershebringswesing - Kevin Ayers
• Year of Sunday - Seals and Crofts

What they said...

"Halo of Flies" is a stunning work of rock'n'roll that encompasses the gutter freak psych of the band's earliest work, the expansive scope of prog rock, bits of The Sound of Music, martial drum solos, very stoned blues riffing, and Cooper's alternately pleading and withering vocals. It's the work of a band who can barely control all the ideas flowing out of them, yet somehow manage to corral their energy and creativity into something epic and unique." (AllMusic)

"A taste for the base usages of hard rock rarely comes with a hit attached these days, much less 'surreal,' 'theatrical,' and let us not forget 'transvestite' trappings, which is why some desperate rock and rollers have convinced themselves their prayers are being answered. But while this is the band's most song-oriented LP, it falters after Under My Wheels and Be My Lover, neither of them an I'm Eighteen in the human outreach department. And only one of the three "theatrical" extravaganzas, Dead Babies, works on record (never mind in the theatre)." (Robert Christgau)

"Killer is without a doubt the best Alice Cooper album yet and one of the finest rock'n'roll records released in 1971. It brings all the elements of the band’s approach to sound and texture to a totally integrated pinnacle that fulfils all the promise of their erratic first two albums, and beats Love It To Death’s dalliance with Thirties flick “spooky” cornball riffs by the sheer sustained impact of its primal rock and roll jolt." (Rolling Stone)

What you said...

Gary Scott: One of the classic rock albums of all time, featuring many Cooper classics still played today. From the pop rock Be My Lover to the prog of Halo Of Flies and the gothic Dead Babies, every track is great, and check out the more recent deluxe edition that comes with a bonus live CD from the Killer tour.

Abraham Castro-Kreimerman: The best álbum by the band and the singer. Every track is brilliant. In my top ten.

Brian Smolik: Simply said, it is their finest album, along with being one of the top rock releases of all time.

Philip Qvist: Apart from the obvious songs, I must admit that I have never really explored the catalogue of Alice Cooper, both as a band or as a solo artist, so Killer was a first for me. And I have to say that it is quite an impressive album, with a variety of different songs that all mesh well with each other.

A solid and rocking record, where all five band members are on top form, both as musicians and as songwriters. The longer songs, such as Halo Of Flies, Dead Babies and Killer were the ones that grabbed my attention, but the other five songs are none too shabby either.

Killer is getting an 8 from me. A great choice for this week.

Adam McCann: The best Alice Cooper Band album, it may not have the songs built for the stage show like Love It To Death or Billion Dollar Babies, but this is a solid album of fully rounded songs which were pure garage rock through to creepy horror and full-out hard rock as Alice barks like Iggy and croons like Morrison. Killer showed that Alice Cooper Band could be downright nasty, capturing the spirit of Altamont and bringing it onto vinyl. Top album. 10/10 from me.

Nigel Taylor: The best Alice Cooper album ever, and up there with the greatest albums ever made as well. It's an absolute 10/10 classic. It would only be better if Poison was on it!

Bill Griffin: This album contains my four favourite Cooper songs (band or solo) in Halo Of Flies, Desperado, Dead Babies and Killer. The other four tracks (the hits) ain't too shabby either.

Kev Moore: This album is a masterpiece. The band may have had more successful albums, but this is the one for me. Halo of Flies alone is a prog rock tour de force! Under My Wheels and Be My Lover are brilliantly commercial rock, and Desperado is Alice at his best. His vocal on this is compelling and lifts the song into the cinematic. I always felt the Alice Cooper band were one of the finest of the early 70s, and this is their calling card.

Adam Ranger: If anybody asks me where to start with Alice Cooper, it's always this album. It has every aspect of the Early Alice Cooper sound. Singalong rockers? Under My Wheels, Yeah Yeah Yeah, You Drive Me Nervous. Softer ballads? Be My Lover and Desperado. Slightly sleazy slower classics? Halo Of Flies and Dead Babies. And the one that brings it all together in a mix is Killers.

An absolute solid album and always my favourite Alice Cooper record. Love It To Death is awesome, Billion Dollar Babies and Schools Out a close third, but this is the one you need. A 10 all the way.

Brian Carr: The most appropriately titled album in rock history? An absolute “killer” album. Be My Lover is such a great tune, one of my favourite Alice tracks. Yeah, Yeah, Yeah is cool in a similar vein.

Halo Of Flies is one of those classic Alice Cooper rave-ups: lengthy, trippy, complete with a melodic nod to My Favourite Things, if I’m not mistaken (and a four-minute instrumental outro to give the man an opportunity to change outfits!). As much as I love the Eagles track of the same name, Desperado here is a much more fitting tribute to westerns. Alice turns a phrase along with jarring production and guitar sounds in You Drive Me Nervous.

Of course, Dead Babies is the epitome Alice Cooper song of the album: disturbing imagery with tongue planted firmly in cheek. The title track keeps the album from being a ten for me. It’s fine, but kind of meanders. But if it’s Alice Cooper, you can almost certainly count me in! Now, where did I leave my black eye makeup?

Alice Cooper - Under My Wheels (The Old Grey Whistle Test, Nov 9, 1971) - YouTube

Watch On

Chris Downie: As part of the Alice Cooper band's hot streak from 1970-74, the Killer album is a perfect encapsulation of what made the band so iconic; from the classic rock of Under My Wheels to the faux-horror morbidity of Dead Babies and the impressive Be My Lover, it remains one of the most represented albums in the legendary front man's live sets to this very day. That said, some of the highlights are to be found beyond the hits as Desperado and the title track hit home and show they were a cut above the average classic rock band, but often overlooked by those who fixated (for better or worse) on the 'shock rock' imagery.

If there is one drawback, it is that, like Love It To Death, the production is a little dated and lacks the punch that just a few years later the likes of Montrose and Kiss would benefit from on their equally timeless early albums. It is arguably in the love arena that the songs have always shone brightest.

While one could argue with a degree of subjectivity that the band peaked soon after this, on the more high-profile School's Out and Billion Dollar Babies albums, there's no doubt Killer holds a powerful place in the canon of one of the most influential artists in hard rock history. 9/10

John Davidson: We all know the hits, and had read about the theatrics, but I'd never really delved into Alice Cooper's albums.

I was surprised by the variety of styles they adopted and by the strange blend of late 60s and early 70s sounds. The production is effective, but has that early 70s "stereo is new so we better use it" vibe. The band are tight but loose and "Alice" sounds exactly the same as he did years later.

The top track is Halo Of Flies, but there is plenty to admire and enjoy across the whole album. It has that working class progressive feel to it. While Yes and Genesis were reading Keats and Homer while learning piano or classical guitar, I suspect the Alice Cooper band were smoking behind the bike shed, but that doesn't mean they weren't practising their craft.

James Tucker: I love this record! Dead Babies is my favourite Cooper track; the whole album is terrific.

Mark Herrington: My awareness of Alice Cooper began with Schools Out in the early 70s, our natural anthem to the end of term celebrations.

So this was a first listen to Killer for me. The album kicks off with the great one/two of Under My Wheels and Be My Lover. Track three Halo of Flies is a bit of an oddity, not helped by its distracting Sound of Music echoes.

Desperado is good, but is let down by its spoken intro. You Drive Me Nervous and Yeah, Yeah, Yeah get things back on track. Dead Babies, by its title alone, has aged badly, and sits uncomfortably here. Killer closes the album well. It’s not a bad album, but it's a bit mixed overall.

Glen Smith: Probably my all-time best Alice album. Halo Of Flies is my favourite Alice Cooper track ever.

Martin Roberts: Overall, I found the album hit and miss. Under My Wheels, the only song I had heard before, is a great opening track. This is followed up with Be My Lover, which I liked and I was thinking I am going really like this album, but then came Halo Of Flies and it went a bit odd. The songs seemed to have different bits stuck together. Yeah, Yeah, Yeah was a good song, and then the harmonica addition seemed to change the song and that sums up the album, some good bits in it and some bits I thought did not fit. Overall, 6 out of 10

Remi Moncayo: I absolutely love this album! Halo Of Flies and Killer are my favourite tracks!.

Chris Ely: Great album.

Dale Munday: This album, simply put, is the epitome of the classic album. Never surpassed by the original Alice Cooper band.

Mike Canoe: Killer, released just eight months after their commercial breakthrough Love It to Death, found the Alice Cooper band leaning into both their shock rock image and Bob Ezrin's superb production. The quality of the songwriting and the musicianship had also increased exponentially with lyrics that suggested a much smarter and more socially conscious band than their image and stage show might have you believe.

The album opens with the one-two punch of rockers Under My Wheels and Be My Lover. With punchy horns and doo-wop choruses, the band takes staples from the previous generation's music and uses them to sell lurid tales of sex, booze, and rock'n'roll.

Then the band takes a quantum leap into quasi-prog territory with the lengthy Halo Of Flies, complete with musical references to The Sound Of Music. What?!? The band really makes it work with tight playing, especially by drummer Neal Smith and bassist Dennis Dunaway.

Side two closes with the gorgeously orchestrated Desperado, with lyrics inspired by, depending on the interview, the recently deceased Jim Morrison or Robert Vaughan's character in the movie, The Magnificent Seven. Desperado was the Alice Cooper song that really made me start paying attention to the lyrics as Alice spins a riveting tale of a mythic gunslinger who envies the peace of the dead.

Side two also opens with a couple of rockers but You Drive Me Nervous and Yeah Yeah Yeah are much more workmanlike album tracks than their Side A counterparts.

But then things get really interesting...

Killer closes as it opens with a savage one-two punch, only now social commentary has replaced the rock'n'roll lifestyle. Many people didn't get past the title of Dead Babies before clutching their proverbial pearls and condemning the band as brutes. The lyrics paint a nonetheless harrowing picture of the death of "Little Betty," a child who died when her parents weren't paying attention. Given that our cars now remind us to check the back seats for children left behind, Dead Babies is still eerily relevant.

And then there's my favourite song on an album full of favourites, the closing title track. This is my "death of the author" interpretation but I always thought it was about a shiftless kid who gets drafted and sent to Vietnam and becomes really good at what he does, namely killing. Since that's an unwanted skill in a civilian, he is hanged when he comes home because he can't leave the killing behind. Even if my interpretation is completely off base, Killer is not your typical rock song.

Killer has a consistently great songwriter but it's not Alice Cooper, or even Bob Ezrin. It's rhythm guitarist Michael Bruce, who wrote or co-wrote every song on the album. Bassist Dunaway shared credits on half the album's songs, just behind Cooper's five songwriting co-credits. And there was the band's true strength. Sure, the singer was the focal point and namesake but Alice Cooper was truly a band, with several capable musicians and songwriters.

It was fun while it lasted.

Greg Schwepe: This review might end up more about Alice Cooper (the band!) in general than a review for this week’s selection of Killer. But then again, many of the items I ramble on about below are found on this album and across their output during this era of the band.

There seems to be a long running issue of “perception vs. reality” about Alice Cooper. The general public’s perception is probably that they’re “a bunch of crazy druggy, boozy rock stars who can’t play and do weird stuff on stage and the lead singer is actually a guy who uses a woman’s name.”

The perception for this album was probably influenced by the title and the picture of the snake on the cover. During my younger years in junior high when I had to ride my bike to the local record store, I probably flipped past Killer in the racks and saw the title and the snake and thought “Whoa, what is this?!?!”

The reality for those in the know is that Killer is an album filled with sophisticated, well-written songs played by a crack band and led by a lead singer who has a wide range of vocal styles and is quite charismatic on stage. And truth be told, they did do some weird stuff on stage and being the 70s… probably indulged in a little drugs and alcohol. You think? But hey, didn’t every band back then?

Killer opens with strong tracks that show that Alice Cooper can flat out rock (Under My Wheels), have you sing along (Be My Lover), and tell a tale with long, somewhat complex instrumental sections and vocals (Halo of Flies.).

Desperado is next and after multiple listens, this might be the song that sticks with me the most. The strings and Alice’s plaintive vocal are probably the reason why.

The last two tracks are probably the ones where perception does meet reality. Any song titled Dead Babies is meant to give you pause, and the title track to end the album does go a little long and winding with a darker vibe to it.

A decent album from a band that seemed to be hitting their stride. 8 out of 10 on this one for me. Just wondering at what point this phone call took place; “Hi, this is Alice Cooper’s tour manager, calling to see how we go about renting a snake from your company for our upcoming tour…”

Final score: 8.64 (96 votes cast, total score 830)

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