Alice Cooper could just be the hardest-working person in rock this year. He recently announced a tour of his own, a co-headlining trek with Halestorm, and a spring jaunt with his supergroup, The Hollywood Vampires. In a new interview, he also revealed that Hollywood Vampires have a new studio album and a live disc on the way.
While his Hollywood Vampires bandmate Johnny Depp has made headlines the last couple of years for his tumultuous split from his now ex-wife Amber Heard, Cooper told Billboard that “all the stuff you heard last year about Johnny, 99 percent was just bull.” He continued, “I’ve never seen him look better in my life. I’ve never seen him happier. I’ve never heard him play better, and the way the press would have it is he’s a total destruction and ready to die. Totally not true.”
In addition to the very public divorce battle Depp had with Heard, stories about the actor’s health and alleged addiction also made headlines. But Cooper said Depp is channeling all his anger into the songs he’s writing for Hollywood Vampires, who also feature Aerosmith guitarist Joe Perry.
“I’m spewing [Depp’s] venom on this album, which is kind of good,” revealed Cooper, who added that the disc “goes places I wouldn’t normally go, and that’s kind of what I like about it.”
In addition to The Hollywood Vampires, Cooper is heading to Detroit shortly to begin recording his own new music, working with producer Bob Ezrin. The plan is to release an EP in time for his summer tour, with a full album set to follow in 2020.
“There’s a certain Detroit sound we’re looking for,” said Cooper of his new material. “It’s indefinable. There’s a certain amount of R&B in it. There’s a certain amount of Motown in it. But then you add the guitars and you add the attitude and it turns into Detroit rock.”
As mentioned, Cooper will be busy on the road this year headlining his own shows and touring with The Hollywood Vampires. Tickets for Cooper’s concerts can be found here, while Hollywood Vampires tickets are available here.
