Alice Cooper performs on Wednesday, Oct. 1, 2025, at the Pavilion at Star Lake in Burgettstown, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Eric Ayres)

BURGETTSTOWN, Pa. – The Pavilion at Star Lake’s 2025 concert season came to a close this week with a double header of hard rock/heavy metal pioneers.

The co-headlining tour of Alice Cooper and Judas Priest delivered full performances from the legendary Rock and Roll Hall of Fame artists, along with a rock-solid opening set from Corrosion of Conformity.

Wednesday night’s show served as the season finale for the greater Pittsburgh area’s top outdoor concert venue, and unseasonably warm weather (at least while the sun was still up) greeted fans flocking to Burgettstown for some mid-week fun on the first day of October.

For the hard-core Alice Cooper and Judas Priest fans, this tour promised to not only pack a double-shot of trailblazing, old-school classics, but also to resurrect some deep cuts that rarely see the light of day on stage anymore.

While the Brits in Judas Priest are still on the road supporting their latest album, 2024’s “Invincible Shield,” the band is also celebrating the 35th anniversary of its 1990 classic “Painkiller.” The current tour, dubbed the “Shield of Pain Tour,” has featured untapped tracks from the new album along with a heavy dose of songs from “Painkiller,” a release that brought a much heavier sound to the band with the debut of the thunderous double-kick drum skills of Scott Travis. Since being introduced to the Judas Priest lineup with the groundbreaking “Painkiller” album, Travis has continued to serve the past three and a half decades as the band’s drummer.

Guitarist Richie Faulkner and vocalist Rob Halford of Judas Priest perform on Wednesday, Oct. 1, 2025, at the Pavilion at Star Lake in Burgettstown, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Eric Ayres)

When the co-headlining North American tour kicked off last month, die-hard Alice Cooper fans lost their heads upon seeing the new set list for this outing, titled the “Alice’s Attic Tour” — sharing the same name as Cooper’s popular syndicated radio show, Alice’s Attic. While always packing a trove of show staples and signature theatrical antics during every show, Cooper is known for regularly changing things up for each tour and keeping things fresh for his band and for the longtime fans.

But this all-new tour has unearthed some deeply buried tracks, blowing the dust off of a few vintage treasures from the attic. While only played once during the tour debut, “Clones (We’re All)” saw its first live performance since 2011. “Spark in the Dark” was reignited on stage for the first time since 1990. Shortened portions of “Who Do You Think We Are?” (first time since 2004), “Brutal Planet” (first time since 2000) and “Second Coming” (first time since 1971) were all brought back to life, as well.

“Dangerous Tonight” from Alice Cooper’s 1991 album “Hey Stoopid” and the 1976 deep cut “Going Home” actually made their live debuts during this tour.

Of course, there was no shortage of hits and crowd favorites. The multi-generational audience at Star Lake was treated to classic gems like “No More Mr. Nice Guy” and “I’m Eighteen,” along with “Cold Ethyl” and “Only Women Bleed.” Newer favorites – or at least new as in songs that have emerged as show staples since the 1990s – included “Poison,” “Hey Stoopid” and “Feed My Frankenstein,” which featured a hilariously huge Alice Cooper-style Frankenstein figure stalking the musicians on stage.

Guitarist Nita Strauss performs with Alice Cooper on Wednesday, Oct. 1, 2025, at the Pavilion at Star Lake in Burgettstown, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Eric Ayres)

Always surrounding himself with world-class players, Alice Cooper’s band features Glen Sobel on drums, Chuck Garric on bass, and guitarists Ryan Roxie, Tommy Henriksen and Nita Strauss, who enraptured the crowd with a ripping guitar solo. Alice Cooper’s wife, Sheryl, a professional dancer and choreographer, has continued to portray a typically menacing character during the theatrical segments of the show. A shock-rock highlight of every performance, Sheryl’s character participates in the beheading of Alice via guillotine before prancing around with – and often kissing – the severed head.

Executions aside, another big highlight of the show has to be the “Ballad of Dwight Fry,” a poignant moment of the night when Alice is bound in a straight jacket and is left alone on stage to mournfully croon about his fate.

With apparently no encores scheduled on this tour, the Alice Cooper set ended triumphantly with an extended version of “School’s Out.” When the school bells rang, giant balloons were launched onto the crow, and as each balloon eventually bounced its way toward Alice, he popped them with a sword, sending confetti that was inside them raining down on the fans down front. As has become tradition in recent years, portions of Pink Floyd’s “Another Brick in the Wall Part 2” were woven into “School’s Out,” with fitting lyrics of “we don’t need no education” and “hey, teacher, leave us kids alone” blending perfectly into the rebellious classic.

Only a handful of songs in history can be truly considered “rock anthems,” and “School’s Out” is arguably one of them. Another one would be Judas Priest’s “Breaking the Law.”

As co-headliners for this tour, Alice Cooper and Judas Priest each performed full sets. Early in the tour last month, Judas Priest closed out each night. More recently, Alice Cooper took the honors of anchoring the concerts’ double header. Such was the case at Star Lake.

Alice Cooper performs on Wednesday, Oct. 1, 2025, at the Pavilion at Star Lake in Burgettstown, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Eric Ayres)

Some classic rock heroes have lost a step after decades of touring, particularly when it comes to singing songs written decades ago when they were much younger musicians. But when it comes to vocal ability, both Alice Cooper, 77, and Judas Priest’s Rob Halford, 74, have stayed on the top of their game.

With his metal scream and soaring operatic vocal style, Halford’s ability to hit the high notes and conjure his signature wrenching shrieks has not waned a bit after five decades.

The Priest took the stage with “All Guns Blazing” followed by “Hell Patrol,” with Halford decked out in trademark black studded leather from head to toe. The onslaught of “Painkiller” tracks continued throughout the set, with “Night Crawler,” “A Touch of Evil” and the album’s title track peppered between classic hits and favorites like “You’ve Got Another Thing Comin’,” “Electric Eye,” “Freewheel Burning” and of course, “Breaking the Law.”

Cuts performed from the new album included “Gates of Hell” and “Giants in the Sky,” the latter dedicated to departed heroes – specifically Ozzy Osbourne, whose image appeared on the big screen behind the band toward the end of the number.

Rob Halford of Judas Priest performs on Wednesday, Oct. 1, 2025, at the Pavilion at Star Lake in Burgettstown, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Eric Ayres)

The real bust-out, rare offering from Judas Priest’s set was “Solar Angels” from the 1981 “Point of Entry” album.

Holding down the bass from the back line, Judas Priest’s longest serving member Ian Hill was as solid and steady as ever. Six-string ace Richie Faulker masterfully took the bulk of lead guitar duties, and with longtime guitarist Glenn Tipton only making rare appearances nowadays as he continues to battle Parkinson’s disease, the group’s touring guitarist, Andy Sneap, has admirably balanced out the band’s two-axe attack.

In what was technically a break between the main set and the encore, the signature Judas Priest spectacle of Halford riding out on stage through a cloud of smoke aboard a rumbling and roaring Harley-Davidson motorcycle – with leather cap tipped forward, sunglasses on and a riding crop gripped between his teeth – was welcomed with a tidal wave of cheers.

Judas Priest closed out their set with their classics “Hell Bent for Leather” and “Living After Midnight.”

Careers combined, Judas Priest and Alice Cooper have logged a total of more than a century’s worth of playing, touring and entertaining generations of fans. With nearly 50 studio albums between them, the bands inevitably had to put the guillotine to some fan favorites in order to squeeze new tunes and rarities into their performances on this tour – with sets that clocked in at around one hour and 15 minutes each.

Guitarist Richie Faulkner of Judas Priest performs on Wednesday, Oct. 1, 2025, at the Pavilion at Star Lake in Burgettstown, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Eric Ayres)

It surely was not a greatest-hits-only show for either band. Which means favorites like Alice’s “Billion Dollar Babies,” “Under My Wheels” and “Welcome to My Nightmare,” as well as Judas Priest’s “Heading Out to the Highway,” “Metal Gods,” “Turbo Lover” and “The Sentinel” – among many others – didn’t make the cut this round. Come to think of it, “Some Heads Are Gonna Roll” would have been a perfect Priest tune for the joint tour with Alice Cooper!

Wednesday night’s concert – despite boasting a fantastic bill – was somewhat of a half-house show with relatively light attendance. The lawn at the Pavilion at Star Lake was technically “closed” for the mid-week, late season event, and the venue seemed to be making an effort to fill the seats inside the pavilion by offering upgrades and very reasonably priced ticket deals – some as low as $25 a seat.

Despite the early autumn warm weather spell that has lingered this week, Mother Nature pulled a fast one on Wednesday night’s crowd. Tuesday’s temperatures in the region topped out at almost 90 degrees during the day, and the evening hours remained warm. Shorts and T-shirts were appropriate attire for any time of the day or night. But while temperatures reached the mid- to upper-70s on show day, cool air quickly descended as soon as the sun went down. Some fans who were caught off guard – from youngsters to the most seasoned silver-haired veterans – found themselves shivering through their lack of preparedness.

For those who arrived early enough, the autumn chill was of no concern when show opener Corrosion of Conformity took the stage well before dusk at 6:45 p.m. Veteran rockers in their own right, COC cranked out a half-hours worth of their best sludgy gems like “Albatross,” “Clean My Wounds” and “Vote With a Bullet.”

This past year has marked the first outings for COC without founding member Mike Dean on bass. Filling the slot with gusto is Bobby Landgraff, joining lead guitarist Woody Weatherman, vocalist/guitarist Pepper Kennan and touring drummer Jason Patterson. The retooled lineup of COC is putting the finishing touches on an eagerly awaited new studio album that features a return collaboration with Galactic’s Stanton Moore as a session drummer. The new album is set for release in the early half of 2026.

Pepper Keenan of Corrosion of Conformity performs on Wednesday, Oct. 1, 2025, at the Pavilion at Star Lake in Burgettstown, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Eric Ayres)

Rock isn’t necessarily king of the airwaves like it was from the 1960s through the 1990s, but even old-school rockers are still putting out great music today. Judas Priest’s new album is a blistering one that flexes the band’s tightness, raw musical prowess and unwavering endurance. Likewise, just this year, “The Revenge of Alice Cooper” was released, marking the first collaboration in more than 50 years of the surviving members of the original Alice Cooper band.

Any way you slice it, fans should be grateful that these bands are still working hard, getting out on the road and delivering top-notch rock ‘n’ roll shows. Unfortunately, there will come a time in the too-near future when they – like Ozzy and so many other rock “giants” — won’t be around to do it anymore.

Rob Halford of Judas Priest performs on Wednesday, Oct. 1, 2025, at the Pavilion at Star Lake in Burgettstown, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Eric Ayres)

Ian Hill of Judas Priest performs on Wednesday, Oct. 1, 2025, at the Pavilion at Star Lake in Burgettstown, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Eric Ayres)

Bassist Chuck Garric performs with Alice Cooper on Wednesday, Oct. 1, 2025, at the Pavilion at Star Lake in Burgettstown, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Eric Ayres)

Drummer Scott Travis of Judas Priest performs on Wednesday, Oct. 1, 2025, at the Pavilion at Star Lake in Burgettstown, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Eric Ayres)

Alice Cooper performs on Wednesday, Oct. 1, 2025, at the Pavilion at Star Lake in Burgettstown, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Eric Ayres)

Alice Cooper performs on Wednesday, Oct. 1, 2025, at the Pavilion at Star Lake in Burgettstown, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Eric Ayres)