Retro-rockers Glam Skanks get a boost opening for Adam Ant
When theatrical English new wave rocker Adam Ant was looking for an opening band for a rare U.S. tour 2 1/2 years ago, a friend of a friend suggested Glam Skanks, a glam-rock group of four females making noise in their base of Los Angeles at venerable haunts such as The Viper Room.
Turns out the fit was better than anyone imagined. The throwback Glam Skanks’ late ’70s sound, which borrows equally from proto-punks bands such as The Runaways and glitter rockers such as T-Rex, was a perfect complement for the retro-new wave of Ant, who not only maintains his sound on his newer songs, but the visual appearance from his heyday, as well.
Fans will be able to see that pairing when the two play Philadelphia’ Merriam Theatre on Friday on a tour that has Ant playing his biggest U.S. album, “Friend or Foe,” in its entirely for the first time. The 1982 album, which hit No. 16 and sold gold, also includes Ant’s biggest U.S. hit, the Top 15 “Goody Two Shoes,” as well as the minor-hit title track and “Desperate But Not Serious.”
Glam Skanks say the band not only discovered its stylistic soulmate in Ant, it made a similar connection with many of his fans, as well as other audience members who, like the artists themselves, didn’t quite fit the accepted social strata.
That discovery is reflected Glam Skanks’ new album, “Anything In Between” — the title track of which encourages listeners to be whomever they’re meant to be.
“I guess the record started, actually, when we did our first tour with Adam 2 ½ years ago,” guitarist Veronica Witkin says in an early morning call from “a Quality Inn & Suites somewhere in Indiana” after a 10-hour drive on the tour.
“We landed in Washington, D.C., two days after the presidential inauguration and the day after the Women’s March, and that sort of set off the last year and a half of what we’ve seen traveling around our country, traveling around other peoples’ countries, meeting people.
“The title track, ‘Anything in Between,’ was inspired by these kids that we meet at these Adam shows or at other shows who, you know, they don’t fit into that box – whether it’s gender-wise or just how they fit in. So the record has really been a reflection [of that]. We’re really proud of it.”
Vocalist Vanessa McNiel adds, “It speaks for everyone today, and it’s got a powerful message.”
While Adam Ant has the luxury of two U.S. gold albums (his 1980 disc “King of the Wild Frontier” as Adam & The Ants also hit that mark) and the additional hits “Antmusic” and “Strip” to let him maintain his established persona, Glam Skanks are seemingly swimming against the tide with its glam-rock sound and appearance.
After all, even latter-day glam-rock bands such as Mötley Crüe are calling it quits these days.
“I think the sound just naturally evolved because we’re all really into our instruments, and we all really appreciate music and rock in general, as a genre,” McNiel says.
“And we were all gathering our ‘70s inspiration, for sure.
I’m a huge Led Zeppelin fan,
I’m a huge Ann Wilson [of Heart] fan. I think this album speaks a lot about our favorites and about the times we’re going through. ‘Cause it has a message, and it definitely has a sound.”
Witkin agrees. “I think it just is who we are,” she says. “We’re the bad bitches (a reference to the group’s song of the same name from its 2016 debut album, “Glitter City”). We’re Glam Skanks. So it just kind of came natural to us – especially after all the years of growing up with guys like [David] Bowie – you know, these guys with bigger, larger-than-life personalities.
It’s just who we are.”
The group’s new single, “Don’t Waste It,” speaks of the group’s decision to follow that sound, Witkin says. [As if to emphasize the throwback sound even more, the group plays a Theremin — a spacewave-producing machine Led Zeppelin used on its 1969 hit “Whole Lotta Love,” on this song.]
“That song actually came from a lot of touring and just the idea of ‘Get out there and do what you love to do.’ Don’t waste your time sitting around thinking about, ‘What if I did this?’ or ‘What if I was out there?’ Just do it,” she says. “We only got one life, so don’t waste it. Even if you fall down, just keep getting up and get back in the act.”
McNeiul agrees. “For me personally, ‘Don’t Waste It,’ there’s so many times where I wanted to be a quitter, and I made some bad choices. But I think a lot of people are, like, ‘Come on, dude! You got something cool to say. Why are you wasting your time? Don’t waste it!’,” she says with a laugh.
The connection with Ant was so strong that this tour is the fourth Glam Skanks has done with him — including jaunts through Europe.
“We absolutely love playing with Adam,” McNeil says. “We really appreciate him being so generous — him, his band, his fans. they’ve been so welcoming. It’s just been such a great experience. We just love doing it.”
The tours also have let Glam Skanks connect with some of their biggest inspirations — and fellow rock oddballs.
The group got to be the backing band for The Runaways’ original vocalist, Cherie Currie for a New Year’s Eve show.
Witkin says Currie was looking for a band and a mutual friend told her, ” ‘I know these girls. They’re huge fans of The Runaways. They would easily be able to back you.’ So shout out to our friend Danny for hooking it up.
“We didn’t get to rehearse with her at all. She asked us what Runaways songs we wanted to play, we sent her a list and she approved it. We asked her what keys she wanted the songs in. We practiced every day for about two weeks straight and jumped into it.”
They also shared a stage with one of the original glam rockers, Alice Cooper, though they didn’t actually play with him. But they had perhaps an even more intimate connection, Witkin says.
“We’re all huge Alice Cooper fans. He’s just such an icon,” she says. “And I don’t even remember whose it was, but our eyeliner or mascara was sitting backstage while we were playing.
“And he comes up to us afterward and goes, ‘Oh, you guys were great. I hope you don’t mind I borrowed somebody’s eyeliner.’ We all started laughing and he goes, ‘I’m not joking; I actually borrowed your eyeliner, I hope you don’t mind.’
“We’re, like, ‘Why would we mind! You’re Alice Cooper!’” she says with a laugh.