Skid Row
Skid Row on Tuesday will head to Sellersville, Pennsylvania, for a sold-out concert at the Sellersville Theater.
(Courtesy Photo)
Skid Row bassist Rachel Bolan remembers gazing over pictures of Aerosmith's Steven Tyler and other childhood music heroes performing to throngs of screaming fans in England and other countries around the world.
But what started as a teenage pipe dream has become a reality in the form of a music career now in its 25th year.
"When I was a kid, playing London was such a far off thing. I'd see these places and here we are now playing them," Bolan says during a phone interview. "It's a pretty amazing thing."
The band on Tuesday night heads to Sellersville, Buck County, for a concert at the Sellersville Theater. Bolan says he enjoys the change of pace, and scenery, of headlining smaller, more intimate, venues.
"We choose to play small places. It beats a day off," Bolan says. "It's memorable for us and memorable for the fans who come see us."
Bolan stresses that the playing field between artist and fan should be kept even. "Bands should be kissing fans' asses," Bolan says. "We play everywhere."
Sound savers
Skid Row faithful were also in mind, specifically their wallets, Bolan says, when the band decided to release a trilogy of EPs. The first, "United World Rebellion: Chapter One," was released in 2013; the second, "Rise of the Damnation Army — United World Rebellion: Chapter Two," is scheduled for Aug. 5.
The EPs mark Skid Row's first releases of new material since 2006's "Revolutions per Minute."
"In this day and age, it's not easy for some Skid Row fans to go out and throw down 10 or 15 bucks for a new (full-length album)," Bolan says. "(Releasing the EPs) makes it easier on them. ... There's also a lot less pressure to write 10 songs and pick five."
The EPs find the band returning to the classic Skid Row sound: brash hard rock infused with in-your-face heavy metal. Bolan says the group avoided trying to adopt or conform to the current modern rock sound and opted instead to stick with what came naturally.
"For about a year, I only listened to the music that influenced me growing up," Bolan explains of the songwriting process. "Granted, there is a lot of great stuff out there but it's not us. ... At first it was kind of tough. We kept coming up with these riffs, great riffs, but they weren't our signature (sound). We could write songs all day but it's not a Skid Row song until it gets to the band and gets their feeling and creativity.
"Then the floodgates just opened from a creative standpoint."
Rising up
Skid Row had been working the East Coast club circuit when they were signed to Atlantic Records in 1988 and began recording their self-titled debut album. (Skid Row guitarist Dave "Snake" Sabo was a longtime friend of Jon Bon Jovi, whose former manager Doc McGhee signed Skid Row to Atlantic.)
Released in 1989, "Skid Row" peaked at No. 6 on the Billboard 200 chart on the strength of the singles "Youth Gone Wild," "18 and Life" and "I'll Remember You." ("Skid Row" has been certified five-times platinum.)
That same year, the band jetted to the former Soviet Union to perform at the infamous Moscow Music Peace Festival — a lineup that featured Motley Crue, Cinderella, Bon Jovi, Scorpions and Ozzy Osbourne.
"We were just playing Jersey clubs and the next thing we know, we're out playing arenas with Bon Jovi," Bolan says. "We could actually eat more than Ramen noodles. When that started happening, it was pretty intense."
Skid Row returned from a brief hiatus in 1999, following the 1996 exit of former frontman Sebastian Bach, with a new singer, Johnny Salinger. They released the album "Thickskin" in 2003.
Moving forward
Fans optimistic for a reunion with Bach should not hold their breath. In a March interview with website Spotlight Report, Bolan, on the topic of re-teaming with his former bandmate, said, "I honestly feel that questions about him are so far off now, because Johnny is our singer and he has been in the band for 14 years. So answering a question like that is a waste of time."
Bolan says the band continues to bump into fans at the unlikeliest of places. He recalls a recent late-night pit stop at a sports bar in Roanoke, Virginia, where the group met Skid Row fans in town from Spain.
"Thankfully they spoke some English because I don't speak Spanish," Bolan says. "That's the beauty of music, it takes you everywhere."
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ON STAGE
Who: Skid Row
When: 8 p.m. Tuesday
Where: Sellersville Theater, Sellersville, Pa.
Tickets: A limited number of tickets are available. Call the box office at 215-257-5808 to be placed on a waiting list.
Info.: 215-257-5808, st94.com