Interview with Wig Wam lead singer Glam (aka Åge Sten Nilsen)

The Norwegian Glam Kings, Wig Wam are back with a new disc entitled, Non Stop Rock’n’Roll. The enigmatic lead singer Glam (aka Åge Sten Nilsen) took some time out of his schedule to answer some questions for PureGrainAudio. The band is busy preparing for their upcoming world tour including a supporting slot for Kiss in Norway. If this is not enough the CD, Non Stop Rock’n’Roll, is approaching Gold Certification after only three weeks.

Now that your brand new CD, Non Stop Rock’n’Roll, is complete how do you feel about it? Are you satisfied with the outcome?
Glam: We are all very satisfied with how Non Stop Rock’n’Roll turned out and how it’s been received by both fans and critics. It is in the top three in Norway this week. Cheers!

Since this is your first interview for PureGrainAudio, can you introduce the band, for those who are unfamiliar with Wig Wam. How it all got started, that kind of thing?
Glam: We actually started working together as a jam-band in a sleazy club during the fall of 2000, simply playing the music we all grew up with and were fans of. We went under the name The Absolute Friday Band. Because that was the slogan of those jam-session nights. Then a very popular club wanted us to do a proper show on a “The 80’s Night”. So we needed a band name and a poster. I brought a bad digital camera, and told the guys to bring whatever outfits from the 80’s. We were feeling every bit the glam rockers ready for action. Which brought us to think about that Sweet song, “Wig Wam Bam.”

I saying I felt like we were like an outcast Indian tribe getting ready for battle. And wam bam thank you mam… WIG WAM was born. I remember putting the poster together, and added the slogan: The Greatest Show In The Galaxy. We added a big portion of humor and tongue in cheek attitude. We did not take anything but the music serious back then. I mean, we had the whole nation believe that we established the band back in ’72 in the Bronx, the Polish quarter of New York, Immigrated to Norway and made a comeback. As years have passed by, our fans dedication and passion for the band and our music has grown, and we have too. I think Steel Panther took over where we left off. I don’t see us doing songs like “The Best Song In The World” again. Music wise and lyric wise we have a more serious approach to what we do. Yet we will always stick to the a bit ironic over-the-top image with a license to entertain. We do not take ourselves too serious. But we’re definitely able to deliver some high-class performances on both record and stage.

Non Stop Rock’n’Roll comes to us by way of Frontiers Records. Are you happy the way they handled the record, regarding distribution, marketing and promotion? How has the label been accommodating the band’s needs?
Glam: So far soooooo good man. At least it seems like their distribution is great. And they seem like a bunch of dedicated guys.

You have been in the music business for quite a number of years now. What drives you to keep going year after year while the music business is not in a very good state?
Glam: I guess it’s in the blood. I tend to get quite restless not having a performance or other entertainment work to do. I keep myself pretty busy. As soon as Wig Wam took some time off, I was out on the road again with a huge Queen show production called ‘The Show Must Go On’, doing 36 Queen songs a night. It doesn’t suck at all.

Do you get decent support from the Norwegian audiences?
Glam: Oh yeah! We are definitely a live band the Norwegian people appreciate. In 2005 alone, we did 287 gigs, and most of them were packed. This week, Non Stop Rock’n’Roll is #3 on the Norwegian charts and we’re about to reach gold status after only 3 weeks.

Do you have any touring plans for the immediate future, domestic or international?
Glam: Hell Yeah! Up until now we have mainly focused on promoting the album, being available for TV, radio and magazines. In March, we will head out on a co-billed tour with four other major Norwegian names. It’s a tour sponsored by Norway’s biggest radio channel for the benefit of the cancer federation. It will run for 14 dates. Then we’ll head out on our own tour that starts in Norway and Japan and I do hope some US dates will be added as well.

Are you looking at any particular bands you’ll be touring with?
Glam: To be able to promote ourselves to a bigger audience in the US we’d love to go on tour with some major names over there. Aerosmith or Alice Cooper would be our first choice. We’re supporting KISS over here.

What kind of preparation goes into your live show?
Glam: Speaking for myself I start my preparation with the make up. It is like a meditation thing for me. It calms me down and helps me focus. Then I start the warming up the voice procedure doing some mmmm’s and hmmm’s preparing it slowly for the stretching and howling. Especially during wintertime, I prefer to do this in the shower to take advantage of the steam. Then I go into some kind of adrenalin mobilization where I often walk around in circles until we are on. It takes me hours to get down again after a show, and I often have a big problem sleeping before like 5 or 6 in the morning.

When you are on the road for a while, I am sure you see and experience many different things you might not even have known existed. Are there any stories that stand out in your mind as being exceptionally strange or odd?
Glam: You’re damn right. All kinds of shit can be experienced on the road. You also experience your own personality changing at times. This is the scariest part. When you are constantly on the road you can turn into a monster, because you are constantly moving and constantly under a lot of pressure. I mean, everything is focused on delivering your best performance each night, and that puts me into a lot of stress at times. Trying to catch some sleep, even though I am unable too because of the adrenalin rush. Trying to eat at least a couple of hours before the show to avoid being full and tired. Sometimes, when shit happens that distracts those routines, the monster awakes; I have smashed some doors….

Apart from my own personal issues, a couple of things have stuck in my mind from tours. One being a guy kneeling in front of me going “Oh mighty Glam, I worship you”. That is pretty odd. Looking the way I do I have often experienced the opposite as well. Jealous guys calling me gay etc. I remember this guy following me into the hotel lobby going “God I’m sexy” “Look at me” “You’re a damn faggot”. The last thing I remember I knocked him down, then put my platforms on his face saying, “Go tell your friends a guy in make up beat you up.” There are obviously some dirty ones that I will leave to Mötley Crüe to brag about.

When you are out on the road anything can happen and often does. Can you think of any disastrous events that happened while out on tour? How did you solve the problem?
Glam: Well, I’ve had incidents where I have broken my platforms heel on stage and the stagehand had to tape it with gaffa, Teeny once slipped on a banana peel and we had a real Spinal Tap moment on stage. I remember being arrested in Kiev… for “misabusing the stewardess”. The true story is that the stewardess on board the Balkan Air flight on our way to a Russian TV show in Ukraine thought I was drunk. Yes I have a loud laugh. She kept giving me the evil eye, and when we were to order food, she told me I only would be served mineral water. “No alcohol for you because of your loud laughter” So I told her I was not at all drunk and excused my laughter but she did not quite buy it. I was of course only having mineral water, but when she discovered me sharing a wine with the drummer she completely freaked out; calling me names and behaving pretty rudely especially for a flight attendant.

She told me she would have me arrested when we arrived in Kiev. I remember telling her to make my day… I did not believe her for a second. When we arrived, the Russian TV company picked us up in a minibus, then we discovered a small green army marching towards us. Their commander got up on the bridge to talk to the flight attendant who pointed straight at me in the minibus. The guys told me that whatever was going to happen I just had to kiss his feet and kiss his fat ass. I am no good at kissing asses, so when the commander told me to apologize to the flight attendant for my bad behavior; I had insulted her and “mis-abused” her. I remember telling him that she should apologize to me instead for being such a bitch. I remember the guys going “Nooooo….” Their singer was put to jail. Nevertheless, I managed to get out of there pretty quick after threatening to involve the Norwegian embassy. We made the show. But never visited Kiev again.

Any closing words?
Glam: I can’t wait for us to come over to the US to show you what this band is capable of live. Get ready to rock people… Non Stop Rock’n Roooooooooll.  [ END ]