Adam Ant - Photo credit: Erica McKeehen

Adam Ant returned to Chicago just two years after his last concert in the city (see: http://frontrowmusicnews.com/punk/adam-ant) to perform to a nearly sold-out audience in Lakeview’s historic Vic Theatre. Glam Skanks, an all-female rock outfit from L.A., adorned the stage just before Adam, riling up audience members with lead singer Vanessa McNiel’s impressive belts and guitarist Veronica Volume’s intense rockist riffs. (Glam Skanks have loyally supported Adam on his last two world tours — and once you see them rock out, setting the stage for Adam’s iconic tunes — you quickly understand why he hand-picked them to accompany his explosive, glam-rock inspired tour). 

For his current tour, Adam Ant (born Stuart Leslie Goddard) performed the entirety of his 1982 highest charting solo debut, Friend or Foe. The album features some of Adam’s most popular hits, including the well-known solo track of which made him a household name, “Goody Two Shoes” (which made it all the way to No. 1 in the UK). At the time of its release, the album quickly gained notoriety for its quirky, campy string of music videos released alongside singles like the self-titled “Friend or Foe” and “Desperate But Not Serious.” These videos along with his stage prowess and delightfully unique styling earned Adam the title of Sexiest Man Alive by MTV the same year. Prior to the recording of the album, Adam had spent from 1977 to 1982 as the frontman of the new wave band Adam in the Ants, formed out of the peripheral punk scene in the UK. In March 1982, feeling certain that some band members “lacked enthusiasm,” he disbanded the group (line-up changes occurred with every one of the band’s releases up to that point) and launched a solo career, keeping Marco Pirroni as guitarist and co-songwriter for the duration of his 80s and 90s solo work. 

As the first notes of “Friend or Foe” blasted through the venue last Saturday night, fans came alive to the sights and sounds of the eternally young pop star prancing onto the stage, completely leather-clad as per usual, adorning his signature straw hat and a re-imagined version of the navy button-down jacket he wore during the original Friend or Foe era. Post-punk nostalgia crystallized as Adam dove into each song, one right after the other with little chatter in-between. As the final song from the album drew to a close, he announced, “That is the Friend or Foe album!” and wasted no time before launching into the second half of the evening — performing the hits and beloved b-sides that bring his audience back in troves, year after year. The band played for over two hours, cramming as much material into the second half as the first. As the night went on, Adam, showing no signs of exhaustion, stripped down to his branded t-shirt and picked up his guitar for heavier versions of classics like “Red Scab” and “Prince Charming.” In typical Ant tradition, he and the band ended the evening with a drawn-out and loaded version of “Physical (You’re So).”

Adam Ant Setlist, 9/7/19

1. Friend or Foe
2. Something Girls
3. Place in the Country
4. Desperate But Not Serious
5. Here Comes the Grump
6. Hello, I Love You
7. Goody Two Shoes
8. Crackpot History and the Right to Lie
9. Made of Money
10. Cajun Twisters
11. Try This for Sighs
12. Man Called Marco (last Friend or Foe track)
13. Dog Eat Dog
14. Kick!
15. Vive Le Rock
16. Antmusic
17. Zerox
18. Car Trouble
19. Ants Invasion
20. Prince Charming
21. Strip
22. Fall-In
23. Kings of the Wild Frontier
24. Beat My Guest
25. Stand and Deliver

Encore:
Press Darlings
Red Scab
Physical (You’re So)

Catch Adam Ant on the rest of his tour by checking out his official website for more dates.