Music Scene
Warrant has let its image change with the times

By Catherine E. Toth
Advertiser Staff Writer

Warrant, from left, is composed of Erik Turner, guitarist; Mike Fasano, drums; Jani Lane, vocalist/songwriter; Jerry Dixon, bassist; and Billy Morris, guitarist. Warrant With Sabbatar, Slug, C.O.T. and Big Toe 8:30 p.m. Saturday-Monday Gussie L'Amour's, 3251 N. Nimitz Highway $13 ($10 advance) 836-7883 For age 21 and older

Hard to forget. Even harder to remember why.

The big hair, the shiny spandex pants, the ripped shirts. And those were just the lead singers.

It was an era when men wore makeup and used hairspray.

And you thought you saw the last of it?

Apparently, those hair bands haven't heard the '80s are over. Touring the country under the proud banner of glam rock, bubble-gum heavy metal bands such as Poison and Mûtley CrÄe are still touring, proving to cynics everywhere that the faddish genre is alive and well. Some lucky bands, such as Bon Jovi and Aerosmith, have proven their longevity by changing with the times — and their hairstyles.

Then there's Warrant.

Formed in Los Angeles in the mid-'80s, Warrant, in town for a trio of concerts this weekend at Gussie L'Amour's, emerged on the scene at a time when the charts already were saturated with rock ballads and heavy metal.

What set this band apart from its frizzy counterparts is that it managed to gain popularity during the waning '80s, when most glam rock and metal acts were disbanding or rapidly tumbling downward.

Its debut album, "Dirty Rotten Filthy Stinking Rich," hit shelves in 1988. Thanks to extensive touring and high-energy showmanship, Warrant managed to catapult its album into the Top 10, riding the success of singles "Heaven" and "Down Boys." Its sophomore follow-up, "Cherry Pie," was another financial success, with the single "I Saw Red" reaching No. 10 on the charts.

"The '80s were a trip," said bassist Jerry Dixon, one of three original members of Warrant, via phone from L.A. "We really didn't know what was going on. We had just our first record out, and we didn't know how hard it was to sell millions of records. It was no problem, just go out to dinner with strangers every night and play in front of thousands of people. That was just the mentality. Now we look back on that and say, 'That was huge!'"

Success, but not without setbacks.

Warrant was criticized early on for being a manufactured act, Poison knock-offs at best.

"Oh, it wasn't all roses," Dixon said. "We had our problems. A lot of ---- went wrong. Those were the bad years of Warrant. But not many bands are around this long."

For nearly two decades, Warrant has kept its metal image and played gigs all over the world, from Tokyo, Japan, to Fargo, N.D. They perform about 80 shows a year.

"God, they play here all the time," said Eric Reinhart, manager of Playmakers Sports Bar & Cafe in Fargo, site of a recent Warrant gig. More than 200 people crammed into the cozy quarters to hear the band belt out its '80s classics. "They played their old hits and their newer stuff, too, which I like better myself."

They've tried to change with the times — a key to longevity in the finicky music industry. When glam rock was in, they teased their hair. When grunge was in, they scruffed out.

"I mean, you don't wear the same clothes from seventh grade, right?" Dixon said.

Much of their image was dictated by those in control, he said. Music videos on MTV showed glorified, glamified versions of themselves.

"You just went along with it," Dixon said. "And that's what people see. Ninety percent of our image was live. We didn't really go all out."

With two relatively new members (who have been with the new version of the band for about eight years), Warrant managed to hold on to the same sound and image. But better, they say, because now they call the shots.

"It's like we came full circle," Dixon said. "We're back to the beginning, back to writing songs that are similar to our first two albums.

"I think there's two sides to everything," he added. "We want to make ourselves happy, but we've also carved a niche in the business. That's what people want to hear, that's what they know us by."

Despite the flashbacks to leg warmers and bad hair, the '80s were good to Warrant.

"It was a cool era," Dixon said. "And some cool stuff came out of it."

But he doesn't miss it.

"It was a different time," said Dixon, who joined the band when he was just 17. "It seems like a dream now. But it was a good time."

In fact, despite a has-been reputation, they feel like they're in a better position mentally and musically than they were before.

"I think we have more fun now than we did back then," Dixon said. "Back then there was so much pressure from the label. ... Now we call our own shows. We work as much as we want."

And what they want is to keep performing for as long as they can, for anyone who'll appreciate their music.

"Our shows are really good," Dixon said. "That's the reason we're still around. We run around and get into it."