Have you ever wondered what that Lenny Kravitz song "Fly Away" would sound like as glam rock? According to brand new Macalester band The Sex Dolls, who will perform their debut concert Friday night in 10K (the basement of Dupre), "It's barely recognizable."

Though they only play covers, The Sex Dolls claim, "Our show will be neat." The band is composed of Nick Perkins '05 on the drums, Andrew "Bacon" Goodman-Bacon '05 on the guitar, Chris Holoyda '04 on the bass and Shane O'Neill '05 on lead vocals, recorder, and accordion. Perkins, Bacon, and Holoyda are also members of Mac blues band the Cheap Dates, and Holoyda is lead singer/ guitarist for Short Order. O'Neill was also singer in the short-lived but memorable Cyn-Cyn and the Pons, who performed their one and only show last semester in, you guessed it, 10K.

Unlike the Cyn-Cyn and the Pons show, O'Neill claims, The Sex Dolls show "is more homogenous in the sense that it's just all rock songs. There won't be any cabaret or high drama." There will, however, be glam, glam and more glam. According to Perkins, "There's going to be a heavy theatrical component," which includes costume changes and special effects, but unfortunately, no spaghetti-throwing.

So how did such a band come to be, you ask? "On a drunken Friday I think," Bacon claims, "Nick wanted me to be in his band and I was like, 'uh-uh, girlfriend.'" But then things started coming together. O'Neill was the last to join, as singer. "We auditioned maybe 75 singers and came up with this one," Perkins deadpans, "we looked for the best in a singer."

The Sex Dolls' sound is heavily influenced by glam icon David Bowie, especially his classic album Ziggy Stardust. They will play covers as diverse as "Suffragette City," "Angel of the Morning," and "Wonderwall." Much like with "Fly Away," however, the Sex Dolls will display their own interesting take on each. Most of the set will be relatively obscure and often playfully offensive, featuring gems like "She's on the Rag" by Rats of Unusual Size. O'Neill describes The Sex Dolls' sound as "kind of like reggae, but there's a strong Christian component to it as well." Bacon agrees, citing "Christian music by the Boston Celtics" as one of his major influences, as well as Japanese pop such as that of Pizzicato 5.

The Sex Dolls may or may not be kidding, and that's their gimmick. The name, for example, came out as a compromise, a way not to piss off the public. "We wanted to have a childish name, something to do with Saturday morning cartoons, like Rainbow Tight, or The Transfuckers or some bullshit," O'Neill remembers, "The Thundercunts came later, but we didn't want to offend people with the word 'cunt,' so it's The Sex Dolls now."

In all seriousness (maybe), The Sex Dolls aspire to the following and originality of some of their favorite bands: The New York Dolls (Perkins), Rancid (Holoyda), Ted Nugent's backing band, the Amboy Dukes (Bacon) and, of course, Jars of Clay (O'Neill).

Though they strive to the avant-garde and quasi-offensive, The Sex Dolls really just want to please the public. When asked if there will be original Sex Dolls material in the future, they say it all depends on public reaction to the Friday show. O'Neill asserts, "If they like us, we're together forever." If the band doesn't work out, these guys have other goals. Holoyda states, "I'd like to be in the backing band for Avril Lavigne," while for O'Neill it is Don Henley's band that calls. "Boys of Summer" does have a certain understated glamour, much like O'Neill himself.

Whatever may happen in the future, The Sex Dolls are rocking hard in the present. The boys will be playing their first show in that haven for the Macalester College music scene, 10K, on Friday night at 11:00. Senior Matt McGrath and Mac band Livestock Shower Incident will be opening with short, inspired sets of their own. So put on your gold eye shadow and head on down, and you can catch a glimpse for yourself of the enigma that is The Sex Dolls. Says Bacon of the show, "It should be entertaining at the very least." Spoken like a true glam rocker.