Madam X is an American hard rock band first active in

glam metal Glam metal (also known as hair metal or pop metal) is a subgenre of heavy metal that features pop-influenced hooks and guitar riffs, upbeat rock anthems, and slow power ballads. It borrows heavily from the fashion and image of 1970s glam ...

during the 1980s. Originally formed by two sisters, Maxine and

Roxy Petrucci Roxanne Dora Petrucci (born March 17, 1962 in Rochester, Michigan) is an American drummer best known for her work with the heavy metal bands Madam X and Vixen. Biography Petrucci and her sister, Maxine Petrucci, first formed Madam X with vocali ...

, the band also featured male members John (Jayme) Grosjean, Bret Kaiser and Chris Doliber, and later included future

Skid Row A skid row or skid road is an impoverished area, typically urban, in English-speaking North America whose inhabitants are mostly poor people " on the skids". This specifically refers to poor or homeless, considered disreputable, downtrodden or fo ...

vocalist

Sebastian Bach Sebastian Philip Bierk (born April 3, 1968), known professionally as Sebastian Bach, is a Canadian-American singer who achieved mainstream success as the frontman of the hard rock band Skid Row from 1987 to 1996. He has acted on Broadway and ha ...

. Disbanding in 1988, the group reformed briefly in 1991, and has become active again after reforming for a second time in 2013. The band released a new album, ''Monstrocity'', on October 31, 2017.

Career

Madam X was formed in

Detroit Detroit ( , ; , ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is also the largest U.S. city on the United States–Canada border, and the seat of government of Wayne County. The City of Detroit had a population of 639,111 at t ...

Michigan Michigan () is a U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest, upper Midwestern United States. With a population of nearly 10.12 million and an area of nearly , Michigan is the List of U.S. states and ...

in 1982 by the Petrucci sisters, who had previously played in an all-female group called Pantagruel. They recruited bass guitarist Chris Doliber and vocalist John (Jayme) Grosjean, and the band relocated to the East Coast. Shortly after, John (Jayme) Grosjean left the band and was replaced by Bret Kaiser and they moved to New York. They were signed to

Jet Records Jet Records was a British record label started by Don Arden in 1974, featuring musicians such as Lynsey de Paul, Electric Light Orchestra (ELO), Roy Wood, Gary Moore, Ozzy Osbourne, Alan Price, Adrian Gurvitz, Riot and Magnum. History ...

Don Arden Don Arden (born Harry Levy; 4 January 1926 – 21 July 2007) was an English music manager, agent, and businessman. He managed the careers of rock acts such as Jerry Lee Lewis, Little Richard, Air Supply, Small Faces, The Move, Black Sabbat ...

and released their debut album ''

We Reserve the Right ''We Reserve the Right'' is the debut album by American glam metal band Madam X, released in 1984. Track listing Personnel ;Madam X *Bret Kaiser - vocals *Maxine Petrucci - guitars, backing vocals *Chris "Godzilla" Doliber - bass, backing ...

'' in 1984, produced by

Rick Derringer Rick Derringer (born Richard Dean Zehringer; August 5, 1947) is an American guitarist, vocalist, producer and songwriter. He came to prominence in the 1960s as founding member of his band, the McCoys. Their debut single, "Hang on Sloopy", was ...

. A single, "High in High School", was also released. They also appeared on the British TV music show '' ECT''. Kaiser later left the band and was unsuccessfully replaced by British singer John Ward, later in the bands Sabre and Shy. More songs were recorded but remained unreleased as the band were dropped by Jet. Ward then left the band and was replaced by unknown Canadian vocalist Sebastian Bach. Roxy Petrucci also left, joining

Vixen Foxes are small to medium-sized, omnivorous mammals belonging to several genera of the family Canidae. They have a flattened skull, upright, triangular ears, a pointed, slightly upturned snout, and a long bushy tail (or ''brush''). Twelve sp ...

, and was replaced by Mark "Bam-Bam" McConnell. Despite touring with a flamboyant stage show, the group disintegrated in 1988 with Bach leaving to join Skid Row, and McConnell joining Carrera. Madam X continued briefly as a trio with Shawn Duncan replacing McConnell, but when Doliber left to form his own band, Madam X disbanded. In 1991, the Petrucci sisters reformed Madam X with vocalist Lenita Erickson; this line-up was later renamed Hell's Belles with Irene Wohlman on bass guitar, but soon disbanded. Roxy Petrucci later reformed Vixen, being joined by Maxine on bass for a tour during 1998, only to leave Roxy's band thereafter. Vixen subsequently had to split following that tour when Roxy's previous bandmate

Jan Kuehnemund Janice Lynn Kuehnemund (; November 18, 1953 – October 10, 2013) was an American lead guitarist who founded the all-female hard rock/glam metal band Vixen. Life and career Born in St. Paul, Minnesota, Kuehnemund formed an all-female band known ...

filed a lawsuit to keep the rights to the Vixen name. After leaving Madam X, Bret Kaiser formed his own band (Kaiser) with his brother, and later performed with his own band ('56), releasing an album titled ''Steppin''. Kaiser also performs as an

Elvis Presley Elvis Aaron Presley (January 8, 1935 – August 16, 1977), or simply Elvis, was an American singer and actor. Dubbed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, King of Rock and Roll", he is regarded as Cultural impact of Elvis Presley, one ...

tribute artist. McConnell died on May 24, 2012. The four original members, Bret Kaiser (vocals), Maxine Petrucci (guitars), Roxy Petrucci (drums) and Chris "Godzilla" Doliber (bass), reunited at the Sweden Rock Festival on June 7, 2014. In August 2017 EMP Label Group, a record label formed by

David Ellefson David Warren Ellefson (born November 12, 1964) is an American musician, best known for his long tenure as the bassist for thrash metal band Megadeth. Ellefson initially became an accomplished bassist and honed his songwriting skills while leadi ...

of Megadeth, signed the original-member line-up of Madam X and their new album ''Monstrocity'' was released October 31, 2017.

Discography

*''

'' (1984) *''Monstrocity'' (2017)

Personnel

Current members

*Maxine Petrucci –

guitar The guitar is a fretted musical instrument that typically has six strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming or plucking the strings with the dominant hand, while simultaneously pressing selected strin ...

(1982–1988, 1991, 2013–present) *

– drums (1982–1986, 1991, 2013–present) *Bret Kaiser –

vocals Singing is the act of creating musical sounds with the voice. A person who sings is called a singer, artist or vocalist (in jazz and/or popular music). Singers perform music (arias, recitatives, songs, etc.) that can be sung with or withou ...

(1982–1985, 2013–present) *Chris Doliber –

bass guitar The bass guitar, electric bass or simply bass (), is the lowest-pitched member of the string family. It is a plucked string instrument similar in appearance and construction to an electric or an acoustic guitar, but with a longer neck and ...

(1982–1988, 2013–present)

Past members

*John (Jayme) Grosjean (1982) *John Ward – vocals (1985–1986) * Mark McConnell – drums (1986–1988; died 2012) *

– vocals (1986–1988) *David Rolen – vocals (1988) *Shawn Duncan – drums (1988) *Lenita Erickson – vocals (1991) *Irene Wohlman – bass guitar (1991)

Timeline

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Madam X American glam metal musical groups Hard rock musical groups from Michigan Heavy metal musical groups from Michigan Jet Records artists Musical groups from Detroit Musical quartets Musical groups established in 1982 1982 establishments in Michigan