The Struts turn the 'Strange Days' of the lockdown into a new album

Unable to tour last year, The Struts were restless and needed to do something. So they made an album.

“We were all living in L.A. at the time,” guitarist Adam Slack says. “We decided to do something as a band. Maybe we should go and record some songs since we can’t tour. We hit the ground running and kept writing. It turned into a full album. We went in with nothing and wrote it and recorded it. Pretty crazy.”

After getting tested for COVID-19, Slack, singer Luke Spiller, bass player Jed Elliott and drummer Gethin Davies convened at the home of producer Jon Levine. Within 10 days, the English rock band had written and recorded nine songs, as well as a cover of the KISS song, “Do You Love Me.”

The resultant album, “Strange Days,” is the band’s third full-length record and features guest stars — all recorded remotely –— including Robbie Williams on the title track; Albert Hammond Jr. of The Strokes on the first single, “Another Hit of Showmanship”; Def Leppard’s Phil Collen and Joe Elliott on “I Hate How Much I Want You”; and Tom Morello, with searing guitar playing, on “Wild Child.”

“I wrote that riff in the studio, not thinking we would ever do anything with it,” Slack says about “Wild Child.” “We all thought the riff was so great. We gave Tom Morello a call and he said he loved it and said he would do it.”

The Struts formed in Derby, England, in 2012, and within two years, the band had opened for The Rolling Stones in Paris. Since then, they have opened for Guns N’ Roses, The Who, Mötley Crüe and Foo Fighters.

The Struts are taking a break from their own headlining tour to open for Shinedown on a series of dates, beginning with the concert Wednesday at Four Winds Field at Coveleski Stadium.

Slack says that the band has no problem putting their egos aside to open for others. He also proves that Dave Grohl has earned his reputation as “the nicest guy in rock.”

“We didn’t see Guns N’ Roses or hang with them,” he says. “We became good friends with (Grohl's) Foo Fighters and have stayed close friends. We met the Stones a couple of times, briefly, which was really nice and an honor. It’s amazing to play with your heroes. You learn so much from them.”

The Struts are at the forefront of a revival of classic 1970s-era rock — the band has even recorded a cover of Queen’s “We Will Rock You.” Slack, however, doesn’t think that rock music needs to be revived.

“I wouldn’t say that rock is dead at all,” he says. “It's just not in the mainstream charts anymore. I think, especially in America, there's always an alternative station or rock station. That's something we don't really have in England. I think that's why our career has flourished over here, having those opportunities. In the country where we're from, we don't seem to have that. It is kind of emerging now, but the reach of the listeners is nowhere as great as it is over here. We're grateful for alternative radio.”

Slack says that Green Day motivated him to pick up a guitar in the 1990s.

“I got obsessed with them,” he says. “It was the perfect band to learn to play guitar to. A lot of it is just power chords. I got into Oasis after that. That was when I went down the rabbit hole and listened to who they were influenced by, like The Beatles. Then I listened to who they were influenced by and went down that rabbit hole.”

But Green Day wasn’t his initial musical obsession.

“My first love was Michael Jackson,” Slack says. “I just thought he was amazing. Then, when I found Green Day, I thought that’s what I can do. I couldn’t be Michael Jackson, but I could be a snotty teenager with a guitar. That spoke to me.”

Serendipitously, The Struts released “Low Key in Love,” a non-album single recorded with Paris Jackson, Michael’s daughter, in April.

“Isn’t that mad?” Slack says. “Never in a million years would I have thought that would happen. It’s a crazy life.”

In concert

• Who: Shinedown, The Struts and Ayron Jones

• When: 7 p.m. Wednesday

• Where: Four Winds Field at Coveleski Stadium, 501 W. South St., South Bend

• Cost: $129-$45

• For more information: Call 574-235-9988 or visit southbendcubs.com