Concert Review: Steel Panther @ House Of Blues Chicago 4/27/12

"We were voted one of the Top 25 metal bands to come out of California in the month of April" said Steel Panther guitarist Satchel mid way through the bands set at Chicago's House Of Blues on April 27th. The sold out crowd ate it up too. This is the bands second show in Chicago in less than 5 months, and the band didn't let the fans down. They played an energetic, and often times hilarious, set of now classic Steel Panther tunes. The band opened with "Supersonic Sex Machine" and for over an hour it was hit after hit mixed in with some hair primping, crude jokes about fat girls and having sex. But this is what you expect from a mock hair metal band made up of 4 guys in their 40's who wear wigs (well, 3 of the 4 at least), spandex pants and razor blade slashed t-shirts.

The crowd was a pretty heavy mixture of middle aged metal heads, suite and tie guys, late teen college kids, punk rockers and even a few yuppies which made for great joke material. If the band where not already seasoned vets of the road and accomplished musicians in their own right, they could have held their own as a touring comedy act. The band, singer Michael Starr, guitarist Satchel, bass player Lexxi Foxx and drummer Stix Zadinia, played great and pulled out all the stops for this set. In between songs like "Tomorrow Night" and "Asian Hooker" Lexxi posed in his gem and sparkled encrusted mirror and Starr and Satchel played off the crowd asking who's seen Steel Panther before and then asking how many fat girls there were in the audience. Classy! But it wasn't all bad jokes and duck facing, they even played their idea of the power balled in the forms of "Community Property" and "If You Really Really Love Me" with the crowd singing along word for word...even if the lyrics are not PC correct.

Even if you're not a fan of heavy metal you'll become a Steel Panther fan and actually believe the lyrics to the song "Death To All But Metal". The band have a knack for taking cheese and turning it into gold! Spandex and Aqua Net drenched gold! Check out the bands latest album Balls Out and after the initial shock wears off you'll be singing along with every song and pretending to be in a 80's Warrant video. Sure, it's schlock and kinda tacky at times. But it's all about FUN! And like I've said before, if you can't have fun then you're no fun! Chicago has mad love for Steel Panther, and they have lots of love for our city as well! Hell, Michael Starr is a Chicago native after all. When the Panther hits YOUR town I highly suggest checking em out. It's a show you really have to see to believe.