Feel the Steel

Steel Panther | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (October 6, 2009)
• Original Release Date: 2009
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Republic
• ASIN: B002MTTZ5I
• In-Print Editions: Vinyl  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (58 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,238 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)
  • #22 in Music > Classic Rock > Glam
  • #94 in Music > Hard Rock & Metal > Pop Metal

Editorial Reviews

About the Artist

Panthers are territorial animals, fiercely patrolling their stalking lands. The Sunset Strip, circa 1988, was ruled by one: a legendary band called Steel Panther. The Strip was the plangent heart of the nascent heavy metal scene, one that would soon conquer the music world, and rockers came from as far as New Jersey and the San Fernando Valley to see this band with a killer sound and habits to match.

Now, these once and future kings of heavy metal have emerged out of the mists of history and a cloud of hairspray to reclaim their rightful throne. Look out, because Steel Panther is again marking its territory.

Steel Panther's fabled live shows were like a GED class from the school of rock. And other bands took note: Their raucous stage shows, outrageous style, seismic guitar riffs, catchy melodies, catchier afflictions and indiscriminate taste in trollops and intoxicants - what frontman Michael Starr, lead guitarist Satchel, bassist Lexxi Foxxx and drummer Stix Zadinia laid down would all be copied, as sure as if the original had been left at a Kinko's where so many apprentice rockers dream of quitting their day jobs.

"Most of the other bands were very jealous about all the chicks we were nailing," says frontman Michael Starr, "and they were wondering how we were getting these great gigs. The bottom line is: We're pioneers in what we're doing. Poison totally ripped me off: I was the first guy to come out with blonde hair and tight pants and the bandannas and they got Vince Neil popping out with the bandannas - you know who we're talking about."

But before we get caught up in the heady excitement of those times, let's look to when rock's glory was yet to be fully reclaimed from the New Wave British bands sporting synthesizers, asymmetrical haircuts, sweaters and worse. It was in the thick of that noxious early-`80s atmosphere that Steel Panther defiantly came to be.

They were high school pals, hanging out and getting high to stick it to the man. When in the course of being rebellious young men, Satchel, Michael Starr and Stix discovered Lexxi's penchant for wearing his mother's make up. To shock him out of his nascent transvestitism, the three school chum decided to burst out of his closet in full make up, a graphic depiction of the error of his ways. Then in a twist of fate, Michael Starr caught sight of the foursome in the mirror, recognizing at once that this look belonged on stage. A quick trip to the guitar store later, the band that would become Steel Panther was born.

But the band needed a name.

"I was with this chick watching Mutual of Omaha's Wild Kingdom," Michael Starr says, "and I saw this show on black panthers, and I thought wouldn't that be a cool name for a band, so I went over to Satchel, and I said, `Satchel, how about we name our band Black Panther?'"

"And I said, how about Steel Black Panther," Satchel replies, "only we take out the `Black.'"

Small early gigs led to big ones. Big chicks led to hotter ones. And before long the gigs got bigger and the chicks even hotter. Entire communities of hot chicks moved to LA. Steel Panther shows were like their Mecca. It was in this era, in which the dream that led to the 1959 invention of spandex was finally realized, that many of the band's once and future classic songs developed, like the mission statement "Eye of a Panther" and the burning "Asian Hooker."

By 1987, not even the record business's most revered tastemakers could ignore the band that put the "strip" in Sunset Strip, and a fierce bidding was about to erupt. Every major label was involved. Competition to get into their big showcase gig so intense that entire A&R staffs were left in tatters; many label reps were reduced to returning to their college studies in hopes of eventually taking teaching positions in their hometowns.

But this is where the mystery of Steel Panther becomes mysterious: The band never showed for that big showcase. Rumors abounded as heavy metal's finest minds pondered the whereabouts of the Steel Panther and the great "lost" album they were rumored to have recorded.

But what really happened is that when you rock hard and live hard, you can tear something else - the fabric of time.

"It's so fucking awesome," Michael says, "we didn't pay attention to the clock or anything. When you can have all the blow and the strippers you want, why would you want to stop that?"

"It was never easy to get the band together to get together to talk about songs and rehearse," Satchel admits, "Because they were all mostly high in the `80s. And the `90s." Band rivalries and tensions heightened, especially between Satchel and Michael Starr, ultimately resulting in a tighter bond between the two, and for Satchel, a criminal record.

Then, one day, Universal-Republic President Monte Lipman found a Steel Panther package on his desk. Only this time, it was a box with an album inside. Could it be? Had the legendary metal band actually recorded those songs that shook the LA Basin to its core? One play confirmed it was true: The Panther roars again.

Always innovators, they set upon making Mondays the night to rock in Hollywood. Mission accomplished: Their weekly show at the Key Club is considered the longest-running Monday night heavy metal show in the world, a record the band hopes the Guinness people will soon certify.

The club is packed to the rafters every week, drawing the Hollywood in-the-know and celebrities alike to bask in the band's sui generis covers and stirring originals. On any given night, you can see the likes of Pink, Jessica Simpson or Vince Vaughn onstage rocking with The Panther.

But the question remains, with the album at last ready, is the world ready for songs that herald the return of heavy metal's hegemony over the rock scene, tracks like "Stripper Girl," and "Community Property?" It would appear to be so. After all, what this band does, give or take 20 years, is timeless.

"The music, the art form, for me hasn't really changed," Satchel says resolutely, "Heavy metal is all about looking killer, wearing bitching clothes and sex with really hot girls - not just really, really hot like she's hot for the bus stop, or I'd-put-her-in-a-video hot, but the hottest girls you can have sex with. We live in Los Angeles, there are a lot of hot girls here, and we have sex with some of the hottest."

The same bravado that created the legend of Steel Panther, that forged the template from which so many other heavy metal bands were stamped, still courses unalloyed through the veins of the band. From Michael Starrs's golden vocal chords to Lexxi's frosted tips, rocking out is simply in their DNA, samples of which are so often available to fans after the show.

Get ready. As Michael Starr says, "Now it's time to let the cat out of the cage."

Product Description

Japanese pressing includes one bonus track. 2009.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

32 of 33 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Obviously, some just don't get it, December 16, 2009

By 

nvmac "master of none" (Nevada USA) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Feel the Steel (Audio CD)

I've been reading the somber reviews and can't believe what I'm reading. They are a PARODY band, not serious, on purpose.

These songs are well done metal reproductions of the best of metal from bygone days, when metal could be FUN as well as dark. Everything doesn't have to make a statement. The lyrics are just the epitome of what these bands were really doing as well as possibly saying between the lines.

This album is hilarious and fun and worth the effort and price. Beware, the lyrics are very raunchy, if you can't handle that, then this is certainly not for you.

STEEL PANTHER ROCKS!!!!

11 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars 80's Hair Metal Parody, December 16, 2009

By 

Baby Bull "Randall" (Dayton, OH USA) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Feel the Steel (Audio CD)

If you enjoy 80's Hair Metal bands then Steel Panther is for you. They have captured the sound and the attitude perfectly of the late 80's hair band scene without taking themselves too seriously. The explicit content label is well deserved as they sing about what most band merely hint about with their lyrics. Song titles such as "Eatin' Aint Cheatin", "Fat Girl (Thar She Blows)" and "The Shocker" are perfect examples of this. My favorite songs on the disc are "Death to all but Metal" (great video for this online if you can find it) and "Community Property" which is a perfect example of the hair metal ballad that will make you laugh out loud. Fans of hair metal do yourselves a favor and give Steel Panther a listen. You will not regret this purchase.

21 of 27 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Absolutely BRILLIANT!!!, October 12, 2009

By 

Jeff Bredeson (Rockford, IL) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Feel the Steel (Audio CD)

First things first, Feel the Steel is a masterpiece. An instant classic. This is the best metal CD to grace the earth in decades.

The members of Steel Panther (fka Danger Kitty, Metal Shop, and Metal Skool) have been cutting their teeth in the biz since the late 80s, working their butts off to catch the break that the best known L.A. bands were able build lasting careers from. Ralph (vocals) and Russ (guitar) played in a Van Halen cover band for years and earned national attention with the skill and dedication they put into making the show so true to the original. Later, Ralph recorded a CD with the sinking ship that was the 1990s-era L.A. Guns. While they were always part of the scene, they never hit it big time... until now.

Sure, there is a satirical element to the whole shtick if you want there to be. Call it Spinal Tap, Fozzy, whatever. Steel Panther sells their fictitious back story well, and if you wish to embrace that aspect of the band and their stage-name alter-egos like I do, this band is an experience on a whole different level. I am fortunate enough to have been a part of their live show, and it was one of the finest concert-going experiences of my life. These guys are as genuine, passionate, and humble as you will find in the industry.

Even if you choose to ignore the satire, Feel the Steel is still an unbelievable stand-alone album by its own merits. The musicianship is second to none, the production is top notch, and the metal is relentless as you pick out riffs and hooks reminiscent of every glam band from Bon Jovi to Ratt to Whitesnake. You're doing yourself a complete disservice if you buy into the negative reviews and write this one off as some sort of 80s metal parody. These songs are destine to be classics, and will stick in your head for a long, long time.

Critics will throw out terms like "juvenile" and "toilet humor". Yes, I'll admit...this album is pretty filthy. If you're easily offended or only want feel-good power ballads, this probably won't be for you. But those who hear references to cottage cheese thighs and reproductive fluid emissions and see how it all fits into the celebration of the excess referred to as "sex, drugs, and rock n' roll" will become bigger fans with every replay. There are just so many levels of genius at work with this 11-song masterpiece that the written word will never do it justice. Growing up a huge fan of Motley, Guns, Poison, and so forth, I couldn't recommend it more.