Steel Panther, you either love ‘em or hate ‘em. The politically incorrect bad boys of Los Angeles returned to Aussie shores, and if you thought they were over the top and sexist before, this show made their previous visits look like a stroll through a nunnery.
Also adding fire to the bill were the support acts, metallers Fozzy and hard rockers Buckcherry. It was a perfect line-up that was always going to make for a memorable evening.
Fozzy came on stage to a small but welcoming crowd. With vocalist/WWE superstar Chris Jericho at the helm, the band commanded everyone’s attention and played with such gusto and power that proved why they were a worthy addition. The set seemed to pass quickly, but not before smashing through original metal anthems including their hit single ‘Enemy’.
It’s hard to think that Buckcherry have been together for over 15 years, and yet just this year alone has seen them in Australia twice – not bad for a group that fell off the radar for a while.
Getting straight to business by opening with ‘Lit Up’, the classic single off their 1999 debut album, Buckcherry rocked and rolled right on through their 40-minute set, playing the lighters-in-the-air power ballad ‘Sorry’ and their groovy stripper-anthem ‘Crazy Bitch’. Josh Todd’s stage banter was clichéd at times, but when performing with the band, his vocals were as rock n’ roll as it gets. Clichés aside, these guys rocked – hard!
When the four-piece glam rockers Steel Panther graced the stage, the crowd were ready to be rocked. And that is exactly what happened. They opened with ‘Eyes Of A Panther’ before following through with all killer, no filler tracks like ‘Fat Girl (Thar She Blows)’, ‘Just Like Tiger Woods’, ‘Party All Day (F**k All Night)’, and ‘Asian Hooker’.
The use of a giant video screen at the back of the stage made the show much more visual, with images of pornographic material and hilarious band videos adding to the already perverse nature of the night. New songs ‘Glory Hole’ and their latest single ‘Party Like Tomorrow Is The End Of The World’ were both a treat and a good sign of what to expect when their new album drops next year.
In a complete Axl Rose ‘November Rain’-esque moment, drummer Stix Zadinia put down the sticks and played a nice rendition of ‘Weenie Ride’ on the piano to a backdrop of swaying arms and lighters in the air.
They finished the set with ‘Death To All But Metal’, but there was just no way the crowd were going to let them leave the stage like that. The party was well underway and the punters wanted more.
And more is exactly what they got! Before the band returned, the crowd spontaneously sang the words to ‘Community Property’, which was enough to lure the band back.
Responding to the cheerful audience request, they burst straight into ‘Community Property’ and put a call out to get as many girls on stage as they could for their finale, ‘17 Girls In A Row’.
An abundance of female nudity and provocative onstage theatrics ensued. The band showered the crowd with confetti, leaving everyone smiling from what was one of the most fun shows that Melbourne has witnessed this year. Seriously, how do you top that? What a fantastic night. Here’s to their new album and a return to our shores soon after.
