LIVE PHOTOS: Steel Panther, Stone Horses
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By Greg Maki
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I’ve written quite a bit about Steel Panther on this site over the years, and there’s a simple reason for that: Nearly a quarter century since its beginning, Steel Panther continues to be one of the most entertaining live acts around. Its latest tour, celebrating 15 years of its debut album, “Feel the Steel,” presents one of its best shows to date, highlighting songs from a record that should be viewed as a modern classic.
Seven of the set’s 13 songs came from “Feel the Steel”—including staples such as the opener “Eyes of a Panther,” “Asian Hooker” (featuring an Asian woman dancing onstage with the band), “The Shocker,” “Girl from Oklahoma” (during which frontman Michael Starr serenaded a female fan) and the anthem of anthems, “Death to All but Metal.” Indebted as they are to the hair metal acts of the ‘80s but recorded nearly two decades after the end of that era, these tracks have a timeless quality to them, and the band performed them with flair and enthusiasm. The remaining songs came from three of Steel Panther’s other five albums—“Lower the Bar” (2017) and “Heavy Metal Rules” (2019) got the shaft—with highlights including “Friends with Benefits” from last year’s “On the Prowl” and the show-closing “Gloryhole.”
Thirteen songs don’t seem like enough for a 90-minute set, and they’re not. The band members’ extremely non-PC, very tongue-in-cheek banter filled the gaps with jokes targeting their sexual exploits and the drummer of Def Leppard. Bassist Spyder, who’s been in the band since 2022, seemed more comfortable in these spots than when I saw the band a year and a half ago, and he was firing off the one-liners right along with Starr, guitarist Satchel and drummer Stix Zadinia.
There’s no doubt that comedy is a huge part of a Steel Panther show, but without the songs to back it up, the fans wouldn’t continue coming back again and again. Ridiculous though they may—intentionally so—these tunes are catchy, well written and well played. There’s no better rock ‘n’ roll party than Steel Panther coming through your town.
STEEL PANTHER SET LIST: “Eyes of a Panther,” “It Won’t Suck Itself,” “Asian Hooker,” “Friends with Benefits,” “The Shocker,” Guitar solo, “Girl from Oklahoma,” “17 Girls in a Row,” “Eatin’ Ain’t Cheatin’,” “Community Property,” “Death to All but Metal,” (encore) “Gloryhole”
Maryland’s own Stone Horses kicked off the evening with a too-short set of blues-based hard rock. Supporting its new album “Redemption Chronicles,” the band, which features in its ranks vocalist/guitarist John Allen and drummer Jason Heiser of Charm City Devils, commanded the stage as it ripped through one anthemic tune after another, including the CCD favorite “Let’s Rock-N-Roll.” Guitarist Teddy Merrill showed he’s a star in the making with his shredding solos, while Allen, a staple of the Maryland music scene for some time, set the tone with his grooving rhythm playing and raspy vocals. With the right breaks, this band could be going places in a hurry.
LINKS:
www.steelpanther.com
www.stonehorsesmusic.com
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Steel Panther recently announced 2025 dates for its “Feel the Steel” 15th anniversary world tour:
Wed Mar 5 – Lincoln, NE – Bourbon Theatre
Thu Mar 6 – Des Moines, IA – Val Air Ballroom
Sat Mar 8 – Billings, MT – Pub Station Ballroom
Tue Mar 11 – Boise, ID – Knitting Factory
Wed Mar 12 – Salem, OR – Elsinore Theatre
Fri Mar 14 – San Francisco, CA – The Fillmore
Sat Mar 15 – Sacramento, CA – Ace of Spades
Sun Mar 16 – San Luis Obispo, CA – Fremont Theater
Tue Mar 18 – Monterey, CA – Golden State Theatre
Wed Mar 19 – Ventura, CA – Ventura Theater
Thu Mar 20 – Tucson, AZ – Rialto Theatre
Sat Mar 22 – Tempe, AZ – Marquee Theatre
Sun Mar 23 – Albuquerque, NM – Revel
Wed – Mar 26 – Oklahoma City, OK – Diamond Ballroom
Thu – Mar 27 – Kansas City, MO – The Midland Theatre
Fri Mar 28 – Dubuque, IA – Q Casino & Resort
Wed Jun 18 – Dublin, IE – Vicar Street
Sat Jun 21 – Leipzig, DE – Hellraiser
Mon Jun 23 – Arnhem, NL – Musis
Tue Jun 24 – Cologne, DE – Essigfabrik
Wed Jun 25 – Dusseldorf, DE – Zakk
Sun Jun 29 – Braunschweig, DE – Applaus Garten
Mon Jun 30 – Frankfurt, DE – Batschkapp
Tue Jul 1 – Bochum, DE – Matrix
Fri Jul 4 – Regensburg, DE – Eventhall Airport
Sat Jul 5 – Memmingen, DE – Kaminwerk
Sun Jul 6 – Geiselwind, DE – Music Hall
Previously announced dates
Thu, Dec 12 – St Petersburg, FL – Jannus Live
Fri Dec 13 – Orlando, FL – Plaza Live
Sun Dec 29 – Vancouver, BC – Commodore Ballroom
Mon Dec 30 – Vancouver, BC – Commodore Ballroom
Jun 13-15 – Donington Park, UK – Download Fest
Jun 13-14 – Vaasa, Finland – Lisää Löylyä Festival
Jun 25-28 – Oslo, Norway – Tons Of Rock Fest
Jul 2-6 – Dunaújváros, Hungary – Rockmarato