Steel Panther is an American comedic glam metal band from

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

, California. They are known for their profane and humorous lyrics as well as their exaggerated onstage

pastiche A pastiche is a work of visual art, literature, theatre, music, or architecture that imitates the style or character of the work of one or more other artists. Unlike parody, pastiche pays homage to the work it imitates, rather than mocking it ...

of the stereotypical glam metal lifestyle.

History

Metal Shop / Metal Skool (2000–2007)

The quartet began to gain popularity on the

Sunset Strip The Sunset Strip is the stretch of Sunset Boulevard that passes through the city of West Hollywood, California. It extends from West Hollywood's eastern border with the city of Los Angeles near Marmont Lane to its western border with Beverly H ...

during the early 2000s under the name Metal Shop (soon changed into Metal Skool, then into Steel Panther). Their lineup consisted of vocalist

Ralph Saenz Ralph Michael Saenz (born May 17, 1965), better known as Michael Starr, is an American musician who is best known as the lead vocalist and occasional guitarist of the comedic glam metal band Steel Panther. Early life Ralph Michael Saenz was ...

("Michael Starr"), drummer Darren Leader ("Stix Zadinia"), bassist Travis Haley ("Lexxi Foxx"), and guitarist

Russ Parrish Russell John Parrish (born November 24, 1970), better known as Satchel, is an American musician. He is the lead guitarist for the comedic glam metal band Steel Panther. Early life Russell John Parrish was born in Redwood City, California ...

("Satchel"). The band did weekly shows on Monday nights at the Viper Room, and subsequently the Key Club, playing covers of hair metal hits while sharing their passion for the bands that made the songs famous. Despite the name changes and Saenz and Parrish putting in time in the

Van Halen Van Halen ( ) was an American rock band formed in Pasadena, California, in 1972. Credited with "restoring hard rock to the forefront of the music scene", Van Halen was known for its energetic live shows and for the virtuosity of its lead gu ...

tribute band Atomic Punks, they finally managed to gain some success. In 2003 they released ''Hole Patrol'', their self-produced debut extended play. The band appeared in a Discover Card advertisement as Danger Kitty and in the sitcom '' Drew Carey Show'' as themselves. Also in 2003, their song "Death to All But Metal" was included in a compilation CD called ''Hey, That's What I Call Sludge! Vol. 1'' put out by the Metal Sludge web site. Their cover of the song "

Fantasy Fantasy is a genre of speculative fiction involving Magic (supernatural), magical elements, typically set in a fictional universe and sometimes inspired by mythology and folklore. Its roots are in oral traditions, which then became fantasy ...

" by Aldo Nova was used as the opening musical theme for the

MTV MTV (Originally an initialism of Music Television) is an American cable channel that launched on August 1, 1981. Based in New York City, it serves as the flagship property of the MTV Entertainment Group, part of Paramount Media Networks, a di ...

program '' Rob Dyrdek's Fantasy Factory''. On November 27, 2007 Metal Skool played original songs as well as covers of

KISS A kiss is the touch or pressing of one's lips against another person or an object. Cultural connotations of kissing vary widely. Depending on the culture and context, a kiss can express sentiments of love, passion, romance, sexual attraction, ...

songs at the Gene Simmons roast; they can be seen in the background of Gene Simmons' reality show '' Gene Simmons Family Jewels''. That year, they also appeared as themselves on ''

Las Vegas Las Vegas (; Spanish for "The Meadows"), often known simply as Vegas, is the 25th-most populous city in the United States, the most populous city in the state of Nevada, and the county seat of Clark County. The city anchors the Las Vegas ...

'' in the episode "The High Price of Gas".

''Feel the Steel'' (2008–2010)

upright=1.25, Steel Panther performing at the 2010 Sauna Open Air Metal Festival in Tampere, Finland">Tampere.html" ;"title="Sauna Open Air Metal Festival in Tampere">Sauna Open Air Metal Festival in Tampere, Finland In April 2008 the band decided to change their name from Metal Skool to Steel Panther, making a new debut at The Rockin' Saddle Club in Redlands, California. In an interview with Michael Starr, he states that the band's name wasn't inspired by Steel Dragon">Redlands, California">Redlands, California. In an interview with Michael Starr, he states that the band's name wasn't inspired by Steel Dragon, the band with Zakk Wylde and Mark Wahlberg in the movie ''Rock Star'' (in which Starr makes a cameo appearance). In May 2008, the band signed a contract with Republic Records (owned by record label Universal Records) announcing plans for a new studio album. Steel Panther released ''

Feel the Steel ''Feel the Steel'' is the debut studio album by American glam metal band Steel Panther. It was released first in Europe on June 8, 2009, on Universal Records. The tracks "Fat Girl", "Stripper Girl" and "Hell's on Fire" are re-recordings from the ...

'' on June 8, 2009 in the United Kingdom and on October 6, 2009 in North America through Universal Republic, making it their major record label debut. ''

'' debuted at No. 1 on the ''Billboard'' Comedy chart, No. 123 on the ''Billboard'' 200 chart and would eventually peak at No. 98 on the ''Billboard'' 200 chart. The record features hit singles, "Community Property" and "Death to All but Metal" as well as notable guest vocal performances from

Corey Taylor Corey Todd Taylor (born December 8, 1973) is an American musician, songwriter and actor. He is the lead vocalist of the heavy metal band Slipknot (band), Slipknot, in which he is designated #8, as well as the lead vocalist and guitarist for the ...

, Justin Hawkins, and

M. Shadows Matthew Charles Sanders (born July 31, 1981), known by his stage name M. Shadows, is an American singer and songwriter. He is the lead vocalist and a founding member of heavy metal band Avenged Sevenfold. In 2017, Shadows was voted third in th ...

. The track "Eyes of a Panther" is featured on the soundtrack for the video game '' Skate 3''. Sometime collaborator

Dean Cameron Dean Cameron (born Dean Eikleberry; December 25, 1962) is an American television and film actor and musician. He is known for his role as Francis "Chainsaw" Gremp in the 1987 Mark Harmon comedy '' Summer School''. He also played Dave Marshak i ...

, also credited with co-writing "Supersonic Sex Machine" on the band's next album '' Balls Out'', directed and co-wrote a pilot presentation in an attempt to land Steel Panther their own television program. The record's success also caught the attention of the Grammys, making it onto the "Best Comedy Album" ballot in October 2010, yet failing to reach a nomination.

''Balls Out'' and ''British Invasion'' (2011–2013)

Steel Panther released their second album '' Balls Out'' on October 31, 2011 in the UK and on November 1, 2011 in North America also through Universal Republic. '' Balls Out'' continued their revival of the heavy metal genre and debuted at No. 1 on the UK iTunes Rock chart surpassing

Megadeth Megadeth is an American thrash metal band formed in Los Angeles in 1983 by vocalist/guitarist Dave Mustaine. Known for their technically complex guitar work and musicianship, Megadeth is one of the "big four" of American thrash metal along wit ...

's '' TH1RT3EN'' and

Lou Reed Lewis Allan Reed (March 2, 1942October 27, 2013) was an American musician, songwriter, and poet. He was the guitarist, singer, and principal songwriter for the rock band the Velvet Underground and had a solo career that spanned five decades. ...

's and

Metallica Metallica is an American heavy metal band. The band was formed in 1981 in Los Angeles by vocalist/guitarist James Hetfield and drummer Lars Ulrich, and has been based in San Francisco for most of its career. The band's fast tempos, instrume ...

's'' Lulu''. '' Balls Out'' also debuted at No. 4 on the US iTunes Rock chart, No. 40 on the Billboard 200 chart and at No. 1 on the Billboard Comedy chart with first-week sales of 12,000 copies in the US. Due to their growing popularity, Steel Panther were invited by

Def Leppard Def Leppard are an English rock band formed in 1976 in Sheffield. Since 1992, the band has consisted of Rick Savage (bass, backing vocals), Joe Elliott (lead vocals), Rick Allen (drums, backing vocals), Phil Collen (guitar, backing vocals), a ...

to join them and co-headliners

Mötley Crüe Mötley Crüe is an American heavy metal band formed in Los Angeles in 1981. The group was founded by bassist Nikki Sixx, drummer Tommy Lee, lead guitarist Mick Mars and lead singer Vince Neil. Mötley Crüe has sold over 100 million albums ...

as "Special Guests" on the

Mirrorball Tour Def Leppard are an English rock band formed in 1976 in Sheffield. Since 1992, the band has consisted of Rick Savage (bass, backing vocals), Joe Elliott (lead vocals), Rick Allen (drums, backing vocals), Phil Collen (guitar, backing vocals), a ...

in December 2011. Exactly one week after ending the UK arena tour in London with

and

, Steel Panther opened for

Guns N' Roses Guns N' Roses is an American hard rock band from Los Angeles, California, formed in 1985. When they signed to Geffen Records in 1986, the band comprised vocalist Axl Rose, lead guitarist Slash, rhythm guitarist Izzy Stradlin, bassist Duff McKa ...

at the Forum in Los Angeles, CA on December 21, 2011. On December 6, 2011, Steel Panther announced their second solo UK tour in support of their newest album '' Balls Out''. Tickets for the shows went on sale on December 9, 2011, with many ticket providers selling out their allocations within a month. Brazzers sponsored the Australian tour of Steel Panther in early October 2012, which sold out in Brisbane, Sydney (two shows), Melbourne, and Adelaide. Another headline UK tour took place in November 2012. In late 2012, Steel Panther's European tour was crowned a huge success. They played sold-out shows, particularly in Germany. Steel Panther released their first Live DVD ''British Invasion'' in September 2012. The DVD was released worldwide on October 22, 2012. The DVD was filmed at Brixton Academy in London and features a two-hour concert/documentary based on the band's sold-out British tour. Steel Panther played on the main stage at

Download Festival Download Festival is a British-created rock festival created by Terrance Gough, held annually at the Donington Park motorsport circuit in Leicestershire, England (since 2003); in Paris, France (since 2016); at Parramatta Park, Sydney (since 201 ...

in June 2012, during which they were joined on stage by

of Slipknot to play "Death to All But Metal". Taylor wore wellies on stage. They played in front of a crowd of over 100,000 people. Steel Panther toured Australia in December 2013, supported by

Buckcherry Buckcherry is an American rock band from Anaheim, California, formed in 1995. The band released two albums, ''Buckcherry'' (1999) and ''Time Bomb'' (2001), before dissolving in 2002. Buckcherry's first album ''Buckcherry'' was DreamWorks first a ...

and

Fozzy Fozzy is an American heavy metal band formed in Atlanta, Georgia, in 1999 by lead singer Chris Jericho/Irvine, lead guitarist Rich Ward and drummer Frank Fontsere, who are the longest-serving members of the band and have appeared on all band ...

. Shows were sold out in Brisbane, Sydney, Melbourne, Adelaide and Perth between December 6 and 12.:

''All You Can Eat'' (2014–2015)

In late 2013, Steel Panther announced a new tour in the year 2014, titled the "Spreading the Disease (S.T.D.) Tour". They toured Europe throughout February and March 2014. In support of their latest album, Steel Panther began touring North America in May 2014, their first headlining tour of America. In June, they moved the tour to Europe and continued to tour through August 2014. The band released their third studio album '' All You Can Eat'' on April 1, 2014 on the independent label Open E Music, via

Kobalt Label Services Kobalt Music Recordings is a division of Kobalt Music Group. KLS provides record label services to artists, receiving a share of revenues, while allowing artists to retain ownership of their master recordings. The company was founded in 2012 wh ...

. The album was officially announced in September 2013. The first single from the album is "Party Like Tomorrow Is the End of the World". The second single, "The Burden of Being Wonderful", was released January 21, 2014. The third single, "Gloryhole", was released in April 2014 on Steel Panther's VEVO channel. On March 26, 2014 the album was leaked online and available for downloading on various websites, most likely after being streamed by the German tabloid Bild. The online stream was approved by Steel Panther. In June 2014, the band announced a short UK Tour with 4 dates scheduled for March 2015, supported by

Skindred Skindred are a Welsh reggae metal band formed in Newport in 1998. Their musical style mixes heavy metal, alternative rock and ragga. The band also integrate elements of punk rock, hardcore punk, reggae, dancehall, jungle, ska, hip hop, drum ...

and

The Lounge Kittens The Lounge Kittens were an English comedy lounge band formed in Southampton in 2012. They perform covers of classic popular songs, in particular rock and heavy metal songs, in a lounge style focusing on vocal harmonies accompagned by a piano. ...

. The band sold out almost every venue on the tour, which included Wembley Arena, London. In April 2015, the group had a cameo in the music video for the

Ninja Sex Party Ninja Sex Party (often abbreviated as NSP) is an American musical comedy duo consisting of singer Dan Avidan and keyboardist Brian Wecht. They formed in 2009 in New York City and are currently based in Los Angeles. They are also known as two thi ...

song "Road Trip" to tell of their sexual exploits that year. Michael Starr contributes vocals to "

6969 "6969" is a song written and performed by the American comedy rock band Ninja Sex Party, from their album ''Attitude City''. Heavily inspired by the song "2112 (song), 2112" by Canadian rock band Rush (band), Rush, the song contains vocals by St ...

" on NSP's third album ''

Attitude City ''Attitude City'' is the third studio album by the American Comedy music, musical comedy Double act, duo Ninja Sex Party. The album was released on July 17, 2015. Six tracks from the album, "Party of Three," "Dragon Slayer (song), Dragon Slayer," " ...

'' as the head Dick Elder. Steel Panther started a YouTube series called Steel Panther TV in Fall 2014 with segments like Science Panther, Love on the Rocks, Cineminute, World of Music, and Demolicious.

''Lower the Bar'' and ''Heavy Metal Rules'' (2016–present)

Steel Panther's acoustic album ''Live from Lexxi's Mom's Garage'' became available for pre-order on January 7, 2016, with the new song "That's When You Came In" preceding the album's release on February 26. The band went on the

Adult Swim Adult Swim (AS; stylized as

dult swim Dult is a village in Batala in Gurdaspur district of Punjab State, India. It is located from sub district headquarter, from district headquarter and from Sri Hargobindpur. The village is administrated by Sarpanch an elected representati ...

and often abbreviated as s is an American adult-oriented night-time cable television Television channel, channel that shares channel space with the basic cable network Cartoon Network and is programme ...

call-in show '' FishCenter Live'' to promote the album on January 22, 2016. In September of the same year, Steel Panther released a cover of

Cheap Trick Cheap Trick is an American rock band from Rockford, Illinois, formed in 1973 by guitarist Rick Nielsen, bassist Tom Petersson, lead vocalist Robin Zander and drummer Bun E. Carlos. The current lineup of the band consists of Zander, Nielsen and ...

's "

She's Tight "She's Tight" is a song by the American rock band Cheap Trick, which was released in 1982 as the third single from their studio album '' One on One''. It was written by guitarist Rick Nielsen and produced by Roy Thomas Baker. It reached No. 45 on ...

" with the announcement that their fourth studio album ''

Lower the Bar ''Lower the Bar'' is the fourth studio album by American glam metal band Steel Panther. It was originally scheduled for release on February 24, 2017, but was delayed to the following month. Robin Zander and Bobbie Brown made cameo appearances ...

'' would be released on March 24, 2017.

Robin Zander Robin Wayne Zander (born January 23, 1953) is an American musician, best known as the lead singer and rhythm guitarist for the rock band Cheap Trick, but is also a solo artist. Zander was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2016 as a ...

and

Bobbie Brown Bobbie Jean Brown (born October 7, 1969), sometimes credited as Bobbie Brown-Lane, is an American actress, model, and former beauty pageant contestant. She appeared in the video for Warrant's song " Cherry Pie". Early life Brown was born O ...

made cameo appearances in the music video for "She's Tight". Their fifth album ''

Heavy Metal Rules ''Heavy Metal Rules'' is the fifth studio album by American glam metal band Steel Panther, released on September 27, 2019. This is the band's last album to feature bassist Lexxi Foxx. Background During the recording of the album, vocalist Michae ...

'' was announced in July 2019, and scheduled for a September 27, 2019 release. The music video for the first single from the album, "All I Wanna Do Is Fuck (Myself Tonight)", debuted on July 8, 2019. The second single titled, "Always Gonna Be a Ho", was released on August 9, 2019. The third single "Gods of Pussy" was released on September 6, 2019. Music videos for the title track, Fuck Everybody, and Let's Get High Tonight were also released on the band's YouTube channel though were not released as singles. In December 2020, they released "Fuck 2020" as a non-album single and music video. The song is an alternative version of "Fuck Everybody" from ''Heavy Metal Rules'' with new lyrics reflecting the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...

. In March 2021, they released covers of the Van Halen classics " Beautiful Girls" and "D.O.A." as a non-album single. A video was released for the songs where they are in a video meeting setup reminiscent of

Zoom Zoom may refer to: Technology Computing * Zoom (software), videoconferencing application * Page zooming, the ability to magnify or shrink a portion of a page on a computer display * Zooming user interface, a graphical interface allowing for image ...

Departure of Lexxi Foxx

In December 2018, the band announced that bassist Lexxi Foxx would be missing the upcoming tour to go to "sex rehab." Foxx's stand-in was Joe "Spyder" Lester, the band's tour manager, as well as Starr's and Satchel's former bandmate from The Atomic Punks. Lexxi returned to the band for the next tour, but still missed some dates, where he was filled in for by both Spyder and Tanner "T.K." Keegan. In July 2021, it was revealed that long-time bassist Lexxi Foxx had left the band. The band cited it was a mutual decision, jokingly stating that Foxx was pursuing his own business "Sexxy Lexxi's Prettiest Pets." In August, the band opened up virtual auditions for a new bass player. The band introduced new touring bassist Rikki Dazzle in October 2021, though Michael Starr revealed the band were still looking for a permanent member. In December, the band launched the "Road to the Road" promotion, featuring a bracket of 32 selected auditions to narrow down to a field of 10 finalists. The pre-selected finalists included Dazzle and Rikki Thrash, who would both tour with the band in November and December. Spyder was selected as the new full-time bassist for the band in September 2022.

Awards

* Best Debut: ''

'' – ''

Metal Hammer ''Metal Hammer'' is a heavy metal music magazine and website founded in 1983, published in the United Kingdom by Future, with other language editions available in numerous other countries. ''Metal Hammer'' features news, reviews and long-form ...

'' Germany * 2012 Live Act of the Year – ''

Loudwire ''Loudwire'' is an American online media magazine that covers news of hard rock and heavy metal artists. It is owned by media and entertainment business Townsquare Media. Since its launch in August of 2011, ''Loudwire'' has secured exclusive ...

'' Music Awards * 2013 Live Act of the Year – ''Loudwire'' Music Awards * 2014 Video of the Year: "Party Like Tomorrow Is the End of the World" – ''Metal Hammer'' Golden Gods Awards

Band members

Current members * Ralph "Michael Starr" Saenz – lead vocals (2000–present) * Russ "Satchel" Parrish – guitars, backing vocals, acoustic guitar (2000–present) * Darren "Stix Zadinia" Leader – drums, keyboards, piano, backing vocals (2003–present) * Joe "Spyder" Lester – bass, backing vocals (2018, 2021–present) Former members *

Ray Luzier Ray may refer to: Fish * Ray (fish), any cartilaginous fish of the superorder Batoidea * Ray (fish fin anatomy), a bony or horny spine on a fin Science and mathematics * Ray (geometry), half of a line proceeding from an initial point * Ray (gra ...

– drums (2000–2003) * Travis "Lexxi Foxx" Haley – bass, backing vocals (2000–2021) Former touring members * Phil "Silk Pockett" Buckman – bass, backing vocals (2021) * Rikki Dazzle – bass, backing vocals (2021) * Sam "Rikki Thrash" Dobbs – bass, backing vocals (2021–2022) * Tanner "T.K." Keegan – bass, backing vocals (2022) * Tracii Boom Boom Thunders - bass, backing vocals (2022)

Timeline

Discography

;Studio albums * ''

'' (2009) * '' Balls Out'' (2011) * '' All You Can Eat'' (2014) * ''

'' (2017) * ''

'' (2019) * ''On the Prowl'' (2023)

Videography

* ''Fat Girl (Thar She Blows) – The Video'' (2005) – home DVD featuring the music video for the title track and behind-the-scenes footage. * ''Behind the Music: Steel Panther'' (2009) – iTunes

podcast A podcast is a program made available in digital format for download over the Internet. For example, an episodic series of digital audio or video files that a user can download to a personal device to listen to at a time of their choosing ...

featuring a fake ''Behind the Music'' story for Steel Panther. (Features stars like

Matt Sorum Matthew William Sorum (born November 19, 1960) is an American drummer. He is best known as both a former member of the hard rock band Guns N' Roses, with whom he recorded three studio albums, and as a member of the supergroup Velvet Revolver. S ...

, Kat Von D, Jani Lane,

Dee Snider Daniel "Dee" Snider (born March 15, 1955)Tayler, LettaTwisted Sister's Dee Snider remembers his challenging Long Island upbringing "Newsday", March 15, 2016Archived here/ref> is an American singer, songwriter, radio personality, and actor. He w ...

and

Dave Navarro David Michael Navarro (born June 7, 1967) is an American guitarist. He is best known as a member of the rock band Jane's Addiction, with whom he has recorded four studio albums. Between 1993 and 1998, Navarro was the guitarist of the Red Hot Ch ...

) * ''British Invasion'' (2012) first live release * ''Live from Lexxi's Mom's Garage'' (2016) second live release

References

External links

*
Official fan club: Fanthers.com / Fanthers Worldwide

Interview with Satchel on Maximum Threshold Radio
{{Authority control Comedy rock musical groups Glam metal musical groups from California Heavy metal musical groups from California Musical groups established in 2000 Musical groups from Los Angeles Musical quartets