Steel Panther Rocks the Tops off London Audience

WARNING: *article contains profanity and other abhorrent language that may be offensive to some readers, discretion is advised*

London Music Hall is a top-tier stop for many bands/artists touring Southern Ontario. Acts such as The Arkells, The Trews, Killswitch Engage, Lee Brice, Skrillex, August Burns Red, Calvin Harris, Snoop Dogg and more have played this venue and on Wednesday November 9^th they hosted Kentucky’s favourite son’s Black Stone Cherry and LEGENDARY Steel Panther.

Steel Panther is an American comedic glam metal band from Los Angeles, California. They are known for their vulgar and silly lyrics as well as their exaggerated onstage parody of the stereotypical hair metal lifestyle. These champions put on one of the most entertaining shows I have EVER attended and stole my “hot, wet Regina”. The band came out and immediately caught attention with their eccentric fashion and vibrant personas. At the “age of 79,” Michael Starr completely ate the stage with his impeccable vocals and insane falsettos. It almost felt like he was lip syncing because that is how perfect his pitch is. Satchel is an icon, and he is utterly hilarious. He had some of the funniest quips and comments I’ve ever heard at a rock show.

Some of the most memorable quotes of the night came from him including “all of you kids out there and by kids, I mean people under the age of 50”, “our favourite city is London… England”, “loads of hairspray and sperm”, “if Michael was any dumber, we would have two bass players”, and many more. He also does a very convincing Randy Rhoads impression, can play guitar and drums at the same time, and has some of the nimblest fingers in the game. He also had plenty of digs at ex-bass player, Lexxi Foxx, letting the audience know he left the band to “do gay porn”. Stix Zadinia plays drums as if he eats them for breakfast and brings so much joy to the performance. These superstars did a perfect cover of “Living After Midnight” by Judas Priest and Michael Starr does such a scarily accurate Ozzy Osborne impression while they covered “Crazy Train”. The band also rocked out to their new song “Never Too Late (To Get Some Pussy Tonight)” during their performance and it was phenomenal. Steel Panther fans are diehard, and it is such a joy when you can hear the entire audience singing every word of every song.

They finished off the night with having THREE encores and I could not have possibly asked to experience a better show and that’s absolutely what Steel Panther is – a must-see experience.

Black Stone Cherry at London Music Hall – photo by Dan Boshart

Black Stone Cherry is an American rock band, formed in 2001 in Edmonton, Kentucky and they kicked off the night with an earth-shattering performance that earned them a new fan. From the moment they hit the stage, Black Stone Cherry had audience members singing along and filled the venue with an incredible high energy which was the perfect kick-starter for the night’s events. Chris Robertson has some of the most incredible live vocals you can experience at a rock concert and was perfectly complimented by the band’s backing vocal harmonies. Their stage presence and chemistry among members was undeniable and made for a consistently entertaining set.

It’s not often that a drummer pulls attention away from the front man; however, John Fred Young had some of the most impeccable timing and precision I have ever seen. Ben Wells shreds guitar like he came out of the womb playing and has some epic soloing ability, so in the moments he shined, he truly drew the crowd’s eye. These gentlemen did a cover of “Don’t Bring Me Down” by English rock legends Electric Light Orchestra and did the song some serious justice as the crowd screamed the lyrics back to them. They finished off their set with their hit “Blame It on The Boom Boom” and left the crowd so riled up, the crowd could not wait for Steel Panther so they could keep rocking out.

This was one of the best shows I have ever had the pleasure of attending. Black Stone Cherry and Steel Panther won me over almost instantly and both have such incredible talent. If you ever get a chance to check out their live shows, you are truly in for an intriguing and non-stop entertaining evening.

Steel Panther Setlist