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Steel Panther: A tribute or an insult?

fraroc

By fraroc,
in Music Of The Spheres

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fraroc

fraroc

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To me, Steel Panther kind of treads a fine line between being a tribute to the great arena rock bands of the 1980s (or more colloquially known as "hair metal") and making fun of that genre at the same time. While the melodies of the songs are great and they sound just like they came right out of 1987, the lyrics to pretty much every song is at a Blood On The Dance Floor/Brokencyde level where they sing about nothing except for sex, even their ballads have extremely explicit and immature lyrics.

 

 

Steel Panther is a great band if you don't take it too seriously. However, not everybody shares the same view. Eddie Trunk (who else?) thinks that Steel Panther is one of the most insulting things towards 80s hard rock to ever come out. Even more insulting than grunge. I don't agree with Eddie when he says that Steel Panther is a giant insult, but I understand how he feels about the whole thing. For example, I believe that Vito Bratta is one of the greatest guitarists that ever lived, and it is a shame that someone as influential as Vito will be forever lumped in with the likes of CC DeVille because of the whole "80s glam metal" label.

 

I'd even go as far as to say that 80s hair metal becoming a joke in the mid 90s completely ruined the career of one of an unsung guitar god.

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Union 5-3992

Union 5-3992

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I think that in order to have such dedication to an over the top sort of parody, you really need to have a lot of love for the genre. They've been committed to it for the better part of a decade and it seems like they have a lot of fun on stage. They have an amazing stage presence too. I saw them open 2 hours late with a very hostile audience, only to completely turn that around by the end of their show.
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rocket ignites

rocket ignites

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I like sleazy rock every now and then. Parody or not. I grew up with "glam-rock/metal" so I've always been cool with it. If it's not mostly about sex they're not doing it right.
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blueschica

blueschica

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I've only seen them on tv but they were very entertaining, and as Union said, it was obvious that they had a love for the music. Eddie Trunk has a large knowledge of metal but IMO loves to hear himself talk and sometimes has strange opinions.
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bluefox4000

bluefox4000

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I've only seen them on tv but they were very entertaining, and as Union said, it was obvious that they had a love for the music. Eddie Trunk has a large knowledge of metal but IMO loves to hear himself talk and sometimes has strange opinions.

 

I've never liked Trunk. kind of a moron, lol

 

Mick

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Lucas

Lucas

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With Steel Panther, what I just can't connect with is the lack of sincerity and what I see as a cop out ..

 

Is a guy like Bret Michaels on a level artistically with someone like Bob Dylan ?? .. Of course not ... But to my ear, Bret Michaels is completely sincere and what the Poison fan is getting is a guy who, despite his limitations, is putting his heart into something ...

 

Steel Panther take the easy way and hide behind this parody element .. They always have the "well, we're not serious anyway" to fall back on, and to me, that makes it completely hollow ..

 

Whenever there is "something" to parody, there have been people who first did that "something" with some sincerity and creative intention .. Whether everyone likes it or not isn't the point ..

 

Now, were all hair bands from the 80s sincere ?? .. Of course not ... I love some of 'em, but dislike the majority who I feel just went along for the ride ..

Edited by Lucas
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fraroc

fraroc

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I like sleazy rock every now and then. Parody or not. I grew up with "glam-rock/metal" so I've always been cool with it. If it's not mostly about sex they're not doing it right.

 

I wouldn't consider songs like Dream Warriors, Turn Up The Radio, and Love Of A Lifetime to be about sex.

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rocket ignites

rocket ignites

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I like sleazy rock every now and then. Parody or not. I grew up with "glam-rock/metal" so I've always been cool with it. If it's not mostly about sex they're not doing it right.

 

I wouldn't consider songs like Dream Warriors, Turn Up The Radio, and Love Of A Lifetime to be about sex.

That's why I say "mostly". I did hold bands like Dokken and Ratt on a higher level I must admit. They certainly weren't all about sleazy subject matter.

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treeduck

treeduck

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With Steel Panther, what I just can't connect with is the lack of sincerity and what I see as a cop out ..

 

Is a guy like Bret Michaels on a level artistically with someone like Bob Dylan ?? .. Of course not ... But to my ear, Bret Michaels is completely sincere and what the Poison fan is getting is a guy who, despite his limitations, is putting his heart into something ...

 

Steel Panther take the easy way and hide behind this parody element .. They always have the "well, we're not serious anyway" to fall back on, and to me, that makes it completely hollow ..

 

Whenever there is "something" to parody, there have been people who first did that "something" with some sincerity and creative intention .. Whether everyone likes it or not isn't the point ..

 

Now, were all hair bands from the 80s sincere ?? .. Of course not ... I love some of 'em, but dislike the majority who I feel just went along for the ride ..

To me they're authentic, and they're good. I keep things simple when reacting to music.

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J2112YYZ

J2112YYZ

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I've only seen them on tv but they were very entertaining, and as Union said, it was obvious that they had a love for the music. Eddie Trunk has a large knowledge of metal but IMO loves to hear himself talk and sometimes has strange opinions.

 

I've never liked Trunk. kind of a moron, lol

 

Mick

 

I only know about him because of That Metal Show which I used to watch when there was a guest on that I liked. Don't understand why the guys opinion holds any weight. He has limited knowledge of the genre he supposedly loves. Ask him anything about something in metal after the early 90s and he's more than likely clueless about it if it doesn't involve one of the popular old school bands. Would rather hear his two co-hosts talk about music. Jim and Don seemed like more genuine fans and who love a wide variety of metal.

 

As for Steel Panther, Lucas said it best.

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treeduck

treeduck

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I've only seen them on tv but they were very entertaining, and as Union said, it was obvious that they had a love for the music. Eddie Trunk has a large knowledge of metal but IMO loves to hear himself talk and sometimes has strange opinions.

 

I've never liked Trunk. kind of a moron, lol

 

Mick

As for Steel Panther, Lucas said it best.

You better take that back! :madra:

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bluefox4000

bluefox4000

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Posted (edited)

I've only seen them on tv but they were very entertaining, and as Union said, it was obvious that they had a love for the music. Eddie Trunk has a large knowledge of metal but IMO loves to hear himself talk and sometimes has strange opinions.

 

I've never liked Trunk. kind of a moron, lol

 

Mick

 

I only know about him because of That Metal Show which I used to watch when there was a guest on that I liked. Don't understand why the guys opinion holds any weight. He has limited knowledge of the genre he supposedly loves. Ask him anything about something in metal after the early 90s and he's more than likely clueless about it if it doesn't involve one of the popular old school bands. Would rather hear his two co-hosts talk about music. Jim and Don seemed like more genuine fans and who love a wide variety of metal.

 

As for Steel Panther, Lucas said it best.

 

oh my god. i used to love some of the guests but those hosts were insufferable. trunk the most. just exactly what you think of when you think stereotypical metal fan. but yea they came off as bad just cause trunk was there i think.

 

Yeesh

 

Mick

Edited by bluefox4000
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J2112YYZ

J2112YYZ

Posted
Posted

I've only seen them on tv but they were very entertaining, and as Union said, it was obvious that they had a love for the music. Eddie Trunk has a large knowledge of metal but IMO loves to hear himself talk and sometimes has strange opinions.

 

I've never liked Trunk. kind of a moron, lol

 

Mick

As for Steel Panther, Lucas said it best.

You better take that back! :madra:

 

Or what?

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treeduck

treeduck

Posted
Posted

I've only seen them on tv but they were very entertaining, and as Union said, it was obvious that they had a love for the music. Eddie Trunk has a large knowledge of metal but IMO loves to hear himself talk and sometimes has strange opinions.

 

I've never liked Trunk. kind of a moron, lol

 

Mick

As for Steel Panther, Lucas said it best.

You better take that back! :madra:

 

Or what?

Or pray for death! :bang bang:

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J2112YYZ

J2112YYZ

Posted
Posted

I've only seen them on tv but they were very entertaining, and as Union said, it was obvious that they had a love for the music. Eddie Trunk has a large knowledge of metal but IMO loves to hear himself talk and sometimes has strange opinions.

 

I've never liked Trunk. kind of a moron, lol

 

Mick

As for Steel Panther, Lucas said it best.

You better take that back! :madra:

 

Or what?

Or pray for death! :bang bang:

 

Would certainly prefer that over listening to Steel Panther.

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treeduck

treeduck

Posted
Posted

I've only seen them on tv but they were very entertaining, and as Union said, it was obvious that they had a love for the music. Eddie Trunk has a large knowledge of metal but IMO loves to hear himself talk and sometimes has strange opinions.

 

I've never liked Trunk. kind of a moron, lol

 

Mick

As for Steel Panther, Lucas said it best.

You better take that back! :madra:

 

Or what?

Or pray for death! :bang bang:

 

Would certainly prefer that over listening to Steel Panther.

Unless I'm kidding around, if I don't like a band I don't bother coming in a thread about them. What's your story?

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J2112YYZ

J2112YYZ

Posted
Posted

I've only seen them on tv but they were very entertaining, and as Union said, it was obvious that they had a love for the music. Eddie Trunk has a large knowledge of metal but IMO loves to hear himself talk and sometimes has strange opinions.

 

I've never liked Trunk. kind of a moron, lol

 

Mick

As for Steel Panther, Lucas said it best.

You better take that back! :madra:

 

Or what?

Or pray for death! :bang bang:

 

Would certainly prefer that over listening to Steel Panther.

Unless I'm kidding around, if I don't like a band I don't bother coming in a thread about them. What's your story?

 

I usually don't bother with threads about bands I don't like either. But this thread asked a question that invited non fans to give their thoughts.

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treeduck

treeduck

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Posted

I've only seen them on tv but they were very entertaining, and as Union said, it was obvious that they had a love for the music. Eddie Trunk has a large knowledge of metal but IMO loves to hear himself talk and sometimes has strange opinions.

 

I've never liked Trunk. kind of a moron, lol

 

Mick

As for Steel Panther, Lucas said it best.

You better take that back! :madra:

 

Or what?

Or pray for death! :bang bang:

 

Would certainly prefer that over listening to Steel Panther.

Unless I'm kidding around, if I don't like a band I don't bother coming in a thread about them. What's your story?

 

I usually don't bother with threads about bands I don't like either. But this thread asked a question that invited non fans to give their thoughts.

Now I'm gonna give you something!

 

:nya nya: :nya nya: :nya nya: :nya nya: :nya nya: :nya nya: :nya nya: :nya nya:

 

:moon: :moon: :moon: :moon: :moon: :moon: :moon: :moon: :moon:

 

:hi:

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