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Tongue-in-cheek or not, Steel Panther’s Feel the Steel is so good it’s gonna make a serious run for inclusion in my year-end list. Everything about it is just done so well… everything! I know my man Anso is down with the Panther too. Can’t wait to see these guys play when I hit up L.A. in January.
-VN
Not that we had any doubt Baroness’ Blue Record would have a strong debut, but it’s always nice to see the proof. And Skeletonwitch’s ripping new record Breathing the Fire had a great debut too; I’m elated to see the band sell as many records first week as they did. Elsewhere it was the usual radio rock / alt-metal suspects dominating the charts. Click through to see chart positions and sales figures.
It was a fuckin’ busy week, no? Either shit was crazy this week or I’ve really got to get outside of the MS Mansion more often. Here’s what went down:
Ax and I are going to see 3 Inches of Blood in Brooklyn tonight, so hopefully that’ll provide just the head-clearing I need. See you guys Monday.
-VN
MetalSucks Maniac The Ghost of D. Boon e-mailed us in response to that video we posted yesterday of Steel Panther guitarist Satchel playing drums while taking a guitar solo to make sure we knew about Gull… and we didn’t. So thanks, Ghost!
Gull is a one-man project from Richmond, VA who not only plays guitar and drums simultaneously (and wwwaaayyy better than Satchel), but also sings! Ghost says that mask he’s wearing has a mic in it, which is hooked up to reverb pedal. Check it out:
You can get more info on Gull here.
And while we’re talking about one man bands… this suddenly got me thinking about Corn Mo, this dude I used to see play local clubs and bars here in New York from time to time. He’s not really metal, but he used to host gigs for metal cover bands and obviously has some knowledge of metal, so it seemed worth posting. Plus, if you’re drunk enough, he can be fun to watch live. Check out the drum stick coming out of his pants!
Here’s Corn Mo, both doing his solo thing and playing with Gary Suarez’s hero, Andrew WK:
Actually, it’s not quite as cool as it initially sounds; I mean, when you think about it, he’s basically just tapping his foot while he riffs.
Still, I couldn’t do it, and I haven’t really seen any other guitarists do it, so props where they’re due.
This is an eight minute long video of Steel Panther’s Russ Parrish – a.k.a. “Satchel” – soloing, but skip to the 4:25 mark to see the cool part.
-AR
Thanks to Kenneth Horan for the tip.
Five heavy hitting heavy hitters — Alice in Chains, Hatebreed, Austrian Death Machine, Steel Panther and Dethklok — all released new records last week. Solid 2nd and 3rd week performances from Three Days Grace, Muse, Megadeth, Five Finger Death Punch and others made it an all-around big week for metal. Let’s see how everyone fared after the jump.
I mean like it’s completely fucknuts that a band like this has a recording contract with a major label, right?? They’re good. Quite good in fact. Our own Anso DF loooooves Steel Panther and happily wrote up a piece for us when we premiered their webisode earlier this week. But does Universal Records really think they’re gonna recoup on these guys? Or did they sign them to a 360 deal and expect to make it all back on sales of Steel Panther leotards and Steel Panther-branded “Fat Girl” mayo? Beats me, but great for these guys, ya know? They’ve been grinding it out in the L.A. scene for a long time and I’m happy to see them making it.
Oh yeah, so this video for “Fat Girl.” It’s funny in all the right ways, as expected. Feel The Steel is (finally!) out now, bitches! Death to all butt metal!
-VN
Watch the new webisode by L.A. cockrockers Steel Panther, and sure, they seem like a bunch of jokers. But the authors of this century’s first classic hair rock album are also the bravest, most honest musicians ever. See, Michael Starr and crew sing about doin’ ya and doin’ your drugs, but don’t bother with fancy symbolic language, like the ribald single-entendres of AC/DC (“Fire Your Guns”) or total lack of imagination of Bulletboys (“Smooth Up In Ya”). Their raw candor isn’t just refreshing, it’s a public service, as though they respect us too much to veil nasty intentions or insult our intelligence with shitty poetry; expressed artlessly, guitarist Satchel’s sincere thanks to “the guy who invented cocaine” really reminds you that the guy who invented cocaine probably at least deserves a postage stamp; Satchel’s other pet cause is universal vagina maintenance standards, and again, a less confident band may not dare to instruct our sisters, mothers, and girlfriends on matters of good greens-keeping; and lastly but not leastly, bless Steel Panther for speaking out against those awful Goo Goo Dolls. They can suck my balls, too.
Feel The Steel is (finally) out now. Order it here.
We generally shy away from hate on ironic bands here at the MS Mansion, but you just can’t hate on Steel Panther. They’re actually a good band, they’re fucking hilarious, and in a way they aren’t really ironic… they kinda were/are the real deal, only they have the self-awareness to be able to take a step back, realize what they’re doing is ridiculous, and make fun of it.
Here’s their latest video for “Community Property” which comes from their new album Feel the Steel, out October 6th. Also worthy of your time, the video for “Death To All But Metal.”
-VN
The big frickin’ deal week before last was Metallica’s induction into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame in Cleveland. Last week, the focus of the Metal community’s honor is Metallica’s Lucifer, Dave Mustaine, at The Epiphone Honda Fury Revolver Magazine Golden Gods Awards. Anti-Metallica sentiment was aired freely and to shouts of encore! The name of Mustaine’s band was chanted pretty much all night (poor Atreyu guy). The event went down at Club Nokia in downtown L.A. on Tuesday night hosted by Rodrigo from Mr. Show (Brian Posehn). Honestly? It was pretty awkward and not very Metal. A ton of Metal people were there, mostly ticket buyers. The vibe started a bit chilly outside the venue, then spiked at Killswitch Engage and Maynard James Keenan (not together) before a nosedive from which even Megadeth could not recover. I had a GREAT TIME! Photos by Adam Haussman.
I’ve never gotten to see Metal Skool, f.k.a. Metal Shop, live, because, well, I loathe LA and don’t go there very often, and they don’t come to NY.
BUT… I do all about them and their alocohol soaked, celeb-magnet live shows… which we have, in fact, posted about before.
So. The group has changed their name – again – this time to Steel Panther. They’ll be releasing an album, Feel the Steel, on June 9 on Universal – yes, they are on a major label. Honestly, I don’t know if it will be hilarious or wear out its welcome after a few listens (’cause let’s face it, often times joke bands really don’t work outside of a live setting, if at all), but, hey, I’m curious.
Here’s their new video for “Death to All but Metal.”
-AR
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