We were at the Steel Panther show, and here’s what we thought:

Gill: Jesus, is anyone NOT at this gig?! London’s music industry and media have all turned out for tonight’s Shepherds Bush Steel Panther show. From Download organiser Andy Copping to Xfm DJ Ian Camfield and everyone in between (including every member of Hammer to a man!). Needless to say the anticipation is high. Will the Panther deliver, or will it just be a small joke on a big stage?

The band actually hit the stage while I was having a last minute wazz, and by the time I got to our seats everyone was standing up anyway. The band were all in full regalia and hammered into their set with a precision that belies the fact that they are all individually great musicians – the gags often belittling their genuine talent. Satchel and Lexxi fight over mic stands while Michael Starr wails, postures and poses. Already, we’re wondering how a band with only 44 minutes of album will fill nearly two hours of gig. One answer becomes clear as the band roll out the end of the first song doing a skit where they take it in turns to jump off the drum riser, which while obviously choreographed – still feels fun and fresh and sets a good precedent for the funnest band of the decade’s London show. Also the inter-song banter splits the songs up by a few minutes, and while many assumed that the few running jokes the band have would run thin having seen them play a few times, they still manage to make it fresh (ok, I was one of these doubters, but I stand corrected).

At points Michael Starr looks genuinely surprised and warmed as the crowd clearly know ALL the words. It’s a nice little view into the real people in the fake band. Or the real band behind the fake band. If that makes any sense.
After 40 minutes or so, Lexxi introduces guitarist Satchel and the slender axeman launches into his solo with Van Halen’s iconic shred-section, ‘Eruption’, not fluffing a note. After the EVH hat-doff, Satchel tucks his chops away and stands on the drum riser, stomping the bass drum pedal in time with a medley of classic riffs from Metallica, to Deep Purple and Maiden. Instrumental solos usually feel like indulgence on behalf of an ego tantrumming some attention, but here it takes on the form of musical panto, where everyone’s a winner.

Back to the set the band are getting dangerously close to playing everything on the record and there’s still half an hour to go. But we seem to have forgotten that as Metal School and other monikers this band can cover just about any rock/80s metal song you’d care to name. As such the band finish up with an awesome version of Van Halen’s ‘Panama’ and finished with Motley Crue’s ‘Kickstart My Heart’s. It’s also cool to hear that the band don’t simply do the same finishers every set, every city getting a different set.

Avoiding all unnecessary verbose and obscure journalistic masturbation, I will say that this was one of the best and most memorable gigs of the year, and possibly the decade. Flawless.

They even managed to hunt me down afterwards to say hi.