STEEL PANTHER / LOWLIVES – LIVE AT TOAD’S PLACE – NEW HAVEN
By Donna Marie Eriquezzo
October 30, 2025 – Steel Panther and Lowlives at Toad’s Place in New Haven.
Its Oct. 30, 2025, a cold ugly rainy day but that did not stop me from driving and hydroplaning down Rt. 34 to get to Toad’s Place in New Haven, Ct. It was definitely a miserable ride there with high winds and torrential downpours but lucky me, I actually got a parking space right in front of the venue. I have to say I was really looking forward to this show as I have never seen Steel Panther live before and I had heard I was in for a great night of 80’s glam metal and comedy and I was not disappointed.
The first band to hit the stage was a British-American band from LA called LOWLIVES. They had a great energy about them as they opened their set with “freaking out”. LOWLIVES was formed in 2016 by British musicians Lee Downer and Luke Johnson along with Jaxon Moore and Steve Lucarelli from Los Angeles. They released their first EP in 2018 called Burn Forever and it received critical acclaim. In 2024 they signed with Spinefarm Records and released their first album on May 31, 2024 called Freaking Out.
LOWLIVES captivated the audience with their set. They had a unique sound which had a grunge and punk type feel and a very energetic performance. I found these guys to be fresh and
exciting to see. I would highly recommend seeing them if you haven’t already.
Set List:
Freaking Out
Hey You
Liar
I Don’t Like You
You Don’t Care
Swan Dive
Loser
Burn
The lights are dim and Steel Panther is ready to hit the stage and boy am I in for an interesting evening of comedy and 80’s glam metal. They come roaring onto the stage with their hit song “Eyes of a Panther” with two pole dancers on each side of the stage and wow what a performance so far. These guys are talented musicians that wear flashy, gaudy 80’s glam outfits with bright colors and really big hair. They are comprised of Michael Starr, Satchel, Stix Zadinia, and Spyder from Los Angeles, CA and have been around since 2000.
They are famous for their combination of comedy and music with comical and witty banter between songs ensuring smiles on everyone’s faces. Their next song was “Let Me Cum In” followed by “Asian Hooker” where they brought an oriental female fan up onstage and it was pretty comical. After that they played the song “Friends With Benefits”. As I’m sure you have already figured out by now yjat these guys have a vulgar and funny sense of humor, I couldn’t stop smiling at their onstage antics.
Now the dancers came back onstage to “Poontang Boomerang” followed by an electrifying guitar solo which thoroughly impressed me, I didn’t expect such musical talent but these guys were tight , could sing and play as well as make jokes and entertain. It takes a lot of talent to do so many things at once onstage and these guys nailed it.
They brought a beautiful girl named Juju onstage and Michael Starr sang to her followed by the drummer serenading her, then the crowd got an eyeful as she flashed everyone. Lastly the bass player sang “Weenie Ride” to her, meanwhile her boyfriend was brought up onstage to play “Death To All But Metal” with the band and he killed it. What an amazing experience for this young couple to have with Steel Panther.
The rest of the show flew by with 17 women up on stage for “17 Girls In A Row” and they all seemed to be having a blast up there. They closed out the show with the song “Glory Hole” and I will leave it to your imagination what the song is about. This was a great show ad well worth the long drive in torrential rains, I definitely look forward to seeing these guys again in the future.
Set List:
Eyes Of A Panther
Let Me Cum In
Asian Hooker
Friends with Benefits
Poontang Boomerang
Turn Out The Lights
Magical Vagina
Weenie Ride
17 girls In A Row
Death To All But Metal
Community Property
Glory Hole
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