Steel Panther - ‘There was no internet to ruin everything’ in the 80s

It’s been 13 long and tedious years since social media giant Facebook was made available to anyone with a computer over the age of 13. Founded by Mark Zuckerberg, a Harvard college dropout that increasingly resembles Mr. Data from Star Trek, the instant gratification platform has long been the center of controversial attention as the medium that has destroyed the internet, and the lives of many across the globe. Once seen as a great way to connect with friends and family, especially distant relatives, the tech giant is now constantly blamed for enabling millions of global users to become screen starring drones instead of independently thinking individuals.


Not only has the internet made literally everything available to the fingertips of the population, causing a sensory data overload, it has also been scientifically proven to be detrimental to your health when it comes to the use of social media platforms. Many people, Steel Panther included, longing for a time when people weren’t so reliant on modern technology. “The '80s was a fucking great time. It was a great time for music. There were a lot of fucking awesome bands.” says Steel Panther drummer, Stix Zadinia speaking to Billboard Magazine.

Although Steel Panther are currently riding high on the STD filled waves of Rock and Roll success, thanks to the internet, the band have to constantly deal with the backlash of several modern cultural communities and movements that find their material offensive. "Always Gonna Be A Ho" – the thing about that song [is] I've seen people online go, "This is sexist, talking about women like this!" We're not 100% talking about women. People need to really listen to our lyrics to understand.” guitarist, Satchel explains. Steel Panther have never been a group to sit back and take schtick from people “It could be anybody we're talking about. If the shoe fits...shove it up your ass.”. Satchel continues “There were only a handful of cable channels. There was no internet to ruin everything. There were no cell phones”.

Even Stix Zadinia recently took to social media to condemn critiques that utilize such platforms to simply attack anyone they wish, saying “I DARE you to write a song. I dare you to put it out to the world. I dare you to try and follow your dreams. I dare you to have real balls”.

However, despite the rise of the internet and mobile devices during the dance crazed 90s, even bands in the 80s had to defend themselves from public outcry and scrutiny. Most notable was the infamous PMRC Hearing that took place in 1985. American Hair Metal group, Twisted Sister were forced to defend themselves in a legal action brought to the American justice system by the Parents Music Resource Center. An American committee formed with the sole purpose of essentially banning children from listening to certain types of music that were deemed to promote violence, drug use, and sexual deviancy. Artists such as AC/DC, Mötley Crüe, Def Leppard, Black Sabbath, Madonna, and even Prince were labeled as “porn rock”.

To this day, Twisted Sister frontman, Dee Schnider is still heralded as the key figure in the case after delivering a powerfully elegant and influential speach during the proceedings. Although no formal legal action was brought against any artists, the events of 1985 would result in the record industry labeling certain LPs with a warning label. The PMRC shut down a few years later.

Much like the issues Steel Panther are currently facing, whereby the public does not seem to actually pay any attention to the deeper meanings behind lyrical content, merely hearing a few words that incite their imagination to run wild and draw radically misinterpreted conclusions such as “Steel Panther are sexist”, the same can be said of the 80s, as Dee Schnider himself outlined in a 2015 interview with Rolling Stone Magazine. “I quickly became aware that they only had had a passing glance at the content of songs. They just made some snap judgments. They saw the “We’re Not Gonna Take It” video, “Oh, he’s beating up his father, it’s a violent song.” They thought it was about violence against adults. They had not vetted the songs they had chosen very well” This seems all too familiar 34 years later.

“If you thought we were all going and investing in 401Ks, you're fucking wrong, dude. There's no retirement plan here. This is rock until you die, bro.” explains Satchel. Although the Steel Panther attitude is very much akin to that of 80s rockers such as Guns N Roses, Mötley Crüe, and Black Sabbath, the internet has made it much easier for groups that clearly misunderstand the context of certain music, to form an uneducated alliance aimed at lighting digital pitchforks where no monster can be found.