20 Best Metal Albums Of 2017 (So Far)
19. Steel Panther - Lower The Bar
The only comedy rock record on this list, Steel Panther's Lower the Bar has ironically raised the bar for the beloved hair metal sexpests. Easily their most instrumentally complete album to date, Lower the Bar continues the Panther's quest to take the sex, drugs and rock n' roll of '80s metal and hold it up to the mirror in a deliciously over-the-top way.
However, a great problem many comedy rock bands face is offering nothing outside of a handful of laughs. Well, not only do Steel Panther prove to be far, far funnier than the vast majority of their contemporaries, but their music is the perfect time capsule to the glam era, with massive choruses thanks to the powerful pipes of Michael Starr and a brilliant joint rhythm-lead dynamic from guitar virtuoso Satchel.
If you aren't afraid of getting a little crass, Lower the Bar is a quintessential homage and mockery of OTT rock culture.