STEEL PANTHER's MICHAEL STARR Isn't Interested In Burying Hatchets With Other Musicians Who Hate His Band

In a new interview with Meltdown of Detroit's WRIF radio station, STEEL PANTHER frontman Michael Starr was asked if he has "buried hatchets" with any of the musicians in other bands that haven't been "crazy" about his group. Michael, whose real name is Ralph Saenz, responded (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "Well, I'm not in the business of burying hatchets with people that have resentment towards me, 'cause that's on them, dude. Anybody you usually run into is not going to confront you and go, 'Hey, man, I hate your band.' They'll just either ignore you or go, 'Hey, what's up, bro?' So, whoever doesn't like the band — everybody is entitled to their own opinion."

He continued: "Art is subjective, man. And if you don't like our art, then go listen to somebody else. Who cares, right? So, we developed pretty thick skin. When we were walking through festivals for our first time in spandex, people were looking at us going, 'Who is this band? Who are these guys?' And then we developed even thicker skin when we opened up for JUDAS PRIEST for 10 weeks in America. So, yeah, we're okay with it and we get it and we understand it, but we still rock."

Asked to elaborate on what he meant when he said that he and his STEEL PANTHER bandmates "developed thicker skin" when they toured with JUDAS PRIEST, Michael said: "Well, thick skin is good for when people throw stuff at you, like, 'Get off the stage. You suck.' You know, that kind of thing. So, you get used to that. And I remember we were playing Rochester, New York. I think it was the first show of the tour, and the promoter decided that he was going to push JUDAS PRIEST back an hour so he could sell more beer, which is pretty normal. And it's a very common thing. But they don't tell the crowd. So the crowd is mad that we went on late. And they think it's our fault. So that first show was pretty gnarly, man. Pretty rough."

Starr added: "Our job at that time was to go out there and win over as many fans as possible. Obviously, you're not gonna win over the whole crowd. Maybe you could, but I don't see that happening. So it's a percentage game. It's work, man. You've gotta go out there and earn it. And it ended up being a really great, great tour for us. It brought us together as a band too, as well, because we had the band together really tight to put up with it, but we didn't waver off. We didn't change our set. We didn't stop the banter. We did everything we normally do. And all the parents that brought their kids to the front row, they just kind of took 'em to the concession stands while we played. I'm not kidding. That's a true story."

Five years ago, STEEL PANTHER engaged in a public war of words with MÖTLEY CRÜE when Starr and STEEL PANTHER drummer Stix Zadinia were asked in an interview which musician from the past they would like to bring back. Starr replied, "I'd bring back Vince Neil," and Zadinia chimed in, "He's not dead." Starr pressed on, saying: "I'd bring back Vince Neil from back in the day because that guy is dead."

After news of STEEL PANTHER's comments made the rounds, MÖTLEY CRÜE bassist Nikki Sixx tweeted: "The singer in Steal Panther [sic] can go fuck himself … wanna-be band putting down Vince Neil?" One fan then pointed out that STEEL PANTHER sometimes plays MÖTLEY CRÜE songs during its concerts, to which the CRÜE bassist replied, "That's why they are assholes. Backstabbers."

In a February 2023 interview with Loaded Radio, STEEL PANTHER guitarist Satchel was asked about the chances of MÖTLEY CRÜE drummer Tommy Lee, who is reportedly not a fan of Satchel's band, ever making a guest appearance on a STEEL PANTHER record. He responded: "We love MÖTLEY CRÜE, and we're always gonna love MÖTLEY CRÜE and we're always gonna be fans of them. And Tommy is, honestly — he's a great drummer; he's one of the best rock drummers. But I don't know if Tommy is ready to play on a STEEL PANTHER record. [Laughs] But if he is, we'd love to have him, 'cause he's a great drummer and it would probably be really cool, whatever he does. 'Cause the guy plays great. He's awesome. He's solid as a rock."

Asked what Tommy's issue with STEEL PANTHER is, Satchel said: "I think Nikki had more of an issue with us than Tommy — or maybe they both did because they thought we were bagging on Vince. But I think what Michael Starr meant when he said what he said about Vince was… It was just a lighthearted jab at how bitching Vince was back in 1983 compared to how he is now. But I'll tell you what: I saw pictures of Vince recently, and he looks really good; he's taking care of himself. So I wish all those guys the best. I like MÖTLEY CRÜE."

Satchel addressed the Sixx online feud in a 2020 interview with Ultimate Guitar. Asked if STEEL PANTHER's "Concert To Save The World" livestreamed event was "a plan to steal the audience from MÖTLEY CRÜE," Satchel replied: "You know what? MÖTLEY CRÜE had tour plans. And that shit got canceled, right? I mean, I'm a fan of MÖTLEY CRÜE. I think that Tommy Lee and Nikki Sixx can act like total dickheads much of the time, but that's also what comes with being a rock star sometimes. The guys want to act like dickheads and they do — and that's cool. I still like the songs. But we can't steal their fans any more than they can steal ours. People are gonna be fans of both bands, and I'm always gonna love MÖTLEY CRÜE no matter how big of a dick Nikki Sixx is, because I like how they sound. Our bands are not mutually exclusive, and you don't have to hate STEEL PANTHER to love MÖTLEY CRÜE and vice versa. And you don't have to hate MÖTLEY CRÜE to say Nikki Sixx is a dick as well. [Laughs] I still love MÖTLEY CRÜE even though I think Nikki Sixx is a dick — these things are not mutually exclusive. [Laughs]"

Asked if everything is "cool" between the two bands now, Satchel said: "I don't have anything going on with those guys. I don't really give a fuck one way or the other. Like, if I saw them, I probably wouldn't go hang out with them 'cause Nikki Sixx seems like he doesn't like my band so I probably wouldn't buy him a beer. But I don't have anything against MÖTLEY CRÜE and I wish them the best in the future. But it seems like we annoy Nikki Sixx — and I'm fine with being annoying to Nikki Sixx 'cause I don't really give a fuck. But I don't think we're going to be on tour with MÖTLEY CRÜE anytime soon; that's what I reckon."

The 2019 episode was not the first time members of STEEL PANTHER and MÖTLEY CRÜE had traded barbs. In 2017, Zadinia said that his band "really felt unwelcome" during its tour with MÖTLEY CRÜE several years ago. The drummer told Music Life Magazine: "[MÖTLEY CRÜE members] Tommy Lee and Nikki Sixx did not like it when we went on tour with them in 2011. And that was the only time that we really felt unwelcome. The thing with those guys is I think they thought we were actually making fun of them directly. And I just gotta chalk that up to their egos being too big, because nothing that we do has anything to do with them directly. But we ended up doing the tour and it went off great and everything was totally fine," he said, adding that it was a European tour and that DEF LEPPARD was actually the top-billed band on the jaunt.

Sixx told Australia's Music Feeds in 2016 that he didn't care for STEEL PANTHER's music. "You know, it's not my thing," he said. "That's just me personally. I don't know. It doesn't feel… I guess a lot of people think it's funny and they're kind of a joke band and that's cool. But that's not my cup of tea. I kind of take my music a little more seriously."

Back in June 2015, Starr revealed in an interview that Lee "was pretty upset over the fact we poked fun at Vince Neil. He didn't like it. He just thinks we're just a joke, like a stupid joke band that shouldn't be playing with them. But all their fans like us."

Starr added that members of MÖTLEY CRÜE simply "take themselves a little too serious," except for Vince Neil, who "totally loves it."

"You know, he told me, 'Hey, Michael, when we retire, you can have all our fans,'" Starr said.

In 2018, Satchel acknowledged that not everyone is a fan of his group's over-the-top, juvenile sex-and-drugs schtick. "There are bands that hate our guts," he told Meltdown of the WRIF radio station. "We did a tour a few years ago with DEF LEPPARD and MÖTLEY CRÜE. And DEF LEPPARD, they got us on the tour, and it was an arena tour in the U.K. And they love us — they were so nice and so cool. And MÖTLEY CRÜE was on the tour, and they hated us. They wanted to kill us — every night they wanted to kill us. They talked to us, like, once the whole tour. And Tommy Lee and I, we just got into it — we butted heads a lot. 'Cause Tommy Lee… I don't know why he hates us so much. Listen, I extended the olive branch. I wanted to be friends with them. I think some people feel threatened. I think maybe Tommy Lee feels like we're poking fun at him personally. But we're just having fun… And someday maybe MÖTLEY CRÜE will be our friends, but I think Tommy Lee would love it if one of us got hit by a bus."