Good hard rock karaoke songs
April 8, 2006 6:05 PM   Subscribe

Help me pick some hard rockin' Karaoke songs for tonight

I am going to do Karaoke, and I need some suggestions. I am looking for uptempo rock/hard rock songs. The place we are going has a huge library of music. Here is what I sang last time:

Smashing Pumpkins: Disarm
Tenacious D: Tribute
Coheed and Cambria: The Suffering
My Chemical Romance: I'm Not OK

I always have a hard time picking songs, but if I can get a few suggestions beforehand, I can look them up on itunes ahead of time and find a few good ones.

Any suggestions are appreciated.
posted by markblasco to Sports, Hobbies, & Recreation (20 answers total)
 
Ghostbusters. Seriously. Everyone loves it, no one expects it. It's been on the list for most karaoke places I've been, weirdly enough.
posted by borkingchikapa at 6:09 PM on April 8, 2006


Planet of Sound, The Pixies. Get your scream on.
posted by Decani at 6:10 PM on April 8, 2006


It's not quite "rock/hard", but a performance of Squirrel Nut Zipper's "Hell" was the only experience with karaoke I've ever had that didn't make me slightly nauseous. It's peppy, and the "d and the a and the m and the n.." part is great for the crowd to chant along with.

"Tribute" was the first thing that came to mind when I read the question, though.
posted by (lambda (x) x) at 6:23 PM on April 8, 2006


a friend does 'Batdance' by Prince really well, and it always gets the weirdest reaction from the crowd.
posted by nitsuj at 6:54 PM on April 8, 2006


The same friend that nitsuj is referencing also does a good variation of "I Touch Myself" by The Divinyls. He drops to the floor and... well, you know. It TOO gets a good crowd reaction. Our friend, btw, is a karaoke god.
posted by bjork24 at 6:57 PM on April 8, 2006


I was going to suggest I Touch Myself also. In my limited Karaoke experience, you can rock the vocal up and really sell the thing.
posted by spartacusroosevelt at 7:03 PM on April 8, 2006


Sweet Caroline by Neil Diamond always gets the crowd on your side. It makes you feel like a superstar. Also it's easy, and you don't have to be an awesome singer. Diamond and Cash are the bad singers karaoke friend.
If you're more new school "U Got It" by Usher always works, too.

No one ever does "Call Me Al" by Paul Simon, but everyone knows it, everyone loves it.
posted by starr226 at 7:49 PM on April 8, 2006


okay, i totally missed the "hard rocking" part. though sweet caroline still applies.

go with "talk dirty to me" or "strutter" both are awesome hard rocking karaoke songs. talk dirty to me will get the crowd on your side quick.
posted by starr226 at 7:50 PM on April 8, 2006


With the caveat that Good Music .NE. Good Kareoke:
'Faint' by Linkin Park has allowed me to amaze my friends on several occasions despite a general lack of talent on my part. The trick is to get the rap bit right. Depending on how much you're willing to invest in the vocals, your larynx my resent you in the morning.
posted by Octaviuz at 8:02 PM on April 8, 2006


"Aces of Spades" by Motorhead. Hard rocking... and somewhat funny.
posted by amusem at 8:44 PM on April 8, 2006


I mean "Ace of Spades"
posted by amusem at 9:06 PM on April 8, 2006


Wild Cherry - Play that Funky Music Whiteboy

1.) It's a friggin' classic
2.) It does in fact, rock.
3.) Vanilla Ice covered it, badly. By going for the original you will show how bad ass you are.

Stevie Wonder - I Wish

1.) Also a classic
2.) Sampled by Will Smith for 'Wild Wild West'
3.) No one appreciates how much this song does, in fact, rock.

Temptations - Ball of Confusion

1.) The most rocking-ness that the Temptations ever had.
2.) [to prove the point Anthrax covered this song, and it was good, but not as good as the original. And this is coming from a serious Anthrax fan.]
3.) While the song is probably 30 years old, almost every lyric is as timely today as it was the day it was written.

Anything by AC/DC

1.) Because the only band that rocks close to the level of AC/DC is Motorhead and someone already suggested that.
2.) Because AC/DC is all about The Rock. And if you are willing to wreck your voice for a couple of days... easily reproducible
3.) If the Karaoke bar is really as good as you implied, they will have Ride On , the slowest of AC/DC's songs, and easily the most singable [also one of the most under-rated]

Queen

1.) The fact is, you don't have the voice of Freddie Mercury, but if you are willing to train-wreck in front of everyone [purely for the amusement of the crowd,] there are a TON of great Queen songs that you could embarrass yourself with
2.) i would suggest Keep Yourself Alive or Dragon Attack
posted by quin at 10:33 PM on April 8, 2006


Alt. rock and hip-hop are my purview at karaoke, and these are some of the songs I've performed.

Bloodhound Gang
Songs: The Bad Touch, Ballad of Chasey Lain
(Obviously not for polite company. For raucous drunken company, however, hell yes.)

Cake
Songs: The Distance, Short Skirt Long Jacket
(Straightforward, fun, good for audience participation.)

Guns n' Roses
Songs: Mr. Brownstone, Paradise City, Welcome to The Jungle
(Requires screaming and some sort of sinus condition.)

Limp Bizkit
Songs: Rollin', Take A Look Around
(Nothing funnier than lousy songs performed well.)

Smashing Pumpkins
Songs: Bullet with Butterfly Wings, Zero
(More screaming than GNR.)

Stone Temple Pilots
Songs: Plush

Other potential leads:
Bush, Danzig, Foo Fighters, Nine Inch Nails, Nirvana, Red Hot Chili Peppers, System of A Down, Velvet Revolver.

On a side note, since you appear to be in Seattle, and the only place I know of in Seattle that has what could be accurately be described as a "huge library" is Seattle's Best Karaoke, I know for a fact that they have all of the above.
posted by Danelope at 2:49 AM on April 9, 2006


GnR's "Sweet Child O Mine" always goes down a treat, but screaming is a pre-requisite. If you can pull off the high notes, Led Zep's "Black Dog" and "The Immigrant Song" are also good fun and crowd pleasers.

Van Halen's "Jump", Deep Purple's "Smoke on the Water", Motley Crue's "Smoking in the Boys' Room" or "Home Sweet Home" for a ballad. Vionet Femmes' "Add It Up" and "Blister in the Sun" always gets people boogieing (well, all the 80s indie kids, anyway).

Might be a bit harder to find, but Steve Vai's "In My Dreams With You" (Devin Townsend on vocals) has also proved popular fo me.
posted by goo at 3:38 AM on April 9, 2006


...and that would be the *Violent* Femmes...
posted by goo at 3:39 AM on April 9, 2006


And The Clash - "Rock the Casbah" and "London Calling" have also been well-received.
posted by goo at 3:44 AM on April 9, 2006


I hope I never have to hear anyone singing GnR karaoke.

I got a really good crowd reaction singing David Bowie's "Space Oddity" at a karaoke bar in Amsterdam. You've gotta get into character a little, but lots of Bowie is really fun like that, and people dig it.
posted by ludwig_van at 10:37 AM on April 9, 2006


The Knack - My Sharona. Get your buddy alongside and harmonize.

The Damned - Jet Boy Jet Girl (but make sure you're OK with the lyrics beforehand)

Motley Crue - Girls Girls Girls

Loverboy - Working for the Weekend

Rob Zombie - Scum of the Earth, Superbeast, others

Public Enemy + Anthrax - Bring tha Noize (sp?)

Beastie Boys - Fight for your Right
posted by kurumi at 2:20 PM on April 9, 2006


Party Hard or She is Beautiful - Andrew WK
posted by wolfkult at 2:29 PM on April 9, 2006


Catherine Wheel: "Crank" or "On My Way Down"
Forty Foot Echo: "Save Me"

or if you really want to rock the joint...

Helmet: "Unsung" or Billy Talent: "Try Honesty"
posted by rinkjustice at 7:59 AM on April 12, 2006


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