Faster Pussycat

Most '80s hair-metal survivors are careful not to rock the boat, afraid of alienating the faithful that head out to see them play the hits. When singer Taime Downe reformed his old Los Angeles glam-metal group Faster Pussycat, though, he took the opposite approach, reinventing the band as an industrial act, playing heavier, electro-charged versions of old hits like "Poison Ivy" and "House of Pain." The new approach so alienated three former members of the band that in 2006 they started their own version of Faster Pussycat that played by-the-book versions of the band's old songs. Those members eventually relented, ceding use of the band name to Downe, who continues to tour and record with his latest lineup of Faster Pussycat. The band plays tonight at Whammy Bar, a new West Allis music venue celebrating its grand opening this month.