In a slight departure from past hip-hop-themed Players Balls, attendees waved their armband-clad arms in the air and cheered on Players Ball party founder Darren "D-Money" Blatt and his Tasty Testicles as they rocked classic favorites "I Wish I Was a Dog" and "Diarrhea." Fellow rock fans filled the private tables outlining the dance floor as they cheered the band on and got geared up for the Metal Skool performance of their lives.
As Metal Skool teased their hair and shined their guitars, the Miss VCX Cash bikini contest kept the dance floor packed as a handful of scantily clad beauty-queen hopefuls wiggled their asses as Pure Vanilla Vice President Kevin Blatt told the crowd a little bit about each girl.
And it was the members of Metal Skool itself who chose the winner, a petite brunette whose name didn't appear to be as important to the band as her willingness to grind up and down their microphone stands.
The crowd exploded when Metal Skool finally took the stage, and the band didn't hesitate to dive right into its 80s rock roots and played Def Leppard's "Pour Some Sugar on Me," Van Halen's "Jump" and Journey's "Don't Stop Believing."
Complete with leg kicks, hair flips and bright spandex pants with hair-band bulges, Metal Skool kept the crowd singing along until its grand finale, which brought lead singer Ralph Saenz, aka Michael Starr, into the crowd. Singing Guns N' Roses' "Paradise City," Saenz jumped onto the XBIZ table so company president Alec Helmy and his wife could help belt out the lyrics.
Attendees stuck around after Metal Skool had finished rocking the house, dancing to the beats of DJ Airek and making plans to keep on drinking and keep on believin' at the Hard Rock's Circle Bar.