There was a time when Vegas entertainment was dominated by lounge acts, consummate professionals who could perform a range of cover songs while gamblers sipped drinks in between stints at the tables. Those acts still exist and even thrive in Vegas, but the heyday of the somewhat cheesy, somewhat smarmy lounge act has passed—at least in a straightforward sense. For nearly 20 years, Richard Cheese and his band Lounge Against the Machine have been resurrecting the full-on tackiness of lounge acts past, and applying it to modern rock and pop hits.
The band’s name references hard rockers Rage Against the Machine, and some of Cheese’s most popular songs include lounge-ified versions of heavy metal hits like Disturbed’s “Down With the Sickness.” Cheese songs have shown up in movies and TV series including Dawn of the Dead, The Leftovers and Dancing With the Stars, and the band members themselves appeared in animated form in The Lego Batman Movie. Cheese is getting ready to release both a retrospective box set and a memoir of his years with the band, making his career more successful and long-lasting than many actual lounge acts. He’s both a goofy parodist and one of the talented musicians keeping lounge culture alive.
Red Rock Resort, 8 p.m. April 27, starting at $39 plus tax and fee. 800.745.3000 Ticketmaster
