What if there was a karaoke session, but the only songs were by Meat Loaf?
Would it be Paradise or would you run away like a Bat out of Hell?
Comedians Lucy Best and Nicky Barry would do anything for love, and they have invented a highly specialised singalong subgenre: Loafaoke.
The pair will host a karaoke night at the Sydney Fringe Festival featuring all of the songs from singer Michael Lee Aday and composer Jim Steinman's 1977 debut album Bat out of Hell, sung in order from start to finish.
Barry was 13 when the seminal album came out on vinyl, and her teenage years were filled with the sounds of Meat Loaf on high rotation.
"Those albums that we listen to when we were first having teenage angst, romance and all those things, they stay with you," she said.
Best caught on when Bat out of Hell's follow-up, Bat Out of Hell II: Back into Hell, was released in 1993.
It's not just Meat Loaf's singing chops and showmanship that made him such a star - his underdog story resonated with fans too, Barry said.
"He talked very openly about how he was bullied in school for being overweight, and he overcame it and became a megastar and a millionaire," she said.
Barry also loves the drama of a good lyric, and her favourite of all time is from the closing song on the original album, For Crying Out Loud.
"Oh, I know you belong inside my aching heart; And can't you see my faded Levis bursting apart" it goes.
That's just a beautiful line, says Barry.
For those who don't already have the lyrics inscribed on their subconscious for better or worse, the words will be on a giant screen, with audience participation encouraged.
As for the host's favourite karaoke songs, none of them are actually by Meat Loaf. Best likes to belt out Alanis Morissette's You Oughta Know, while Barry can't go past Bonnie Tyler's Total Eclipse of the Heart.
Loafaoke played at the 2022 Melbourne Fringe Festival and the comedians hope to take it to others festivals around Australia.
The show is always different because so much of it is based on audience interaction, with participants onstage for their own moment in the spotlight.
And you don't have to know how to sing, says Barry.
"Karaoke is not about being good singer, it's about giving it a go and everyone joining in and having fun."
* Loafaoke is on from September 13-16 at the Sydney Fringe Cabaret Club's Reagh Bar.
