Live Band Karaoke takes the entertainment concept that’s been around since the 1990s — would-be singers taking the lead on pre-recorded tracks — and adds a human touch.

Singers get to front a four-piece band in this Chicago-based version, which comes to Penguin’s Comedy Club in the Freight House Complex in downtown Davenport tonight. It’s the first of at least three monthly performances with the next two May 22 and June 12.

“It gives a little more of a feeling of what it’s like to be in a band, as opposed to standing up there staring at a monitor and listening to a pre-recorded track,” said John Miller, who founded Live Band Karaoke seven years ago.

The concept has grown to four bands. The Karaoke Dokies, with a repertoire of nearly 300 songs, plays tonight.

An emcee passes out song lists at the shows and calls participants onto the stage.

“We do the best we can to make the person who gets up there and sings to look as good as possible, whether or not they are,” Miller said.