Send "Twisted Sister " Ringtones to your Cell 
| Popmatters |
 In 1982, Twisted Sister had been playing the bar circuit in the Northeastern United States for nine years, tightening and refining its sound and amassing a sizeable local fanbase, yet no record labels wanted to have anything to do with five ugly, foul-mouthed dudes from Long Island dressed in drag who played raucous heavy rock. Never mind the fact that they were very much loved in the New York area—in 1979 they played a sold out show at the 3,000-seat capacity Palladium despite zero airplay—compared to radio-friendly rock like Foreigner and REO Speedwagon and the new wave of pop metal prettyboys, the labels could see nothing marketable in Twisted Sister. So the band set out to the UK in search of a deal, and although their label, the punk imprint Secret Records, wouldn’t last very long after signing the band, in the end it wound up being the smartest thing the guys ever did.Recorded on a shoestring budget in a barn in rural East Sussex and overdubbed and mixed in too many English studios to mention, Under the Blade was a long, long time in the making, but Twisted Sister made it count, coming through with a hell of a debut that not only connected with British heavy metal fans, but would eventually lead to a contract with Atlantic Records, paving the way to stardom a couple years later. While 1984’s breakthrough Stay Hungry remains the band’s most famous album, ask any diehard “sick motherfucking friend of Twisted Sister”, and they’ll tell you that Under the Blade is its greatest moment on record. That statement has been rather difficult to defend as of late, as Under the Blade has been in and out of print in North America in various forms over the years, including the completely remixed US edition in 1985 on Atlantic, and a 1999 remastered version by Spitfire. The band and Eagle Rock have set out to get things right once and for all, and the end result, a terrific CD/DVD combo, turns out to be even better than we had anticipated....full text |
| Hardrockhaven |
| Formed in New Jersey in 1972, under the moniker Silver Star, the band aspired to be Jersey’s answer to the New York Dolls. Taking on the name Twisted Sister in ’73, the band was a revolving door of musicians banging out their existence by playing the local club circuit. Jay Jay French signed on in ’72, and Dee Snider became the band’s vocalist in ’76. Although the band developed a strong following in the Tri-State area, label interest was nonexistent. The band started its own independent label and released the singles “I’ll Never Grow Up Now” / “Under the Blade” in ’79 and “Bad Boys (Of Rock & Roll)” / “Lady’s Boy” in ’80, with Eddie Kramer producing. Still unable to garner interest from any recording labels, the band pulled up stakes and headed to the United Kingdom. Finally, in April of ’82, Secret Records, with a primary focus of releasing music from the punk genre, signed the band. To heighten interest in the band, the label brought in UFO bassist Pete Way to produce the debut album. With the bands line-up in place, Dee Snider – lead vocals, Jay Jay French – guitars, Eddie Ojeda – guitars, Mark Mendoza – bass and A J Pero – drums, and a recording contract attained, Twisted Sister recorded and released its first album, Under the Blade in 1982. Flash forward nearly 30 years, and the band remains intact, touring and creating mayhem. The album that launched their career, Under the Blade, has been repackaged, remastered and re-released as a CD / DVD Special Edition package by Armoury Records. Set to drop May 30, the CD features four tracks from their Rough Cutts EP and live version of “Shoot ‘Em Down” from the Reading Festival in 1982. The album’s original running order and original artwork has been restored....full text |
| Heavymetal |
| Eagle Rock Entertainment has remastered and re-released Twisted Sister’s 1982 debut album, Under The Blade, along with a DVD from 1982’s prestigious Reading Festival in England. It also contains four tracks from their 1982 Ruff Cuts EP, including their odd choice of a cover song in “Leader of the Pack” by The Shangri-Las. It also includes a live version of “Shoot ‘Em Down” from the Reading Festival. The EP tracks have never before appeared on a CD Under The Blade includes anthems such as “Destroyer,” Shoot ‘Em Down,” “Tear It Loose” and “Under The Blade.” Dee Snider’s commanding vocals, the twin guitar licks of Jay Jay French and Eddie Ojeda, the monstrous bass runs of Mark Animal Mendoza and the thunderous drumming of AJ Pero were unstoppable on this album. Their transvestite look combined with their melodious hooks and crushing rhythm section really set them apart from the other bands at the time. The DVD concert performance is a rousing daylight display in which the band tried their best to win the fickle Brits over, and they pretty much succeeded. The Reading crowd didn’t really know what to think of the band, but by the end of the set, they were quite pleased. The set list includes songs from Under The Blade, as well as a jaw-dropping rendition of The Rolling Stones’ “It’s Only Rock ‘n’ Roll” with guests Pete Way, Lemmy and Fast Eddie Clarke from Mötörhead. Dee and Co. can actually be credited for reuniting Fast Eddie and Lemmy for the first time on stage since Eddie split from the band. With three bassists and three guitarists on stage and once, it gets a bit crowded, and a bit sloppy, but the crowd loved it. Highlights of the show are when Dee challenges the crowd, who were throwing stuff at the band, to meet them after the show — even calling the British crowd pussies and wimps. That scene alone almost converted the crowd. In the interview segment of the DVD, the band talks about how they had to constantly duck and dodge fruit, veggies, bottles of piss, crap and eggs hurled from the crowd....full text |
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