It seems like only yesterday that I was raising a pair of horns to the “Stay Hungry” album here as a Music Milestone on the PiercingMetal Blog but wow that was five years ago and here we are at the thirtieth anniversary of the release. I wonder if you diehard fans are still yelling as loud as this album does at this point in time. I know that I cannot muster the strength sometimes so I figure I am not alone but I digress. In the milestone for year 25 I said “Let me hear you say “I’m a sick Mutha F**ka”!!!!” and I know that a handful or more of you just yelled at your computer screen. It’s alright, that is allowed these days. Now since most of my thoughts about the album are exactly the same, I have repurposed my views from the 25th anniversary and added a thought here and there. “Happy Anniversary” to this incredible release.

Historically speaking this is the third full on album by those bad boys of Rock and Roll and I am proud to say that by the time that it was released I was already a fan for a few years. I had picked up a copy of “Ruff Cuts” at the local record shop after seeing them on a late night variety program. I was also one of the select few Rockers in my high school so bands like Twisted Sister would come up in discussion since they were a NYC focused group much like KISS and the NY Dolls were. Anyway, that being said, despite this being the third album, this was the album that truly put Sister on the map. I remember being in my Dad’s car and the popular Rock station started playing “We’re Not Gonna Take It” which immediately got turned up to fifteen (exaggerating) and found me singing along with the oh so catchy chorus only seconds into hearing the tune for the very first time. It was a great time to be a young fan into the Metal and Hard Rock. Now back in this bygone era we also had the power of MTV and they played a LOT of Rock and Metal videos. My family didn’t have it yet in our area so a friend that lived in NJ called me up and pretty much described scene after scene to me so I would get a better idea. When I finally saw the hilarious video I knew in my heart that I was prouder than ever to be a fan of Twisted Sister. I was nineteen years old and a musician who had some rebel against the authority frame of mind in his head and while today that might be a terrible thing, you should know that back then all we did was have Rock and Roll attitude and being steadfast in our plans for greatness. If you were in the same age group as I was back then you will likely know exactly what I am talking about.
Continue reading Twisted Sister’s “Stay Hungry” – A Growing Metal Appetite @ 30 Years (1984-2014) →

Artist: Twisted Sister
Venue: Nokia Theatre Times Square (New York, NY)
Opener: Jim Florentine & Don Jamieson
Date: 12/6/2009
Label: Razor & Tie Entertainment
A few months ago I had the great idea about covering three distinct appearances in the NYC region in a 24 hour time frame and based on the timing and logistics of each place that I had to visit for that adventure it had been entirely possible to do. Such was the plan for my weekend once again as Winds Of Plague, Ensiferum and the mighty Twisted Sister all were doing shows within a similar space in time. Sadly the WoP show would not be made based on some dramatic schedule changes but the night and wee hours of the morning found me at the Ensiferum show and on its completion while I slept the rest of the dead, the visions of not only candy canes and sugar plumbs were going through my head but also the rousing dreams that were focused on the holiday madness of the Twisted Sister annual Christmas show. Tonight the Bad Boys of Rock & Roll would return for the second year in a row to the Nokia Theatre in Times Square to stuff our stockings in a manner that only they can do properly and when its all been added up this was the fourth year for the now holiday tradition to take place. Interestingly enough the band would opt to NOT have an opening musical act for this show and instead rely on the talents of comedians Jim Florentine and Don Jamieson who both act as co-hosts for the Eddie Trunk VH1 Classic program “That Metal Show”. I was told that each of them would do a short set of material and then we would get a little Sister going on, but my previous nights adventuring kept me from partaking in anything that they offered up. I asked some folks about it and some loved it while others chose to hang around with friends elsewhere until it was closer to the Twisted set time and even though this was the case the biggest gripe I heard was about too much dead time between any entertainment. The doors had actually opened at 6pm and Sister would not hit the stage until 9pm and that is a bit much if you asked me.
Continue reading Twisted Sister @ Nokia Theatre Times Square (12/6/2009) →
Let me hear you say “I’m a sick Mutha F**ka”!!!! You readers can respond whenever you feel like it but wow, how about that news – Twisted Sister’s seminal release “Stay Hungry” is now officially a quarter of a century old. I think I best leave it as “twenty five years old” because saying it the other way really starts to make me feel older than I am comfortable with realizing but that being said “Happy Anniversary” to this incredible release.
Continue reading Twisted Sister’s “Stay Hungry” @ 25 Years (1984-2009) →
Where Heavy Music & Pop Culture Collide