Thursday
Jun042015
Twisted Sister With Mike Portnoy
Thursday, June 4, 2015 at 12:01AM
Twisted Sister recently performed with drummer Mike Portnoy for the first time. The band was at The Joint at the Las Vegas Hard Rock Hotel and Casino as part of the Metal Meltdown series. Extreme, Skid Row and Great White are also part of that series. Check out Twisted's AJ Pero tribute below.
Reader Comments (19)
* I do have one bone to pick. The story about when A.J.'s father died & he decided to stay on the road, is a flat out lie. AJ's father died in late December of 1984, they were scheduled to play Providence, Rhode Island on New Year's Eve. Having flown from LA. to NY, & then driving up the East Coast to that show, only to find a note on the Venue's door , I can tell you, that show absolutely WAS CANCELLED. AJ was a great drummer. There was no reason to fabricate a story to show how great he was.
How were the other bands?
It truly is astounding every time Dee Snyder opens his mouth, every syllable, even if he's just bantering between songs, bellowed with such sheer loudness and velocity. The guy is literally a fire breathing Rock & Roll dragon! And though he may be 60, he's not out of breath in the clip because of his age, it's because he gives himself over with such true passion, you can tell he gives it his all, leaving it all on the stage seemingly every night he performs.
That said, and with all do respect to A.J's legacy, for me personally, I've always found their music and lyrics overly simplistic. Say what you will about other bands of the era but there is just more going on with that of the likes of Cruë, Cinderella, Poison, Britny Fox, even RATT, though the latter's lyrics sometimes rival Twisted Sister's in stupidity.
And though I could also do without Mike Portannoy in yet another band, I am happy to see him fulfill A.J's wish and, no doubt, his own, since the video above is by far the most rocking moment of his career which is proof it's never too late, at least until he climbs back on stage with borefest, Winery Dogs.
p.s. Well, Ace, as usual, your story of your long trek to see them live only to find the show cancelled is testimony to your unwavering love of all things Glam Metal in it's heyday, but in the words of my Dad, "That sure is a long way to go for a drink." Couldn't you have just waited for them to return to L.A. to see 'em? Or was the allure of what awaited backstage just too hard to resist?, haha!!
And Mr. Metalboy!, you're absolutely right about Dee. Huffing and puffing is not a new thing for him. I clearly remember him having to catch his breath even way back in the day before TS was famous because he has always been such an intense performer.
Just playing devils advocate here..., perhaps his dad died and they played the night he died and cancelled a show for services like a wake or funeral. I don't know exact dates of death and their tour schedule.
Just may be this type of situation. Or not & Dee is lying pos
One other thing: The TS lineup you all know, is by no means the "original lineup". Dee is Twisted's 3rd singer, Animal is their 2nd bassist, Eddie is the 3rd lead guitarist, & AJ is 9th drummer. Only Jay Jay is an original member since the beginning.
p.s. And let us not forget Snyder's appearance in front of the PMRC!!!
But I have to ask again: how was the rest of the show in Vegas?
As for the Metal Meltdown show, It was good all around. Great White sounded good, & vocalist Terry Illous even mimic'd Jack's vocal inflections at times & sounded like Jack used to.
Skid Row was OK... Tony Harnell is obviously still getting used to being in this band, (It was his 5th show) Vocally he was solid, but he just seems to stand there a bit.
Extreme sound tight, & had a good show, They've just always bored me a bit.
I also, highly recommend to all that you check out the "VH1 Behind The Music: Twisted Sister". Their path to success Ace describes is an astonishing and inspirational one.
p.s. Ace, to say Extreme is boring is too kind. I happened to see these guys point blank at the The Cat Club in NYC when "More Than Words" was heading up the charts and the whole experience was almost unbearable, a feeling I did not display as the chick who got me in was a total fox and thought they were the greatest band ever. I was and still am very impressed with Nuno Bettencourt, however.
I have to ask, Ace: have you ever considered writing a book? It just seems like you could offer fans that sort of "fly on the wall"/"been there, done that" history. And with metal books being fairly popular right now, it would seem like a perfect time.
In the meantime, I've donated photos to other books that have already been published, like original Quiet Riot bassist Kelly Garni's book "Angels With Dirty Faces" which documents his time growing up & playing with the late, great Randy Rhoads. Well worth reading.
http://www.amazon.com/Angels-Dirty-Faces-Kelly-Garni/dp/1481194151
And you say you "started the process." So is a book in the works or is it something you would have to dig back up and start working on again?
Thanks for the tip on the book too. Once I work my way through my latest reading list, I will give it a go.
If this were a movie, we'd be in the storyboarding phase.
I will gladly buy it, read it, and review it when it comes out. Nice to hear you are still working on it.
Thanks again.
And, of course, tell others to buy it and read it.
I am also going to write my own tome someday, "Found Socks & Lost Receipts: My Adventures In Advertising". Believe it or not, there was A LOT of crazy sh*t went down in the 80's & 90's on Madison Avenue. Think "Madmen" on Steroids (and various other toxic substances), hahaha!!!