Twisted Sister

For other uses, see Twisted Sisters.

Twisted Sister
Twisted Sister at Wacken Open Air 2016
Twisted Sister at Wacken Open Air 2016
Background information
Also known as
  • Bent Brother
  • Silverstar
OriginHo-Ho-Kus, New Jersey, U.S.
Genres
Years active
  • 1972–1988
  • 1997
  • 2001
  • 2003–2016
  • 2023
Labels
Past members See List of Twisted Sister members for others
Websitetwistedsister.com

Twisted Sister was an American heavy metal band formed in 1972 in Ho-Ho-Kus, New Jersey, and later based on Long Island, New York.[1][2] Their best-known songs include "We're Not Gonna Take It" and "I Wanna Rock", both of which were associated with music videos noted for their sense of slapstick humor.

Twisted Sister evolved from a band named Silver Star, and experienced several membership changes before settling on the classic lineup of Jay Jay French (guitars), Eddie "Fingers" Ojeda (guitars), Dee Snider (lead vocals), Mark "The Animal" Mendoza (bass), and A. J. Pero (drums) in 1982. It was this lineup which recorded the band's first four albums. Twisted Sister's first two albums, Under the Blade (1982) and You Can't Stop Rock 'n' Roll (1983), were critically well-received and earned the band underground popularity. The band achieved mainstream success with their third album, Stay Hungry (1984), and its single "We're Not Gonna Take It", which was their only Top 40 hit on the Billboard Hot 100. Their next two albums, Come Out and Play (1985) and Love Is for Suckers (1987), did not match the success of Stay Hungry, and Twisted Sister disbanded in 1988.

The band briefly reunited in the late 1990s before more permanently reforming in 2003. The band released two more albums: Still Hungry (2004), a rerecording of their third album, and the Christmas album, A Twisted Christmas (2006). Following Pero's death in 2015, the band embarked on a farewell tour and broke up again after completing the tour in 2016.

Although Twisted Sister is often regarded as glam metal due to its use of makeup,[3] Snider considers the term to be inappropriate.[4] Twisted Sister is also ranked No. 73 among VH1's 100 greatest artists of hard rock.[5]

  1. ^ Brian Aberback (June 13, 2015). "Twisted Sister to play benefit concert for longtime drummer who died this year - Music". NorthJersey.com. Retrieved March 14, 2016.
  2. ^ Brian Aberback (February 17, 2016). "Twisted Sister Documentary Chronicles Band's Early Days". Patch.com. Retrieved March 14, 2016.
  3. ^ "Norway Rock 2010". Deesnider.com. July 7, 2010.
  4. ^ "CD Gallery - Twisted Sister". Nolifetilmetal.com. Retrieved July 10, 2010.
  5. ^ "VH1's 100 greatest artist of hard rock". Lounge.moviecodec.com. Archived from the original on December 25, 2015. Retrieved March 26, 2015.