Following the massive announcement that former Skid Row frontman Sebastian Bach will be fronting Twisted Sister for a select run of fall 2026 shows, the singer has opened up about securing the blessing of the man he is replacing.
During a March 3 appearance on SiriusXM‘s “Trunk Nation With Eddie Trunk“, Bach detailed a deeply emotional 45-minute phone conversation he shared with iconic Twisted Sister vocalist Dee Snider, who recently stepped away from the band’s planned reunion tour due to severe health issues.
“Well, I have tears in my eyes right now. I am SMF Number Two. I was named that by Dee Snider. And I just have to say, I just got off the phone with Dee Snider. We talked for about 45 minutes, and we were both kind of getting teary eyed,” he said (as transcribed by Blabbermouth).
When asked to elaborate on the conversation, Bach shared the painful physical reality that forced Snider into early retirement from the stage, while also leaving the door open for a potential future cameo.
“I said, ‘I’m calling you in 10 minutes.’ He goes, ‘Okay.’ And I called him and he goes, ‘SMF Number Two.’ ‘Cause he’s always called me that. I’m a sick motherf**ker. I’m a sick motherf**king fan of Twisted Sister. And he’s always called me Number Two. Of course, he’s number one. And so I go, ‘Well, I guess I really am SMF Number Two.’ And then I asked him, what did the doctor say to him? And he’s, like, ‘No problem. I’ll tell you.’ He says that he has arthritis, that his knees are going out, and he has bone on bone. And the doctor said that he should not be jumping around. And he goes, ‘Well, that’s not an option,’ ’cause he wants to do the full show moving around and stuff, and the doctor said, ‘You can’t do it.’ So he said, ‘You have my full blessing.’ He goes, ‘I love you.’ I told him I loved him, and we were, like, teary eyed. And he told me that his family was crying when he said he couldn’t do the tour. I asked him, ‘Hey, you wanna come out and jam with us?’ He goes, ‘Yeah.’ He goes, ‘Yeah.’ So maybe he’ll be at some of these gigs on stage with us. Who knows? I don’t know if that’s gonna happen or not. But it’s tough getting older — it’s tough for everybody getting older, and I’m a lot younger. [Laughs]”
For Bach, getting that final stamp of approval was an absolute requirement before agreeing to front one of his favorite bands.
“That’s a sign of respect. I respect Dee Snider, I respect Jay Jay French, I respect Eddie Ojeda, I respect [former Twisted Sister members] A.J. Pero, Mark Mendoza, the whole team. And I’ve always been a serious fan — like, really serious. I don’t just like the hits of Twisted Sister. I like ‘Like A Knife In The Back‘. I like the heavy Twisted Sister. And I love ‘I Wanna Rock‘. I love ‘The Price‘. ‘The Price‘ is one of my favorite Twisted Sister songs. I love ‘We’re Not Gonna Take It‘. But the album You Can’t Stop Rock ‘N’ Roll, I would probably say, is my favorite one.”
Also appearing on the broadcast was Twisted Sister founding guitarist and manager Jay Jay French, who explained that the connection between the band and Bach stretches back decades.
“The other thing that’s fascinating is that we’ve known Sebastian for years. Going back, [Skid Row] were Atlantic Records band when we were an Atlantic Records band, and in 2001, when [American music industry executive] Jason Flom was being honored in New York City, Sebastian and we wound up doing a surprise one-off gig for Jason at the Tavern On The Green. If anyone ever said when would Twisted ever get back together, it’d be in the kitchen of Tavern On The Green restaurant in Central Park. And Sebastian came out and did that. And then shortly after that, Twisted Sister had a tribute album, which you remember a lot of artists played on that record. Motörhead played on it. Well, here’s the thing — Sebastian recorded ‘You Can’t Stop Rock ‘N’ Roll‘. So if you go online and you wanna hear how great Sebastian is gonna be, just put in ‘You Can’t Stop Rock ‘N’ Roll‘ and Sebastian Bach. And that’s Twisted Sister backing Sebastian Bach 20 years ago, which is actually mind blowing to think about the fact that you were our lead singer for a day 20 years ago, my friend. So then, of course, we played a whole bunch of other things together. We’ve been together, we’ve been connected in so many ways. We’re great friends, and he’s a great fan.”
French also noted that host Eddie Trunk was instrumental in putting this new collaboration together, encouraging the band to hold a secret rehearsal to see if the chemistry was right.
“But Eddie Trunk, you were on the money, because we did a secret rehearsal just to see if it was gonna be okay, if this could work or not. And you know what? Sebastian came in and just… I was skeptical. I said to myself, and [Twisted Sister guitarist] Eddie Ojeda and I spoke about this, and I bring Eddie Ojeda in here because Eddie and I go back to high school. And we made Twisted Sister what it is today. We played together and it was, like, ‘Wow. Do you think we could do it? Who could do it?’ And Eddie Trunk, you were dead-on right. Exactly dead-on right. Sebastian came in and just nailed it. And again, to all the skeptics out there who wanna know what it’s like to have Sebastian on vocals for Twisted, go online right now. Go to Spotify right now. Put in ‘You Can’t Stop Rock ‘N’ Roll‘ [and] Sebastian Bach, and you will hear Twisted Sister backing Sebastian Bach.”
Clarifying the upcoming schedule, French confirmed that all of the band’s previously scheduled European summer dates are officially canceled. Instead, the revamped lineup will honor six specific dates beginning in September, seamlessly working around Bach‘s solo commitments.
“The dates that we had [originally] booked in Europe [for] this summer are gone. We’re not doing those. Baz is coming in in September and we will be honoring the six shows that will be coming up on the web site. We’ll show you the shows, but it’s important for Sebastian Bach fans to know that all solo shows that Sebastian has booked are still in effect. I wanna make sure everybody understands that he’s gonna be doing our shows with us, and he’s gonna be interspersing those with his solo shows. So none of those shows are being canceled. We are just going to fulfill obligations that we had set up as we were heading into this thing towards the end of the summer. So all the summer dates that Twisted had listed on the web site, they’re gone. But I do believe that Alaska, that stayed up there, is gonna happen. And we’re gonna be doing about five or six shows from that point on, and Baz will be doing his solo shows. So understand when you see the setup, it’s going to be shows — I think we’re doing five in the U.S. and we’re doing one in Canada. And that is what we are doing so far. And then, of course, we will talk after that and see what’s happening. But Baz is coming in to do these shows for us, and we really couldn’t be happier, I swear.”
The fall 2026 touring lineup will feature Sebastian Bach on vocals alongside guitarists Jay Jay French and Eddie Ojeda. Filling out the rhythm section will be bassist Russell Pzütto (who tours with Snider‘s solo band) stepping in for Mark “The Animal” Mendoza, and drummer Joey Cassata (who played on Ace Frehley‘s 10,000 Volts album) replacing the previously announced Joe Franco.
