Following the cancellation of their 2026 reunion tour due to frontman Dee Snider‘s health issues, Twisted Sister has found a vocalist to temporarily step in. Guitarists Jay Jay French and Eddie Ojeda recently announced that former Skid Row vocalist Sebastian Bach will front the legendary heavy metal outfit for a select run of shows this fall.
The band clarified that these upcoming appearances will not interfere with Bach‘s solo touring schedule, which remains completely unchanged. To build excitement, a short audio clip of Bach rehearsing with the band has already surfaced online.
Dee Snider officially resigned from the band on February 5, citing significant physical ailments that forced the cancellation of all scheduled dates from April through the beginning of the summer. However, the iconic frontman fully supports the group’s decision to press on without him.
During a recent appearance on the “Beardo & Weirdo” podcast, hosted by Five Finger Death Punch bassist Chris Kael and comedian Craig Gass, Snider was asked if he thought the band could continue without him.
“I hope so. I believe there’s gotta be somebody out there who can kick a**.”
When asked if he had a specific replacement in mind, Snider revealed a surprising piece of history involving Bach from several years ago.
“All right. Okay. Back it up. Back it up. So cut back to, we’re still reunited — it’s, like, 2014, something like that, and we only do, like, 20 shows a year, and they’re headlining festivals, whatever. And we realized that if somebody got sick or had a problem at home and they couldn’t do a show, it would be a great loss since it was one of 20 shows for the year. So we said, ‘Listen, let’s all find a stand-in guy who will do the job in case we can’t make a show.’ I was trying to get someone to replace me, in case we can’t make a show. I was trying to get someone to replace me, and nobody would take the job. And I called him Sebastian Bach. I was, like, dude, ‘Will you be the fill-in?’ And he goes, ‘No way.’ I’m like, ‘What do you mean no way?’ ‘Dude, that’s a thankless job. No, I’m not standing in for you. Never.’ I’m, like, you’re my student. You studied me. You’re a great singer. You can do it. People will love it.’ ‘Nah, nah, no way.’ So him, Michael Monroe from Hanoi Rocks. No way. I hear rumors that the band is actually trying to find someone, and I say, God bless ’em.”
Gass then mentioned hearing that the band was actively rehearsing with one of the singers Snider had just named. Acknowledging the rumors about Bach, Snider made it clear there was no bad blood between them.
“Yeah, I know there’s been rehearsals with him. And he hasn’t reached out to me. I think he knows he has my blessing. And I would never begrudge anybody continuing to rock.”
The initially planned 2026 reunion shows were set to feature the core trio of Snider, French, and Ojeda. Longtime bassist Mark “The Animal” Mendoza was not scheduled to participate, with Russell Pzütto—who plays in Snider‘s solo band—stepping in to handle bass duties. Meanwhile, Joe Franco, who briefly played with the band in the mid-1980s, was recruited to play drums in honor of the late A.J. Pero, who passed away in 2015 at the age of 55.
(Exact tour dates for the fall run with Bach have not yet been announced).
