Twisted Sister vocalist Dee Snider explained how the transition to grunge music affected him in an interview with Armchair MBA.
In the mid-80s, grunge music emerged in Seatle by combining punk rock and heavy metal. Self-doubt, social alienation, betrayal, and trauma are some of the lyrics’ themes in grunge songs. This genre started to become more popular with the contributions of Pearl Jam, Nirvana, and Alice In Chains.
Especially in 1991, Nirvana’s album called ‘Nevermind’ changed the direction of mainstream music. Grunge brought innovation to the rock scene after this album became very popular. In addition to their record, ‘Ten’ by Pearl Jam, Soundgarden’s ‘Superunknown,’ and Stone Temple Pilots’ ‘Core’ significantly contributed to the genre’s popularity. As grunge gained considerable success in the rock scene, hair metal’s popularity declined.
In a recent interview, Dee Snider explained how his music was affected by the rise of grunge in the mid-80s. As Snider stated, he had hardships even before grunge became popular. Mentioning that Twisted Sister disbanded, he tried to continue with Desperado and Widowmaker. According to the rocker, grunge was very different from the music they created in all ways. Snider walked away from the music scene while grunge became like medicine for the audience’s need for music.
Dee Snider explained in the interview:
“Well, no one saw it was coming, but I was already dead and semi-buried before grunge hit. Twisted Sister arrived in the early ’80s, and then we hit our stride in the mid-80s. By the late ’80s, the band had broken up, and I tried with a band named Desperado. I was sort of already removed as a featured artist by that point, and I was struggling, trying to find my footing with Desperado and then Widowmaker.
Then grunge hit, and I got the letter in the mail, a certified letter, ‘Dear Mr. Snider, we are no longer doing what you do. We don’t look like you, sound like you, sing like you, write like you, or perform like you. We actually don’t want anything to do with anything you ever did. Sincerely, the music-buying public.’
That’s when the bottom really fell out. I mean, imagine being a doctor who studied a form of medicine they got a cure for. Like you’re a cancer specialist. ‘Specialist’ is what you dedicate your life to, and you get a pill that cures, and the disease is now out of work. Grunge cured hair metal, and I was out of work.”
You can watch the entire interview below.
