Although Twisted Sister had been slugging it out on the New York-area bar/club scene for nearly a decade by the early '80s (developing a large following in the process), no major record label would sign the act. Noticing that England was in the midst of a heavy metal resurgence (dubbed the New Wave of British Heavy Metal), the quintet moved over to the U.K., where they recorded their debut album, Under the Blade, issued in 1982 on the independent Secret Records. UFO bassist Pete Way produced the album, which featured many of the band's best compositions from their club days. The chilling title track remains one of the band's best and has became a perennial concert favorite, while other metallic highlights include the opening "What You Don't Know (Sure Can Hurt You)," "Sin After Sin," "Shoot 'Em Down," and "Tear It Loose." The band also brings the volume down a notch or two with the slow-burning tracks "Run for Your Life" and "Destroyer," while the 1999 CD reissue on Spitfire included a bonus track not on the original record ("I'll Never Grow Up Now!"). Under the Blade remains one of Twisted Sister's hardest rocking albums and is highly recommended to lovers of early-'80s British heavy metal. ~ Greg Prato

Rovi