If it's heavy metal teen anthems that you crave, then Twisted Sister is the band for you. And while most budget-priced collections usually leave out a few classics (to conveniently force the buyer to dig deeper in his pockets for a follow-up purchase), the Twisted Sister edition of the Essentials series surprisingly contains nearly all of the group's biggest hits. For a period of several months during 1984, Twisted Sister practically owned MTV, as a pair of humorous videos (patterned after Animal House) -- "We're Not Gonna Take It" and "I Wanna Rock" -- were aired incessantly. But the theatrical band seemed to fade from view just as it hit its stride. Hence, a collection like this comes in quite handy for a group like Twisted Sister. Included are the two aforementioned cuts, as well as two additional MTV-approved faves -- a cover of "Leader of the Pack" and one of their great anthems, the Motörhead-esque "You Can't Stop Rock & Roll." The wisely chosen album cuts also make this 12-track collection a pleasant surprise -- "Stay Hungry," "Under the Blade," "The Kids Are Back," and "Shoot 'Em Down" were all equally as worthy as the more renowned hits. True, this set would have been pretty darn definitive if it included "The Price," but as it is, it serves as both a fine overview and introduction.
© Greg Prato /TiVo