Twisted Sister Singer Goes To 'Strangeland'

10/01/1998 9:00 PM, Yahoo! Music
Craig Rosen

(10/1/98, 6 p.m. PDT) - Who could have guessed it? Nearly 15 years after Twisted Sister frontman became a household name via the single and video of "We're Not Gonna Take It," Dee Snider has turned himself into a Renaissance man.

The horror flick Dee Snider's Strangeland, which opens Oct. 2, was written and co-produced by the rocker, who also stars in the film. In addition, Snider served as the co-executive producer of the soundtrack, which features him as a solo act and with the reunited Twisted Sister.

In addition, Snider hosts the nationally syndicated radio hard rock radio show, House Of Hair. With all this activity, it seems as if Snider is ready to give his pal Howard Stern a run for the "King Of All Media" title.

"We've been friends for a long time and we are very similar people," Snider says of Stern. "We're about the same age, we grew up in neighborhoods right next to each other, and we are creative on many levels. He came out as a shock-jock and I came out as a shock-rocker. He is slowly convincing people that he is capable of a lot more, and the same goes for me."

However, success in the film world hasn't come easy for Snider. Since catching the writing bug in 1985, he's written five screenplays, including Strangeland, which he penned in 1994. In the film, Snider plays the part of Captain Howdy, "a schizophrenic sexual sadist who lures victims in through the Internet and then forces them to submit to tribal rituals against their will," he explains. "No one dies, but everyone suffers. The first thing I do is sew their mouths shut so no one can scream."

The film is partially based on the Twisted Sister songs "Captain Howdy" and "Street Justice," which were re-recorded for the soundtrack by Dayinthelife and Crisis, respectively. Other acts on the 18-song album include Marilyn Manson, Pantera, Anthrax and Nashville Pussy.

"They basically gave me the music," Snider says. "This is on an independent label [TVT] and we don't have the budget that the major labels have, but they were awesome in giving me the rights for virtually nothing."

Then, of course, there's the reunited Twisted Sister, who got back together to record "Heroes Are Hard To Find." Says Snider, "I definitely approached this wanting Twisted to be Twisted Sister and not something that it isn't, so I wrote a real '80s, fist-in-the-air heavy metal rock anthem."

Making movies isn't too different than making music, Snider says. "In records you've got a producer, in movies they got a director. Your actors are your performers. Your production team is your engineers. There are a lot of parallels."

However, there are some differences. "Filmmaking is a much more collaborative effort...There's a lot more departments--your production people, costuming people, people who score the film, the sound effects people, the director, producer, and the actors themselves," he adds. "They all expect to be heard, and as a producer and a writer you have to be open to their ideas."

Although Twisted Sister reunited for the one track on the soundtrack, don't expect a full-scale reunion in the immediate future. "I'm really trying to make [music] a part-time event and make writing my full-time gig," Snider says. "But I expect to be doing Strangeland for awhile...I've been instructed to start on the sequel and I will begin writing very soon with the hopes of having the sequel out by the end of next year."

Adds Snider, "I'm really hoping to become the next icon of horror and as a writer-producer. Those are the two things I'm most interested in. The acting is fun, it's a cool thing to do, but writing, I can really sink my teeth into that."

Speaking of teeth, those following rock 'n' roll during the '80s may recall the Snider had his teeth filed to points. "I've capped them since then," he says. "My wife found them quite irritating. She gave me the choice between oral sex or an oral affectation...Interestingly enough, my character's teeth in the film are all filed to points and I had to wear a prosthetic."