On Nov. 12, 2016, Twisted Sister played their final show in Monterrey, Mexico. Having brought heavy metal to the masses for over 40 years, Twisted Sister will forever be remembered for their amazing career, but drummer Mike Portnoy told us the exclusive story of Twisted’s “sad ending.”

Having recorded their last album of original material in 1987, Twisted Sister were able to remain relevant strictly through the quality of their ‘80s releases and near-unmatched live show. It was an honor for Mike Portnoy to drum for Twisted’s final shows, even becoming the band’s first member to sport a tattoo of the TS logo.

“Some of the most amazing career memories that I’ve ever had were these last shows with them,” Mike told us. “Some of those festivals in Europe (where Twisted Sister headlined over Iron Maiden) were just surreal.”

Before Twisted’s swan song gig in Mexico, guitarist Jay Jay French huddled the band’s members and crew together for a rare and emotional moment. “Jay Jay called everybody into the dressing room and gave a really heartfelt speech, both Jay Jay and Dee [Snider], and really poured their hearts out,” Portnoy revealed. “Jay Jay will probably get mad at me for saying this, but he got really teary-eyed and started to cry. It was really heartfelt and sad. I think that was when it finally clicked for those guys, like, ‘Oh my god, is this the last show?’ We went up there and we played and it was a great, great crowd — a great night in Mexico … It was a sad ending to an amazing career.”

Portnoy hopes there will be more shows down the line, despite Twisted Sister’s promise to call it a career, but as the drummer put it, “time will tell.”

Check out our chat with Mike Portnoy in the video above!

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