Friday, March 20, 2015

RIP A.J. Pero, Twisted Sister Drummer, Dead at 55



From Rolling Stone:
Longtime Twisted Sister drummer A.J. Pero has passed away, the heavy-metal act announced in a statement today. The Associated Press reports that Pero was found unresponsive on a tour bus in Poughkeepsie, New York and subsequently died of an apparent heart attack. He was 55. 
"Today, I lost a brother," frontman Dee Snider said in a statement to Rolling Stone. "Anthony Jude Pero passed away. A.J. was the final piece in a band that would become an international sensation and one of the greatest live rock acts to ever hit the stage. His sledgehammer assault on the drums helped drive Twisted Sister and me to greatness and inspired me to rock every single show. My heart breaks knowing I will never feel the power of his beat behind me, or turn to see his face smiling broadly from the sheer joy he got from doing what he loved. I will always remember that smile. R.I.P., my friend." 
"The members of Twisted Sister are profoundly saddened to announce the untimely passing of our brother, A.J. Pero," the band wrote on their official website (via Blabbermouth). "The band, crew and most importantly the family of A.J. Pero thank you for your thoughts and prayers at this time." 
Pero had been touring with a side project, Adrenaline Mob, at the time of his death. He was found on his bus unresponsive, so paramedics rushed him to a hospital but he did not make it, guitarist Jay Jay French told TMZ. 
"A.J. Pero was a force, the likes of which I doubt I will ever have the chance to play in front of again," French said. "His drumming was legendary, but his heart, as a human being, was even greater. In our hearts, he will always be the engine that drove the train.

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