He writes that the musicians may have "bar band roots", but on the album "the fun side of Twisted Sister is set aside in favor of something a lot darker", which brought to "a hell of a debut that not only connected with British heavy metal fans, but would eventually lead to a contract with Atlantic Records, paving the way to stardom a couple years later." Canadian journalist Martin Popoff considers Under the Blade "dead serious despite the garish imagery, a good four-fifths of it rocking with hellacious clout, attitude and clever economy" and remarks how the influence of Judas Priest is evident in Dee Snider's compositions. The album was ranked #24 on Metal Rules list of "The Top 50 Glam Metal Albums. In 1985 the member of the PMRC committee Tipper Gore (wife of Senator Al Gore), found that the song "Under the Blade" referred to "sadomasochism, bondage, and rape", promoting violence, while Dee Snider testified at the Congress panel hearings that it was "about surgery, and the fear that it instills in people", concluding that "the only sadomasochism, bondage, and rape in this song is in the mind of Ms. Gore." In 2005, Under the Blade was ranked number 387 in Rock Hard magazine's book The 500 Greatest Rock & Metal Albums of All Time. Track listing Special edition The special edition, released on CD, contains the original album, the complete and remastered Ruff Cuts EP, and an edited live version of "Shoot 'Em Down" from a UK sampler called "Reading Rock Volume One". Also, the appearance of Twisted Sister at the 1982 Reading Festival is on a bonus DVD, together with interviews from the band members. "What You Don't Know (Sure Can Hurt You)" – 4:46 "Bad Boys (Of Rock 'n' Roll)" – 3:21 "Run for Your Life" – 3:28 "Sin After Sin" – 3:22 "Shoot 'Em Down" – 3:54 "Destroyer" – 4:09 "Under the Blade" – 4:38 "Tear It Loose" – 3:09 "Day of the Rocker" – 5:02†† "What You Don't Know (Sure Can Hurt You)" – 5:32† "Shoot 'Em Down" – 3:56† "Under the Blade" – 4:41† "Leader of the Pack" – 4:01† "Shoot 'Em Down (live)" – 3:37 †from the 1982 Ruff Cutts EP ††"Day of the Rocker" contains few seconds extra after fade out (4:55 to 5:02) with the final phrase "Rock, Rock, Rock!" Personnel Band members Dee Snider – lead vocals, assistant