Some Skid Row Fans Still Think Singer Erik Grönwall is Actually Sebastian Bach
Hair metal icons Skid Row established themselves as a major player in the late ’80s and early ’90s due in large part to the talents of singer Sebastian Bach, who left the band in 1996 following the previous year’s Subhuman Race. The band went on a three-year hiatus following the departure of Bach and drummer Rob Affuso, but they reformed in 1999 and have been cranking out music with new singers since, a fact that is apparently not necessarily common knowledge.
In a recent interview with The Rock N’ Roll Coffee Show (via Blabbermouth), current singer Erik Grönwall—who recently replaced ex-Dragonforce singer ZP Theart and sang on Skid Row’s new record, The Gang’s All Here—discussed the fan reception to his joining up earlier this year.
“There’s so many different types of fans. I’ve realized that… ‘Cause when we did the show in California, [some] people came up to me after the show, and they were, like, ‘Sebastian [Bach], you’ve still got it.’ [Laughs] Yeah, that happened. Then you have the fans who still think that Sebastian is in the band, and then you have the fans who know the whole story.”
Grönwall also revealed in the interview that he isn’t bothered by fans clamoring for a Skid Row classic lineup reunion—which the band says will never happen—and he, in fact, understands why fans want to see Bach with the band.
“I understand the fan perspective of wanting the original lineup—I understand that—because I’m a Bon Scott guy myself. But I think that people are really excited about this new album, and I feel like even the people who want the original lineup are actually starting to approve. When I joined this band, I realized that it’s such a privilege to have people so interested in the band, talking about the band, discussing everything. A lot of bands would kill for that, and that’s a privilege. You have all these people talking about Skid Row and they like that singer or they like that song or they like that era, and that’s just incredible, having people so excited about it or hating it. [Laughs]”
Skid Row released The Gang’s All Here last week and it’s the best they’ve sounded in a while, so Grönwall’s presence is a very welcome change in the band. Here’s hoping the fans learn his name soon.
