Metal Sludge — In the latest episode of “Breaking the Band” on REELZ the feature group is Skid Row.
The hour long show features former vocalist Sebastian Bach along with Skid Row members Dave ‘Snake’ Sabo (guitars) and Rachel Bolan (bass).
Also included is the band’s former manager Doc McGhee.
The band and Bach have been split since late 1996 and this episode gives viewers a first-hand account from the band-members themselves and former manager as to why things eventually imploded for the group.
There are a list of questionable incidents over the roughly 9 years that they spent together, including the 1989 bottle incident in Boston that saw Bach get arrested and jailed.
The singer would later have to face a Judge in court, was fined heavily and forced to pay damages to the victims.
In the end that infamous bottle incident cost Bach $300,000.00 at the time, which in today’s money is closer to $700,000.00.
But Bach wasn’t in a position to pay it all, so it trickled down and the other members of Skid Row ended up paying a large portion of the costs as well.
Bach even admits that the band were not happy having to go out of pocket for his actions, but management sided it with being a band expense.
One online article put the figure at $500,000.00.
There were other serious run-ins like the night Bach called out and insulted tour headliner Jon Bon Jovi from the stage which resulted in Jon himself confronting the Skid Row singer after they got off stage.
That incident alone, nearly cost Skid Row their slot on that first and very important major arena tour.
Bon Jovi as most know is a child-hood friend of Sabo and the pair are still best friends 30+ years later.
Sabo later in the show talks about the incident that seemed to be the final straw.
In short, it was a voice message Bach left on the guitarist’s home machine 2 days before Christmas that cemented the fate of the group with Bach as their front-man.
Bolan and Sabo decided not to accept an offer to play the support-slot opening for Kiss as the band were not all getting along.
The Kiss reunion show was a huge deal that saw the return of Ace Frehley and Peter Criss rejoining Gene Simmons and Paul Stanley with costumes for the first time in over 20 years.
Skid Row were offered a date to play in their home town stadium in New Jersey but turned it down.
Bach upon learning that Sabo and Bolan had turned down the offer to play with their childhood heroes says: “I was furious, and decided I would call everyone and tell them how I felt.
Who are you to tell me, that I can’t play with Kiss? On the f#@king reunion tour, in New Jersey?” added Bach expressing his past anger at his band-mates.
This phone message was the catalyst for the decision to fire Bach.
Sabo talked about that message left by Bach saying: “I got on the phone, (called Bach back) I said I got your message, I’ll never play in a band with you again. And I hung up the phone.”
Watch the trailer below and check your devices for options to watch Breaking the Band on REELZ.
