"I couldn't be happier," he continues, sounding the part while basking in the glow of a sold-out show in Pittsburgh the night before. "This is one of the best summers of my life."

And with that, Bach lets loose with the first of many mischievous cackles that roll out of chest with the loud report of a drunken marching band.

The guy is skilled at cracking himself up -- it's as if the world is his whoopee cushion -- and he speaks with such volume and enthusiasm, he's like a heavy metal cheerleader with a megaphone for a larynx.

Basically, he sounds exactly like Sebastian Bach should.

The dude's a banshee-voiced hell-raiser who doesn't cut his hair, doesn't shut up and doesn't take himself too seriously -- as evidenced by his latest hit single, "(Love Is) A Bitchslap."

This summer, Bach's opening up for Poison, playing packed gigs and loving it, though once upon a time, making the rounds with Brett Michaels and Co. would have seemed abhorrent to a guy who hates being associated with the '80s hair metal scene after having initially came to fame fronting Jersey rockers Skid Row.

Since splitting with that group over a decade ago, Bach has hit the road with brutes like Pantera and borrowed half his band from Judas Priest frontman Rob Halford's solo outfit.

Bach's latest disc, "Angel Down," is the hardest and heaviest thing he's ever done, a brash and snotty hard rock call-to-arms that's miles removed from the glam rock set.

"Ten years ago I wouldn't have done it," Bach says of touring with Poison, "because every interview I ever did it was, 'Nirvana's here, it's over for Poison and Skid Row.' I was having a tough enough time defending my band and myself, I didn't need to defend 100 other bands that I had nothing to do with.

"But that's a long time ago," he continues. "I'll tell you one thing, America loves Poison with Sebastian Bach. We are selling more tickets than the Monster Mayhem Tour with Slipknot and Disturbed. We're bigger."

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