AMERICAN IDOL's James Durbin Talks About Infiltrating METAL Into Mainstream Media!

On April 11, 2012, America’s only Hard Rock and Heavy Metal award show took over downtown Los Angeles! The fourth annual REVOLVER GOLDEN GODS AWARD SHOW presented by Epiphone® rocked out at Club Nokia in Downtown Los Angeles. For the first time ever, the event was broadcast live in its entirety on Xbox LIVE, as well as on the Xbox and Revolver Facebook pages.

Prior to the beginning of the awards show, we had the chance to chat with AMERICAN IDOL's James Durbin about being to infiltrate Heavy Music into one of the biggest shows in Television history. Durbin also talked about his experience of performing on national TV with Judas Priest and Zakk Wylde! During the chat he also commented on how mainstream media can open plenty of doors for artists that might otherwise not be heard. Here is our interview with James Durbin at the 2012 Revolver Golden Gods Awards.



Related links:
James Durbin's Official Site

Little Kids Pay Tribute To QUEEN A La WAYNE'S WORLD

So last night, QUEENS' Brian May and Roger Taylor, took over national TV on that show called "American Idol" (you might have heard of it). The legendary musicians were joined by some of the contestants of the show and performed the following songs:

The Show Must Go On 
Fat Bottomed Girls 
 Crazy Little Thing Called Love 
Bohemian Rhapsody

Speaking of "Bohemian Rhapsody", check out this kids paying homage to QUEENS' anthemic song a la WAYNE'S WORLD!





Related links:
QUEEN's Official Site

In This Moment Start Recording Sessions For NEW Album & Announce Lineup Changes!

California Rockers In This Moment, have entered The Hideout Recording Studio in Las Vegas, Nevada. The band will once again be working with longtime producer Kevin Churko (Ozzy Osbourne & Five Finger Death Punch). The bands fourth studio album is slated for a summer release via Century Media Records.

In This Moment recently lost two band members: Drummer Jeff Fabb and guitarist Blake Bunzel. The two talented musicians joined the backing band of James Durbin ("American Idol" finalist). Here is what the band had to say about this:

"We are embracing this change with open arms, and a renewed spirit… Sometimes you have to let go of what's in your hands to reach for something greater! In the meantime, we are back in the studio and the new songs are sounding better than anything we've done to date."

The bands latest album 'A Star-Crossed Wasteland' was released on July 13, 2010 via Century Media Records. The CD was recorded at The Wolves Den studio in Las Vegas, Nevada with producer Kevin Churko, and sold 10,500 copies in the United States in its first week of release to debut at position No. 40 on The Billboard 200 chart.

In This Moment's Discography:

- 'Beautiful Tragedy' (2007)
- 'The Dream' (2008)
- 'A Star-Crossed Wasteland' (2010)



Related links:
In This Moment on MySpace

Judas Priest on the Series finale of American Idol

Heavy Metal legends Judas Priest performed last night on the Series finale of American Idol. The Metal gods performed Judas Priest classics "Living After Midnight" and "Breaking the Law", alongside James Durbin (who finished fourth in the competition). While some out there might think that this is a disgrace for Heavy Music, the reality is that we should all be proud to see some of the ambassadors of the music we love, represent all of us in front of millions of people all across the world.

Some other Heavy Music icons that have been on national TV are:

- Zakk Wylde: American Idol
- Chris Jericho: Dancins with the Stars
- Ozzy Osbourne: The Osbournes
- Gene Simmons: Family Jewels
- Ted Nugent, Sebastian Bach, Jason Bonham and Scott Ian: Supergroup
- Evan Seinfeld: OZ and Supergroup
- Dee Snider and Jamey Jasta: Headbangers Ball

We think its time for all Heavy Music fans to start embracing such triumphs. Think about it, we are exposing our outcast music to millions of eyeballs, and by no means does this mean that the genre will become "mainstream". The other factor here is that American Idol is a great way for artists to promote their upcoming releases and tours, specially in times when most people are not investing money into the music industry by purchasing music, artist merchandise, or by going to concerts. Judas Priest announced their farewell tour last December (click here for dates), so it makes sense for them to be out there promoting themselves.

Here is Judas Priest on American Idol:



Related links:
Judas Priest's Official Site

Heavy Music for the Masses?

This past week Heavy Music was represented twice on national media, meaning that millions of people got a taste of the attitude that is a vital component of our scene. While some may say that the having Chris Jericho (Fozzy) on "Dancing With the Stars" and Zakk Wylde (Black Label Society) on "American Idol" is a horrible move for Heavy Music. We believe that if anything, it helps to get the word out about the impact of the music we love.


Television has always been a great medium for artists to promote themselves, hence why all the late night talk shows have actors, musicians and bands being interviewed and/or performing on their shows. And while some Heavy Music bands like Slayer, Lamb Of God, Mastodon, deftones, and Shadow's Fall, just to mention a few, occasionally get to perform on late night shows. It is not a an easy process for publicists to get our bands on those shows, since they have to go through lots of bullshit thanks to the social stigma that is part of our culture.


Our opinion is that if two of our Army members are featured on some of the biggest television shows today, we should all embrace the moment and see this as a very positive move towards exposing the masses to Heavy Music. Unfortunately, there are some fans that are very close minded and when an artists gets any exposure that's outside of the Heavy Music world, they start freaking out and calling the artist a "sell-out". This is precisely what happened to Metallica.

Our conclusion is that we should all support the artists that represent our scene and make all of us look good. For those who watched Chris Jericho and Zakk Wylde on national television this week, you know that they made all of us look good. If you haven't seen the clips, well check them out:

Chris Jericho on Dancing With the Stars:


Zakk Wylde on American Idol:


Photo credit: Music Photocalypse

Related links:
Chris Jericho
Zakk Wylde