The Top 6 finalists performed material from the songbook of Carole King on this week’s edition of American Idol.
Rocker James Durbin took on “Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow?,” which brought rave reviews from the judges.
“I really liked the beginning of that,” said Steven Tyler. “You had me sold on it right at the beginning – when you didn’t play along with it – it was so beautiful. [When] people download that tonight – they’re gonna save that piece, right there.”
“You are going to be the star of the night with that one,” commented Jennifer Lopez. “It was amazing. When I think back - of every single week since we started the Top 13 - James has had a strong week, every single week. He has not blown one week. We talk about consistency on this show, and that’s what’s gonna win it.” “Tonight, you weren’t just a great rock singer,” said Randy Jackson, “Tonight, you proved that you are a great singer. That was, I think, one of the performances of the last couple of months. Not only the performance of the night and, you know what I think, guys, this guy just might win the whole thing.”
Dueling covers this week for Steven Tyler, as he’s set to appear on both Rolling Stone and People magazine.
The May 9 issue of People – on newsstands this Friday – features an interview with Tyler, with a cover byline that reads “The Aerosmith wild man on his four kids, eight rehabs and stunning comeback on American Idol.”
Sober for a year-and-a-half, the Aerosmith frontman – whose memoir, “Does The Noise in My Head Bother You?,” will be out May 3 – says he is "grateful" that he's survived several health problems, as well as his hard-partying ways.
"Left up to my own devices," says the singer, "I probably would have been dead several times over."
While drugs are no longer a part of Tyler’s picture, the feeling has been replaced by something else.
"If you think going out in front of high-def cameras and millions of people I'm not high on adrenaline, you're crazy," Tyler says. "I'm stoned when that curtain drops. I just don't snort the curtain dropping. I don't snort J. Lo either, though I do breathe her in."
Tyler’s new single, “(It) Feels So Good,” is due out May 10; an audio sample is available at Amazon.com here.
More details on the song and its history are here.
Steven Tyler w/Carrie Underwood – Undo It / Walk This Way 46th Annual Academy of Country Music Awards MGM Grand Garden Arena – Las Vegas, NV – April 3, 2011
And so it was – 20 years ago, when a Seattle-based band changed its name from Mookie Blaylock before taking on the world.
Pearl Jam have released a clip from the upcoming documentary "Pearl Jam Twenty," which will chronicle the band's entire two-decade career through interviews, rare footage, live performances and more.
"Pearl Jam Twenty" is due out in September from director Cameron Crowe. The film, an accompanying book, an upcoming two-day festival and recent reissues of PJ’s first three albums are all part of a 20th-anniversary celebration for the Seattle rockers.
Beyond the celebration of the band’s career in the rearview mirror, PJ are planning to begin work on a new album this year, Ament told Billboard.
"We did a whole bunch of demos and everybody's got a disc of 25 [songs] right now," Ament says of Pearl Jam's plans to hit the studio. "April will be the time where we get together and learn to play all these demos and figure out which 12-15 of them float to the top. Hopefully we can get something done this year."
"There's been so much focus on the past,” added Ament, “that I think all of us are really excited to make a new record and have something to look forward to because we've been digging in the boxes in our basement a lot the last year or so."
Singer Eddie Vedder is doing a solo acoustic tour and releasing a concert film of it, as well, this Spring.
The band was recently named winners of a 2011 Planet Defender Award by Colorado-based environmental organization Rock the Earth as part of their national Rock the Earth Day celebration. The honor recognizes Pearl Jam, and its individuals, for their dedication to environmental activism.
Across North America, it’s playoffs time and sports fans couldn’t be happier - between the NHL and NBA, things are heating up large.
ESPN and ABC have produced a special opening video for 2011 NBA Playoff coverage airing across the networks featuring Pussycat Doll Nicole Scherzinger and Jason Bonham performing the Led Zeppelin classic "Black Dog."
"Working with Nicole for the NBA Playoffs spot was amazing. She is the real deal," said Bonham. "Not only is she one of the most beautiful people I have ever met, but she has a fantastic and powerful voice. She has a great rock voice and it worked out fantastic for 'Black Dog'. I was so pleased to be able to bring this song to such a huge sporting event."
"It was an honor to join Jason Bonham on the iconic Led Zeppelin song 'Black Dog'," Nicole commented. "I am excited that fans will be able to see the video during the Playoffs."
Meanwhile, Bonham has some juggling to do this year: he’s touring the UK with Paul Rodgers this month, he’ll cover the US with the Led Zeppelin Experience in May, and then hit the US with Black Country Communion in June to support their new album, “2.”
Metallica, Slayer, Megadeth and Anthrax rocked more than 50,000 fans at the Empire Polo Grounds to its core last Saturday, just a week after the Coachella Festival took place on the same site in Indio.
This was the first Metallica show of 2011 and the first U.S. gig featuring The Big 4. It has been almost three years since the last large outdoor gig in the U.S. for the band; the last large outdoor concert was Ozzfest in August of 2008.
Fans were treated to rare, full version of “Orion” – the Cliff Burton-penned instrumental from “Master Of Puppets.” While the first half of the song was performed at two shows in 2005, this was the first time that the full version was performed in the U.S.
Metallica brought out members of Slayer, Megadeth, and Anthrax to perform a cover of Diamond Head’s "Am I Evil?."Dave Mustaine, Kerry King, Scott Ian, Rob Caggiano, Chris Broderick, David Ellefson, Frank Bello, Charlie Benante, Shawn Drover, Dave Lombardo and Joey Belladonna all participated in the jam.
The latest goodies for Metallica fans include audio of the band’s full set at Saturday’s Big 4 show.
Audio samples of Metallica’s set can be streamed at LiveMetallica.com.
Full-song downloads can be purchased for $0.99 each. Full shows can be downloaded for $9.95 and a high-quality FLAC version of the entire set can be purchased for $12.95.
Launched in March 2004, LiveMetallica.com initially sold downloads of nothing but full live sets of Metallica's concerts. In September 2009, the band responded to fan demands to purchase single tracks from the shows.
Fans can also visit "The Vault" section of the web site for free downloads of selected shows prior to 2004.
Metallica Big 4 - Empire Polo Grounds – Indio, CA – April 23, 2011
01. Creeping Death 02. For Whom the Bell Tolls 03. Fuel 04. Ride the Lightning 05. Fade to Black 06. Cyanide 07. All Nightmare Long 08. Sad But True 09. Welcome Home (Sanitarium) 10. Orion 11. One 12. Master of Puppets 13. Blackened 14. Nothing Else Matters 15. Enter Sandman
Encore:
16. Am I Evil? (Diamond Head cover) (with all 4 bands) 17. Hit The Lights 18. Seek And Destroy
Last week, legendary actor, recording artist and author William Shatner was presented with the Honorary Headbanger Award at the third annual Revolver Golden Gods Award Show, held at Club Nokia in downtown Los Angeles.
Revered for his role as Captain James T. Kirk on Star Trek, Shatner was on-hand to accept his award, an honor Revolver magazine bestows each year to someone who has made their name outside of the metal world but still embodies its spirit.
“When Revolver asked me to come down,” said Shatner, “it seemed like a natural thing to do – to go from Zakk Wylde to this. I’m just thrilled to be among this enthusiastic group of people filled with heavy metal emotion.”
Later this year, Shatner will officially prove the latter with his new album, “Searching For Major Tom”(formerly “Seeking Major Tom’), which features collaborations with hard-rock musicians including Ritchie Blackmore and Ian Paice of Deep Purple, and, on a cover of Black Sabbath’s “Iron Man,” Zakk Wylde of Black Label Society and Mike Inez of Alice in Chains.
Shatner gained a new appreciation for hard rock/heavy metal while making the album.
“It’s increased my awareness of the excitement of heavy metal music, the emotion behind it, and the expertise of the musicians. I like good music and this is what this is,” he added.
William Shatner – interview Revolver Golden God Awards – Club Nokia – Los Angeles, CA – April 20, 2011
William Shatner – Rocket Man Science Fiction Film Awards (1978)
Twisted Sister were out in full force Tuesday night, as they rocked a couple of songs on Jimmy Fallon’s show.
The band played two tracks: their massive 1984 anthem, “We’re Not Gonna Take It,” as well as “I Am (I’m Me),” an album cut off of 1983’s “You Can’t Stop Rock ‘N’ Roll” – a request by Fallon himself.
On Friday, April 29, Twisted Sister will perform at the Best Buy Theater in New York City to benefit The Pinkburst Project.
Created by Twisted Sister guitarist Jay Jay French, The Pinkburst Project is a collection of custom made guitars and amplifiers that have been built to both create awareness for The Ocular Immunology and Uveitis Foundation and be sold at auction to help raise funds for research, education and support for those affected by uveitis and other inflammatory eye diseases.
Uveitis is the leading cause of blindness among American girls; French’s daughter, Samantha, was diagnosed with it at age 6 during a routine eye exam. Thanks to early detection and treatment, Samantha stands a good chance of maintaining her normal sight for the rest of her life, even after going through 5 different cycles of chemo drugs in the past decade.
The Pinkburst Project one-of-a-kind collection includes custom made guitars from Gibson, Fender, Paul Reed Smith, Epiphone, Gretsch & Martin and custom amps from Marshall, Fender, Vox, Mesa, Orange, Hartke and Diamond. All will be offered for sale at auction during the Skinner Fine Musical Instruments Auction on Sunday, May 1, 2011 in Boston, Massachusetts.
Auction previews will take place at Skinner Auctioneers at their Boston location (63 Park Plaza). The preview dates and times will take place as follows (all times EST):
April 29: 12 noon - 7 p.m. April 30: 10:30 a.m. - 5 p.m. May 1: 9-10:30 a.m.
"The Pinkburst Project was my way of calling attention to the virtually unknown disease called uveitis,” says French. “In a world of cookie-cutter fundraisers, I wanted to do something that was different and really exciting, something that would get lots of attention with collectors of musical instruments, something never done before (and probably never again) and something that could hopefully raise a lot of money."
French commissioned the custom shops of the world's top guitar electric makers to replicate the color and style of his pink sunburst Gibson Les Paul.
The entire collection can be viewed online at www.pinkburstproject.org and will appear in Skinner 's catalog and auction previews in April.
Ozzy Osbourne’s South American tour in support of “Scream” continued this month with an April 16 show in Bogota, Colombia.
In the latest OzTV webisode, crew guy Big Dave takes us on a tour of Ozzy’s plane, guitarist Gus G. and keyboardist Adam Wakeman do some “Cocaine” backstage, and Ozzy brings a little friend by to show the guys.
Vintage Whitesnake is on its way, as the band releases "Live At Donington 1990," a DVD/double CD set available on June 3 in Europe and June 7 in North America via Frontiers Records.
The August 18, 1990 show captured Whitesnake headlining the legendary Monsters Of Rock at Castle Donington festival (now known as Download).
Since the inception of Whitesnake.com more than ten years ago, this DVD has been the most requested product from fans of the 'Snake. The incredible, never-before-seen, visual footage captures one of the most musically intense Whitesnake lineups performing in front of more than 70,000 fans.
Whitesnake circa 1990 featured guitar greats Steve Vai and Adrian Vandenberg, bassist Rudy Sarzo, drummer Tommy Aldridge and, of course, frontman David Coverdale.
The "Live At Donington 1990" DVD also includes a substantial gallery of never before seen stills of the band on the "Liquor & Poker World Tour 1990," plus an intimate behind-the-scenes documentary of the making-of the "Slip Of The Tongue" album.
Whitesnake "Live At Donington 1990" will be available in 2CD set, DVD coverpack, combo 2CD + DVD in digipak and digital edition.
Meanwhile, Whitesnake’s new album “Forevermore,” is out now; the first single/video clip, “Love Will Set You Free,” sees Coverdale and the guys rocking out at the Crystal Bay Club in Lake Tahoe, Nevada.
Whitesnake begin their 2011 world tour with a headlining gig at the M3 Festival in Columbia, Maryland on May 14. "Live At Donington 1990" DVD track listing:
01. Slip Of The Tongue 02. Slide It In 03. Judgement Day 04. Slow An Easy 05. Kitten's Got Claws 06. Adagio For Strato 07. Flying Dutchman Boogie 08. Is This Love 09. Cheap An' Nasty 10. Crying In The Rain (featuring Tommy Aldridge drum solo) 11. Fool For Your Loving 12. For The Love Of God 13. The Audience Is Listening 14. Here I Go Again 15. Bad Boys 16. Ain't No Love In The Heart Of The City 17. Still Of The Night 18. Bonus content: The Making of Slip of the Tongue; Slide Show
"Live At Donington 1990" CD 1 track listing:
01. Slip Of The Tongue 02. Slide It In 03. Judgement Day 04. Slow An Easy 05. Kitten's Got Claws 06. Adagio For Strato 07. Flying Dutchman Boogie 08. Is This Love 09. Cheap An' Nasty 10. Crying In The Rain (featuring Tommy Aldridge drum solo) "Live At Donington 1990" CD 2 track listing:
01. Fool For Your Loving 02. For The Love Of God 03. The Audience Is Listening 04. Here I Go Again 05. Bad Boys 06. Ain't No Love In The Heart Of The City 07. Still Of The Night
Whitesnake Whitesnake – Slip Of The Tongue Monsters Of Rock Castle Donington – Leicestershire, UK – August 18, 1990
New filmmaker Jack Osbourne is establishing himself in the field as producer of the God Bless Ozzy Osbourne documentary, which debuted Sunday at the 10th Annual Tribeca Film Festival in New York.
Expected in theatres later this year, the Ozzy feature is the first venture for Osbourne’s Jacko Productions.
And now comes word that Jack’s second project will also be something with ties very close to home: a horror film called “Black Sabbath” that will feature music from the legendary band.
"Jack and I are about to do a horror movie called Black Sabbath, so there's some connective tissue there," God Bless Ozzy Osbourne co-producer Marc Weingarten told WENN following Sunday’s premiere. “Just the music of Black Sabbath is in the movie, but it’s not about the band.”
While he wouldn’t reveal any plot details, and admits that none of the cast has been assembled yet, Weingarten does have a schedule in mind. “We’ll start shooting by the end of the year,” he said.
The project may be linked to something Sabbath guitarist Tony Iommi was involved with in recent years.
In 2009, the Guardian reported that Iommi had teamed up with TV producer Mike Fleiss to conceive and write music for a series of films called "Black Sabbath."
The films "won't be about the group [Black Sabbath] but will use the title as a jumping-off point," said Iommi.
Fleiss had previously produced Hostel and Hostel 2, as well as 2006's Texas Chainsaw Massacre remake.
A few months back, Dave Grohl teamed up with former Nirvana bassist Krist Novoselic (and guitarist Pat Smear, currently a Foo Fighter himself) and the Foos, and ran through a jam on the Nirvana classic,
The Pulse Of Radio reports that, in a new interview with Entertainment Weekly, Grohl says it was the first time in almost two decades since he had played the song.
"The day we finished the record [“Wasting Light”], we had this club gig to do,” explains Grohl. “It was in this little bar down the street, a surprise show. I invited Krist to come down and play a song. We wanted to play 'Marigold,' which was the B-side of the 'Heart-Shaped Box' single, and it was the only Nirvana song I sang."
"So, we go to the studio that day to practice,” continued Dave. “We run though the song once and then Krist says, 'Hey you guys want to do some moldy oldies?' Me and Pat look at each other and go, 'Okay, what do you want to do?' He says, 'Let's do 'Smells Like Teen Spirit.' I hadn't played that song in 18 years . . .We ended the song and look at each other like, 'That was strange.' We walked out and (the studio manager) looked at us and said, 'Yeah, it sounded pretty good. You guys should keep that."“Smells Like Teen Spirit.”
Grohl, Novoselic and Smear last played together in 1994 on Nirvana's final tour, after which frontman Kurt Cobain took his own life, in April of that year. "Wasting Light" flew off store shelves last week, selling 235,000 copies Stateside, enough to give the Foo Fighters their very first #1 album on the Billboard chart.
Some details have leaked out on Kasabian’s plans for their new record.
Although the album is still being finished and is currently untitled, a Sony/BMG representative told This Is Leicestershire that plans to release it have now been put in place.
"They're still working on it, although it's nearly finished,” the record label rep said. “They're mixing it. I can't tell you who's producing it – it's secret – and I can't even give you a clue about what it sounds like because we haven't heard it."
The UK rockers have been recording in San Francisco and Los Angeles.
Whatever happens in the studio, it will sound better live, says guitarist Serge Pizzorno. "I just want people to come away from it going 'Yep, great album. It's different, I love it. Let's go and see 'em live. Thank you'."
Check out more of Pizzorno’s thoughts at This Is Leicestershirehere.
Journey fans won’t have to wait much longer for the band’s new album, “Eclipse.”
The disc is set for release in the US and Canada on May 24th, exclusively at Walmart, and beginning June 3rd in Europe on Frontiers Records.
The 12 tracks were written over the past 18 months by the core team of guitarist Neal Schon and keyboard player Jonathan Cain, with collaboration from singer Arnel Pineda.
“You know, I think it’s our new 'Escape' [1981], our new 'Frontiers' [1983] just brought up to date,” says Schon. “We travelled in some different places and we weren’t afraid of it. I think the result is great: it’s more of a mystical record than a pop record. There’s a lot of hooks, but there’s a lot of power, and there’s a lot of orchestration. It’s real cinematic-sounding; everything is real big, like the places we’re about to play.”
Journey kick off their tour on June 4 with a series of UK dates featuring Foreigner and Styx; following that, Journey hit North America with Foreigner and Night Ranger for at least the next three months, starting July 21 in Salt Lake City.
The band has released their EPK (Electronic Press Kit) for “Eclipse” – check out it:
R.E.M.’s videos for songs from their newest release, “Collapse Into Now,” continue to surface.
Frontman Michael Stipe oversaw a plan to have noted filmmakers create videos for each of the disc’s 12 tracks. “It was my idea to bring a very 20th Century idea – album - into the 21st Century,” said Stipe, “by asking artists and filmmakers to create a film for each song on the new R.E.M. record.”
Tuesday, the band premiered a clip on YouTube for “Every Day Is Yours To Win,” directed by Jim McKay, Chris Moukarbel and Valerie Veatch.
According to McKay, the video is comprised completely of YouTube clips, so it was fitting that, as an interesting addition to the launch, Stipe and McKay posted an introduction to the video itself on YouTube, as well, where they outlined the playlist of material used in the footage.
R.E.M. – Michael Stipe and Jim McKay Introduce premiere of Every Day Is Yours To Win (April 26, 2011)
With the help of some crafty maneuvering by his lawyers, an oversight by the District Attorney, and a case of “revolving” Judges, Neil has fulfilled the requirements of his DUI sentence in Las Vegas.
The Las Vegas Sun reports Neil’s attorney, David Schonfeld, was in a Vegas courtroom Tuesday for a hearing to check the status of Neil’s progress in regards to his sentencing.
Schonfeld told Justice of the Peace Eric Goodman that Neil had completed all of the requirements of his sentence, which ordered him to serve 15 days of jail time, 15 days of house arrest, pay a $585 fine, attend DUI school and attend a victim-impact panel online.
The prosecutor asked whether Neil had also stayed out of trouble, a question that appeared to be in reference to the recent charges Vince faces as a result of an March 24 confrontation he had involving his former girlfriend, Alicia Jacobs. Neil has been charged with battery domestic violence and disorderly conduct stemming from that incident at the Las Vegas Hilton.
"There was no stay out of trouble order, your honor," Schonfeld told the judge.
Schonfeld said the transcripts from the sentencing hearing show staying out of trouble for a probationary period of time wasn't part of the sentence package, the result of a plea agreement that had been reached between Neil's attorneys and District Attorney David Roger earlier this year.
Goodman, who appeared surprised, asked Schonfeld whether he had a copy of the transcript; Schonfeld brought a copy to the bench and directed him to the fourth page of the transcript.
"Mr. Schonfeld, you are correct. There is no stay out of trouble order. That closes it out today," Goodman said.
Although Goodman's department handled Neil's case, a different judge handled Neil's actual sentencing on Jan. 26. Neil came to court early that day and at the request of his attorneys, his case was moved up and was heard early by Justice of the Peace Pro Tem Gerry Zobrist.
Blink-182 drummer Travis Barker enlisted the help of many artists when putting together his new solo album, “Give The Drummer Some.”
For starters, Barker invited some of his favorite visual, street, tattoo and graphic artists to create individual artwork for each track on the record.
A range of musical talent got involved, from Lil’ Wayne, Snoop Dogg and Busta Rhymes to Tom Morello, Corey Taylor and Slash, among others.
Slash makes a guest appearance on the song "Saturday Night," teaming up with punk rock/rap supergroup The Transplants.
Slash joined Barker and the band recently to shoot a video for"Saturday Night."
Released last month, “Give The Drummer Some” debuted at #9 on the Billboard chart, selling 28,000 copies in its first week.
Barker is on the road right now opening for Lil’ Wayne on the I’m Still Music Tour, and they’ll be playing shows in Western Canada this week, including Vancouver (27), Edmonton (28) and Calgary (29).
Earth Day brought some good news and recognition to Pearl Jam, who were named winners of a 2011 Planet Defender Award by Colorado-based environmental organization Rock the Earth as part of their national Rock the Earth Day celebration.
In the Artist category, Pearl Jam has, over the course of a 20 year career, not only set the bar high in the world of rock music, but also in their dedication to environmental activism.
Lead singer Eddie Vedder often participates in fundraisers and benefits for environmental groups like the Kelly Slater Foundation and Jack Johnson's Kokua Hawaii Foundation. He and the rest of Pearl Jam have donated money to groups that focus on climate change and other environmental concerns. Vedder is also a surfer and active in surf-related conservation efforts, most notably Surfrider Foundation.
Guitarist Stone Gossard has been active in environmental pursuits, and has been an advocate of Pearl Jam's carbon neutral policy, offsetting the band's environmental impact. Spearheaded by Gossard, the band established a Carbon Portfolio Strategy, Pearl Jam's ongoing efforts to advance clean renewable energy and carbon mitigation. Through this Strategy, the band has donated more than $150,000 to nine organizations doing innovative work around climate change, renewable energy, and the environment.
By working with these organizations to mitigate carbon emissions, Pearl Jam ultimately hopes to become 0% net emissions for all tours and band businesses. A committed environmentalist, Stone has quietly worked to use this influence to effect change locally and internationally through direct involvement in many environmental issues through his work with the Wild Salmon Center, Conservation International, Cascade Land Conservancy, New Apollo Energy Project, and Honor the Earth.
In 2010, the band announced they would mitigate carbon emissions from their 2009 Backspacer Tour by donating $210,000 towards planting trees in the area of Puget Sound, Washington. RtE applauds Pearl Jam for setting a stellar example of how to Rock the Earth in a conscientious manner.
Other winners included environmentalist Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., and Josh Fox, the Director of the Academy Award nominee documentary "Gasland." Planet Defender recipients are nominated by Rock the Earth members and chosen by Rock the Earth's National Volunteer Staff.
Rock the Earth is a not-for-profit, national public interest environmental advocacy organization, committed to protecting and defending America's natural resources through partnerships with the music industry and the worldwide environmental community.
I’d share a link to the Planet Earth website but, every time I visited there, my system flagged and caught a virus alert, so just a note to be careful out there.
God Bless Ozzy Osbourne, a new documentary about - guess who - debuted Sunday at New York’s 10th Annual Tribeca Film Festival.
The Osbourne clan was out in full force: Ozzy, Sharon, Jack and Kelly.
Directed by Mike Fleiss and Mike Piscitelli and co-produced by Jack Osbourne, the film marks the first release by Jack's production company, Jacko Productions.
At the premiere screening, Ozzy, Jack, Fleiss and Piscitelli took part in a question-and-answer session, which was also attended by Robert De Niro and Marky Ramone.
Ozzy’s lengthy career, full of headline-making events, and breaking through his father’s guarded public image were challenges for the producers to address, right from the start.
“I think the hardest part,” said Jack, “was…two things: at the beginning, was getting Dad to really open up and drop ‘Ozzy’ and become ‘John’; and also, figuring out how the hell to we were going to tell 62 years in 90 minutes. There’s so much stuff we had to leave out ‘cause the movie would have been 5 hours long.”
God Bless Ozzy Osbourne Q & A session Tribeca Film Festival – New York, NY – April 24, 2011
Jimmy Kimmel had some fun with Sammy Hagar this week, as the Red Rocker stopped by to plug his new autobiography, "Red: My Uncensored Life In Rock."
Hagar joined Jimmy for a regular interview, talking about the book’s #1 debut on the New York Times nonfiction hardcover best sellers list, his career, his Van Halen stories and his alien visitations.
Sammy was good-natured enough to join in for a reenactment of his alien experience, which Hagar claimed happened in his early 20s.
Sammy Hagar – interview Jimmy Kimmel Live! – April 19, 2011
Sammy Hagar – alien reenactment Jimmy Kimmel Live! – April 19, 2011
As the lone rocker on American Idol this season, James Durbin has been making a real name for himself and fans are taking notice, as he tops the hennemusic Hot 10 this week.
For “21st Century songs” night on Wednesday, Durbin tackled Muse’s “Uprising,”displaying a post-apocalyptic visual for himself as he was surrounded by marching band drummers.
From setting pianos on fire to having Zakk Wylde sit in on guitar in recent weeks, Durbin is on the rise and presents one of the strongest contenders for the Idol crown with the May 25 finale on the horizon.
The HH10 is a list of the most-viewed rock news stories in the past week by hennemusic readers.
Major rock news this week included a gracious gesture by Aerosmith's Steven Tyler, who teamed with the Passages Hospice Dream Foundation recently to honor a dying fans’ wish by meeting him before he passed.
Metallica fans got word that the band has been confirmed for the Quebec Summer Festival (Festival d'été de Québec) on July 16 in Québec City, Québec, Canada. News of the initial buzz about the possibility of the metal icons’ involvement was the #5 story this week, while the actual confirmation came in at #3. Quebec will rock, indeed, this summer.
A February item on Van Halen’s latest album project has been rediscovered by hennemusic readers this week, who brought the story back to life, pushing it into the #4 spot.
Other big stories included a KISS recording update from guitarist Tommy Thayer, more summer tour dates for Ted Nugent, a Freddie Mercury tribute planned for this fall’s Rock In Rio, and the shocker of the week: guitarist K.K. Downing’s retirement from Judas Priest.
Club Nokia in Los Angeles was definitely rocking last Wednesday, as the hard rock and metal community gathered for the third annual Revolver Golden God Awards.
Lotsa collaborations happened over the course of the evening – everything from Sebastian Bach doing Skid Row’s “Youth Gone Wild”with Asking Alexandria; Scott Ian of Anthrax covering Dusty Springfield’s “I Only Want To Be With You” with Volbeat, and Avenged Sevenfold rocking Guns N’ Roses “It’s So Easy” with Duff McKagan.
When McKagan’s Loaded hit the stage, they were joined by Sex Pistols guitarist Steve Jones and Slipknot/Stone Sour vocalist Corey Taylor for a crack at Judas Priest’s “Electric Eye,” which originally appeared on 1982’s “Screaming For Venegeance” album.
Priest are launching their Epitaph tour June 7 in Holland; it is being billed as the band’s final tour. This past week, Priest announced the retirement of guitarist K.K. Downing after almost 40 years with the group; he’ll be replaced by 31 year-old British guitar player Richie Faulkner(Dirty Deeds, Voodood Six, Lauren Harris), who has reportedly already blended seamlessly into the band.
The Epitaph Tour will include songs from every Priest studio album as well as tracks that they have never before performed on stage - plus all the classics.
Duff McKagan’s Loaded – Electric Eye With guests Corey Taylor and Steve Jones Original by Judas Priest Revolver Golden Gods Awards Club Nokia – Los Angeles, CA – April 20, 2011
Duff McKagan’s Loaded – Electric Eye With guests Corey Taylor and Steve Jones Original by Judas Priest Revolver Golden Gods Awards Club Nokia – Los Angeles, CA – April 20, 2011
Metallica’s influence on society is real, of course, but like layers of inspiration, some are more obvious to others than not.
Take actor Joseph Gordon-Levitt's portrayal of a troubled heavy metal fan in the new film, “Hesher”; the actor admits he based much of his title character's behavior on late Metallica bassist Cliff Burton, who died when the band's tour bus crashed in Sweden in 1986
While the general public likely won’t make the Burton/Hesher connection, Gordon-Levitt’s performance was a success to some key figures: Metallica.
Joseph said he was stunned when his rock idols recognized the similarities without prompting. "They dug the movie,” he said. “And when the band saw it, they were like, 'You know what, he reminds us of Cliff,' and we didn't even tell them that's what we were going for.”
The metal icons rarely allow their music to be used for other projects, but Metallica made an exception when they saw Gordon-Levitt in the dark drama.
“They let us use their songs, and I was actually moved because I grew up headbanging to Metallica," said the actor. “It was a real honor.”
The star relived his teenage years as a heavy rock fan during an appearance on Conan O’Brien’s show on Thursday, when he donned a blond wig and demonstrated his headbanging skills - tossing a glass table and smashing a glass vase in the process.
American Idol 
