SEBASTIAN BACH 'Hangs' With 'American Idol' Finalist JAMES DURBIN

June 15, 2011

Former SKID ROW singer Sebastian Bach on Monday (June 13) got a chance to "hang" with James Durbin the 22-year-old rocker from Santa Cruz, California, who was eliminated from "American Idol" last month but who made a return appearance during the Season 10 finale of the Fox singing competition.

Commented Bach on Facebook: "Interesting. Hanging with James Durbin from 'American Idol'. He tells me he wanted to sing [the SKID ROW song] '18 And Life' on 'American Idol' but was told he's not allowed to, it's 'not cleared.' Who makes these decisions and why? How? He was told he could do a BON JOVI song but not SKID ROW. Very interesting. And shitty."

Durbin performed JUDAS PRIEST's classic songs "Living After Midnight" and "Breaking The Law" with the British heavy metal legends themselves during the "American Idol" finale.

Durbin sang the JUDAS PRIEST classic "You Got Another Thing Coming" on the March 1 edition of "Idol". His rendition marked the first time, according to AEROSMITH singer and "American Idol" judge Steven Tyler, where a JUDAS PRIEST single was performed on the "Idol" stage.

Asked if there was any trepidation about letting Durbin take on their 1982 hit, JUDAS PRIEST guitarist Glenn Tipton told MTV, "None whatsoever, I mean, if you look at what James has done for heavy metal, you've got to say thank you, you know? It's just bringing metal to the front, making it, metal, accessible for people. It's a good thing."

As for whether there will ever be a collaboration between the fourth-place finalist and the British band, PRIEST singer Rob Halford was optimistic, saying, "Yeah, anything's possible."

"We just wish him all the best," he added. "He's got such an extraordinary voice. He's got such a genuine and lovable personality. He's the real deal, James, and we wish him the best. Good for you, James!"

Durbin told USA Today that he is planning to record an album, with what he described as a "[DIO] 'Holy Diver', [BLACK SABBATH] 'Neon Knights'-type" feel. "I potentially heard my first single yesterday," he said, adding that it "still has a heavy edge and is radio friendly." He plans to reunite with a friend from home who will be his lead guitarist. He also hopes to work with Mike Portnoy from DREAM THEATER.

Find more on
  • facebook
  • twitter
  • reddit
  • email

Comments Disclaimer And Information

BLABBERMOUTH.NET uses the Facebook Comments plugin to let people comment on content on the site using their Facebook account. The comments reside on Facebook servers and are not stored on BLABBERMOUTH.NET. To comment on a BLABBERMOUTH.NET story or review, you must be logged in to an active personal account on Facebook. Once you're logged in, you will be able to comment. User comments or postings do not reflect the viewpoint of BLABBERMOUTH.NET and BLABBERMOUTH.NET does not endorse, or guarantee the accuracy of, any user comment. To report spam or any abusive, obscene, defamatory, racist, homophobic or threatening comments, or anything that may violate any applicable laws, use the "Report to Facebook" and "Mark as spam" links that appear next to the comments themselves. To do so, click the downward arrow on the top-right corner of the Facebook comment (the arrow is invisible until you roll over it) and select the appropriate action. You can also send an e-mail to blabbermouthinbox(@)gmail.com with pertinent details. BLABBERMOUTH.NET reserves the right to "hide" comments that may be considered offensive, illegal or inappropriate and to "ban" users that violate the site's Terms Of Service. Hidden comments will still appear to the user and to the user's Facebook friends. If a new comment is published from a "banned" user or contains a blacklisted word, this comment will automatically have limited visibility (the "banned" user's comments will only be visible to the user and the user's Facebook friends).