25-11-2011, 11:50
online listen
the only true rocker on last seasons AI
guy has a great voice
expected a more metal album, but not disappointed in that
just misses a like mark
single is the clip, but standout is the ballad, May
1.6
from the album - Love Me Bad
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MLNxG7NTi8w
released Nov 22nd, 2011
![[Image: q80695y28cd.jpg]](http://image.allmusic.com/00/amg/cov200/drq800/q806/q80695y28cd.jpg)
from all music
Bio
Every season of American Idol has at least one rocker vying for the crown, but few have an honest-to-god metalhead
like James Durbin, who wailed his way to a fourth-place finish during the showâs 2011 season. Born in 1989, Durbin
was raised in Santa Cruz, California, where he was diagnosed with Tourette's and Asperger's syndrome at nine years
old. Uncomfortable in social situations, he turned to music instead, developing a larger-than-life stage presence
as part of a local theater group and singing lead with Hollywood Scars, a hair metal group inspired by Mötley Crüe
and Guns Nâ Roses. By the time he auditioned for American Idol, heâd moved on to a new band called Whatever Fits.
Singing rock songs by Queen, Muse, and Judas Priest, Durbin became one of the seasonâs leading contenders, earning
comparisons to Adam Lambert (another high-voiced Idol alum) along the way. He finished fourth, joined the
inevitable "American Idol Summer Tour" several weeks after the show's finale, and released an EP, American Idol
Season 10 Highlights, in June 2011. Durbin's full-length studio debut, Memories of a Beautiful Disaster, featuring
the single "Love Me Bad," followed in November of 2011.
Album Review
James Durbin was the default "rocker" on the 2011 season of American Idol and played the role well, covering tracks
by Queen, Judas Priest, and others. He did not win, but finished in fourth place as a fan favorite for his soaring
vocals and faux-hawked, "post-grunge meets hair metal" image. Durbin's post-Idol debut, 2011's Memories of a
Beautiful Disaster, is much more pop than rock, and in that sense a fairly true representation of Durbin's rock
theatricality and knack for wailing away on tunes packed with radio-friendly hooks. One might have expected him to
deliver a dark, post-grunge album à la his AmIdol brethren Daughtry or David Cook, and certainly the leadoff track
"Higher Than Heaven" packages Durbin's angelic yawlp with just enough processed electric guitar fuzz and squelch to
register as nu-metal dirty. Elsewhere, listeners get a pop-friendly concoction of OneRepublic-esque uplift cuts
such as "All I Want," the veritable power pop-infused "Love in Ruins," and the anthemic ballad "Love Me Bad."
Ultimately, Durbin does deliver the vocal goods here on material that should appeal to his AmIdol fan base.
Track Listing
1. Higher Than Heaven
2. All I Want
3. Love in Ruins
4. Right Behind You
5. Love Me Bad
6. Deeper
7. May
8. Screaming
9. Outcast Feat. Mick Mars
10. Everything Burns
11. Stand Up
the only true rocker on last seasons AI
guy has a great voice
expected a more metal album, but not disappointed in that
just misses a like mark
single is the clip, but standout is the ballad, May
1.6
from the album - Love Me Bad
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MLNxG7NTi8w
released Nov 22nd, 2011
from all music
Bio
Every season of American Idol has at least one rocker vying for the crown, but few have an honest-to-god metalhead
like James Durbin, who wailed his way to a fourth-place finish during the showâs 2011 season. Born in 1989, Durbin
was raised in Santa Cruz, California, where he was diagnosed with Tourette's and Asperger's syndrome at nine years
old. Uncomfortable in social situations, he turned to music instead, developing a larger-than-life stage presence
as part of a local theater group and singing lead with Hollywood Scars, a hair metal group inspired by Mötley Crüe
and Guns Nâ Roses. By the time he auditioned for American Idol, heâd moved on to a new band called Whatever Fits.
Singing rock songs by Queen, Muse, and Judas Priest, Durbin became one of the seasonâs leading contenders, earning
comparisons to Adam Lambert (another high-voiced Idol alum) along the way. He finished fourth, joined the
inevitable "American Idol Summer Tour" several weeks after the show's finale, and released an EP, American Idol
Season 10 Highlights, in June 2011. Durbin's full-length studio debut, Memories of a Beautiful Disaster, featuring
the single "Love Me Bad," followed in November of 2011.
Album Review
James Durbin was the default "rocker" on the 2011 season of American Idol and played the role well, covering tracks
by Queen, Judas Priest, and others. He did not win, but finished in fourth place as a fan favorite for his soaring
vocals and faux-hawked, "post-grunge meets hair metal" image. Durbin's post-Idol debut, 2011's Memories of a
Beautiful Disaster, is much more pop than rock, and in that sense a fairly true representation of Durbin's rock
theatricality and knack for wailing away on tunes packed with radio-friendly hooks. One might have expected him to
deliver a dark, post-grunge album à la his AmIdol brethren Daughtry or David Cook, and certainly the leadoff track
"Higher Than Heaven" packages Durbin's angelic yawlp with just enough processed electric guitar fuzz and squelch to
register as nu-metal dirty. Elsewhere, listeners get a pop-friendly concoction of OneRepublic-esque uplift cuts
such as "All I Want," the veritable power pop-infused "Love in Ruins," and the anthemic ballad "Love Me Bad."
Ultimately, Durbin does deliver the vocal goods here on material that should appeal to his AmIdol fan base.
Track Listing
1. Higher Than Heaven
2. All I Want
3. Love in Ruins
4. Right Behind You
5. Love Me Bad
6. Deeper
7. May
8. Screaming
9. Outcast Feat. Mick Mars
10. Everything Burns
11. Stand Up
