Jim Durkin Dead: Gene Hoglan Says Dark Angel Bandmates Were Shattered After Founding Guitarist's Passing

Drummer Gene Hoglan spoke about the reaction of Dark Angel members after its founding guitarist, Jim Durkin, died.

Dark Angel faced a huge loss when Durkin's wife, Annie, confirmed in a statement on Facebook that the founding member passed away. A month after his death, the band continued its tour in the late bandmate's honor.

Dark Angel Members "Shattered" After Jim Durkin's Death

Speaking more about Dark Angel's reaction to Durkin's passing, the band's drummer sat for an interview on Friday 13^th and revealed that they were left shocked and devastated after the bandmate died on March 8.

"It was a shock to us, I'll admit. Jim has always been rather mercurial with us," Hoglan said. "There'd be times when he would disappear from the threads, and that's when he had mentioned that, 'Hey, there's gonna be some times coming up in the future that I might not be able to make certain shows or certain areas of live gigs."

Before Durkin's passing, he personally chose Laura Christine to replace him in the band.

Hoglan said that, despite the guitarist's "preparation," his death was still an absolute shock as no one knew he would pass. He recalled Durkin's health issues, but those were reportedly not enough for them to realize they would lose him too soon.

In addition, they had just started Dark Angel's Death to All tour when they received the heartbreaking news just a week later.

The drummer revealed that he found out about Durkin's death when Dark Angel singer Ron Rinehart called him. According to the musician, they knew that their bandmate disappeared from time to time; but little did they know, they had already witnessed him on what would be his last appearance.

Dark Angel To Pay Tribute to Jim Durkin in New Album

Hoglan also reflected pm the current songwriting sessions to complete Dark Angel's new album.

Before Durkin's death, Hoglan reportedly worked with him to write new material for the music project. However, they were not able to record all of those as they lost their guitarist suddenly.

While continuing the recording without Durkin, Hoglan assured fans that Dark Angel's new material would honor their late bandmate and continue his legacy with the band.

Durkin played a huge role in Dark Angel's success following its debut. Although he left the group in 1989 after recording its first three albums, he rejoined them in 2013 after the members reformed the group.