ROADRUNNER RECORDS SIGN TRIVIUM, screams the latest press release from Roadrunner (no April Fools joke this time)…and it goes exactly like this: Roadrunner Records are proud to welcome to our family, Orlando, Florida’s TRIVIUM. 18-year-old Matthew Heafy (lead vocals, guitar), Corey Beaulieu (guitar), Brent Young (bass) and Travis Smith (drums) released their debut album (Ember To Inferno) on Germany’s LIFEFORCE records last year and caught Roadrunner’s attention with their larger than life, unrestrained rock sound. TRIVIUM come to the label through Roadrunner A&R man Monte Conner, (Sepultura, Slipknot, Type O Negative), who says “TRIVIUM show an incredible maturity and finesse in their music considering the young age of songwriter, Matthew Heafy. I can only imagine where he will be in ten years. Plus, he has the drive, determination and smarts to match his musical muscle. Matthew and the rest of the band have grown up listening to all the acts I’ve signed over the years, so to have TRIVIUM here, helping shaping Roadrunner’s future metal template, is a real thrill for me on a personal level.” Roadrunner’s Mike Gitter, who is co-A&Ring with Conner and will send the band into the studio this summer to record their label debut, adds “Not only is TRIVIUM a great metal band….they’re a great band, period. At 18, Matt Heafy has a better developed sense of musical theory and melody than most successful musicians twice his age. These guys crackle with the same sort of vibe you felt about bands like Metallica or Megadeth in the 80’s… Out to prove that they’re top of their game and willing to do what it takes to get there.” The band responds with kudos to its new home… Heafy sums it up this wayí¢ä‰åŒ_ “It’s beyond a dream to be a part of Roadrunner. I mean hell, I grew up listening to Roadrunner bands: Slipknot, Machine Head, Coal Chamber, Soulfly, Sepultura, Fear Factory… those are some of my earliest influences – ever! Being on a label that can really push a band to achieve massive status is so exciting. I know we will live on the road and that’s the very thing I’ve wanted my whole life. On a final note, my mission statement to Roadrunner is “Let’s conquer the world!” Corey Beaulieu adds “Roadrunner Records’ professionalism and contribution to the scene is huge. We are honored to be part of such a great roster – past and present.” Catch the band on tour in support of GOD FORBID throughout the US, beginning April 4th. The band’s as-yet-untitled Roadrunner debut is due in stores Autumn 2004. Keep checking back for more info. Music from Trivium coming later this week to the band’s ARTIST section.

Butterflies, beetles, strange little men, awesome tunes… we are talking about the new Dirty Americans ecard of course! Have you heard this album yet? If not, why not?! Now you have no excuse, for the entire album is playable in the brand new ecard, and you can check out a few photos and other cool stuff while you are there. Worth your time… see it HERE.

It has almost been a week since Slipknot returned to the stage. And now that there are a few shows under the band’s belt, you can now find a few new photos in the band’s PHOTO GALLERY (special thanks to www.robbsphotos.com and www.error404media.com for the shots). In other Slipknot news, you can now download new track “Pulse Of The Maggots” here on the Roadrunner site, check our MUSIC section for the MP3.

Alaskan 4 piece 36 Crazyfists have confirmed a UK tour to co-incide with this years Festival season.. last seen live in the UK with Roadrunner’s first ‘RoadRage’ package tour back in 2002. Crazyfists worked up a frenzy with labelmates Killswitch Engage & the now disbanded Five Point O securing themselves a large and commited fan base in Blighty! Having just released the awesome follow up to their Roadrunner debut the dates will be the perfect oppertunity to showcase both new and old material alike.. and how has the new stuff evolved..? vocalist Brock Lindow explains “The last record (Bitterness The Star – 2002) had more depressing subject matter. It was about dwelling on bad relationships and negative things. As we toured and played these songs all the time, we realized that we needed to write more positive material. There will always be things that depress everyone, but A Snow Capped Romance is about getting past that stuff and focusing on the good things that have happened in your life,” . Get along to one of the following shows! May 29th – London Forum, with Funeral For A Friend May 30th – Truro ‘Surfers Against Sewage’ festival, with FFAF May 31st – Exeter Cavern June 1st – Cardif Barfly June 2nd – York Fibbers June 3rd – Oxford Zodiac June 4th – London Monarch Tickets priced at 퉌£12.50 (London FFAF), 퉌£11.00 (Truro FFAF) and 퉌£7.00 for all 36 Crazyfist’s headline shows.

Checking in with Cradle Of Filth’s Dave Pybus, for more news from the studio…. “It’s Official… Cradle of Filth are Possessed!!! We have now been transformed into zombified pork scratching eating fiends! On my return from a short weekend break, I was instructed NOT to come back unless I brought with me a whole sack of Pork scratching’s (to those who have no idea what i’m talking about, it’s small bags of rock hard fatty pig skin!). The guys were rabbid and scoffed the lot like greedy blood-crazed shits! Zombie partrol Vs. Ghoul tools Vs. Tag team tossers! They did taste good though. On a more serious note: Maybe some of you are wondering how the new record is shaping up. Well. Adrian has completed all his drums. I should be done with bass this week too. Dani has started vocals on like 6 or 7 tracks. Paul has nearly completed all his guitars and James has a few songs left to play. Martin… likes boys. I mean he’s well into his keyboards. Everyone is very excited when we get to hear the tracks building up and there is way more variation with the songs. Fast, slow, moody, ultra fast, evil! You know the general theme… HEAVY METAL!!! True and simple. Only Cradle of Filth styleee! We also have the album cover design 99% there and just done a few new t-shirt designs. Visited at the studio by our endorser rep and general superhero Dom Fairbanks! (see pic below). We are also getting dates through and are pleased to announce that we will be playing this years Download festival at Donnington Park, Saturday, 5th June. See the dates page for some of the latest summer festivals we have comfirmed right now. It’s gonna be great to get back on the stage!!! I also visited this weekend our clothes design company SINWEAR for a future Mtal Hammer feature. Saw some of the new designs for this years touring blitz! Check out their website for an insight into this great up-and-coming clothing company. Also check out whats getting sold via ebay these days.” If you missed Part 4 of Dave’s studio updates, you can check it out on the Cradle Of Filth website HERE.

A lot of birthdays this weekend… time to take 5 minutes to wish our 3 guys a very HAPPY BIRTHDAY! April 2 – Phil Demmel (Machine Head) April 3 – Luke Martin (Roadrunner) April 4 – Adam Dutkiewicz (Killswitch Engage)

One month ago tomorrow, we posted up the first half of our interview with Rob Arnold of Chimaira, answering the questions which you sent in for him. It is time for the second half… Am I right in saying you guys used to drop A tuning for the first record and now are using C and if so, how come in the Sp Lit video you guys are using 6 strings? Are they baritones? Cheers (Ben Staniworth) “You’re exactly right! And yes, those are 6-string baritones in the SP Lit video. It’s funny that you noticed that! Here’s the story- The day before we shot the video, we got a carepackage from ESP that had some new 6-string baritones in it. We were so excited about the new guitars, that we just decided that we wanted to use them for the video!” Rob, what things do you hope to achieve the most with your career being in Chimaira? P.s. Chimaira are true modern metal (Derek Wright). “I guess I share the same dreams as any musician- to play my guitar and hang out with my friends for a living. I’m hoping that our shows will continue to grow bigger and bigger, and that more people will know the ‘Chimaira’ name.” What is it like looking down on a crowd when you’re playing live? (Ben Barraclough) “I look at the expressions on the fan’s faces. If I see excitement and passion, I get an overwhelming feeling of pride and achievement.” What is the best bit about being part of Chimaira? (Stephanie) “Everyday, I wake up in a new city, eat at a new restaurant, meet a lot of cool new people, and play my guitar with my friends in front of my fans, what more could I ask for?” Rob, what is your favorite song to play on the Chimaira live set and why? “That’s a tough question. Maybe I’d say, ‘The Impossibility Of Reason’. I just love that song all around and it really hits hard live.” No question man, more of a thanks reallyí¢ä‰åŒ_me and my dad went to see you guys play two times on the last tour- (Manchester and Liverpool), and I can honestly say that those two gigs were the best that I have ever been to. I also got the chance to meet you guys at your Manchester gig and I have to ask, did you guys enjoy the bottle of Aftershock that me and my dad gave you? “Thanks so much! And yes, we enjoyed the Aftershock! However, I didn’t enjoy it the next morning! I’m really glad you guys enjoyed the show – thanks for the support, and we’ll see you soon!!” Chimaira return to the UK in June for several co-headline shows with Killswitch Engage. Tickets are on sale now.

52,000 people heralded the return of the mighty SLIPKNOT when they downloaded a brand new MP3 track called ‘Pulse of the Maggots’ from www.slipknot1.com on launch day, Monday 30th March. Download figures for the week are expected to be well in excess of 200,000. The ‘Knot are clearly back!! As you know, the track was made available to launch the release campaign for the album, ‘Vol.3: (The Subliminal Verses)’, which hits shops on 24th May. A single, ‘Duality’ will follow on 14th June. Slipknot filmed the promo video for the track in a disused house just last weekend in their Des Moines hometown, ably assisted by 500 loyal maggots. Kids travelled from as far afield as Dover, England and the Ukraine, to be in the clip. Don’t forget you can catch Slipknot live at the Download Festival (www.downloadfestival.co.uk) on 2nd (Glasgow) and 6th (Donington), before they tour Europe as special guests to Metallica! Watch out for more exciting Slipknot news shortly, including UK activity for album release day…

Don’t be a fool… check out these great pieces! Here’s the latest round up in the press this week… FEAR FACTORY Page feature in Total Guitar 4/5 review in Total Guitar SLIPKNOT “Download of the Week” in NME (for ‘Pulse Of The Maggots’) 36 CRAZYFISTS 2-page feature in Big Cheese EVERY TIME I DIE 1-pg feature in Big Cheese

TheJagermeister US tour with Slipknot, Fear Factory and Chimaira has begun. A review from one of our RR US guys… who was lucky enough to catch the show and tell it like it is… “Tuesday night in Orlando, FL @ The Hard Rock Live Slipknot started off the Jager Tour, not with a bang, but with a massive explosion!!!! It was ridiculous. It was by far the TOP 3 Shows I have ever seen in my life. Maybe the BEST. So much energy, so tight. They just sounded amazing. The crowd response was great. The whole venue was one big mosh pit. The show was Sold Out with I believe around 3000 people. There was no spinning drum kit or spinning percussion. No Pyro, no novelty stage show. Just the standard lighting and a rockin’ Slipknot. They played for about 1 hour 15 minutes with very little breaks in between the songs. I heard about 4 new songs which all sounded great. The whole band was so pumped for this show. I was talking to Jim Root about 20 minutes before the show and he said, “It feels like 1999 all over again.” (the last time they played) I am seeing them again tonight in W. Palm Beach (again Sold Out) and can not wait. I don’t feel like a Roadrunner employee going to cover a show…I feel like a hard core Slipknot fan going to see a show that I’ve been waiting on for 3 years. All I can say is, watch out…Slipknot is coming your way very soon and you WILL be amazed. and I’m out…”