This morning it was brought to our attention that the following rumour was making it’s way around the Internet… and naturally enough, we got a lot of emails from concerned fans. Slipknot’s #2 Paul Gray is in stable but guarded condition at the St. Mary’s Hospital in St. Paul, MN after he was brutally attacked by a distraught fan and was stabbed 6 times in the chest area coming within inches from the rockstars heart and major organs. Police have arrested a 16 yr. old male that escaped from a local medical ward indicating he was sent messages through the former lyrics of Slipknot’s music. Also, injured were 3 security staff and a female patron with minor stab wounds during the mayhem on the evening of Slipknot side project F.O.R. Fear not, for the rumour is false… Paul is in fact, safe and sound at home in Des Moines, Iowa. He sends his thanks to all the fans for their concern and wishes all the maggots a (sic), fucking merry holiday!

Hot off the email… thanks for writing in Verity. Have a great Christmas. Hey guys!! I was just reading how Sam won the VIP trip to meet Nickelback next month so I thought I’d share my experiences of meeting the band with you all!! Well, we went to the concert at Sheffield on Nov 25th!! The gig was absolutely killer… I’ve never seen anything like it!! So anyway after the show we decided to hang around the backstage gates in the hope of getting the slightest glimpse of Chad!! So we waited and waited with about 10 other people and suddenly the security guy just dissappears!! Unable to resist the urge, we went through the barrier and over to the tour bus!! I wasnt really expecting to see anything, but I look over to my right and Ryan Peake’s coming towards us!! He was such a nice guy..he even warmed everyones hands for them (it was about -10 degrees!!). So I got a photo with him and he signed my tour programme….he had a bottle of American bud in his hand so he put it down between his feet so no-one knocked it over! Then when he’d chatted to everyone he got on the tour bus and Hawk (Chad’s bodyguard) asked us very politely to stand behind the barriers! So we did, and about an hour later when the madness was setting in as well as hypothermia, Chad came out!! The arena security were in a flap when we went over to him but he just said ‘no it’s fine!’ and called us over!! This was one of those’I really dont believe this is happening’ moments!! He is SO gorgeous up close….very tall too!! I got a photo with him, then he signed my tour programme….he chatted for a few minutes and said ‘you guys are nuts!’ cos we’d been waiting for so long! Then I asked him for a kiss (I couldn’t resist!) and he goes ‘yeah sure!’ and I’m like ‘ooohhhhhh my god!!’ He’d obv had a few beers… I guess that’s why it took him so long to come out! He was so down to earth and friendly…he made time for everyone and said goodbye to everyone individually! I wish I’d spoken to him more, but I was totally in awe of him…..words escaped me!! We’re already planning the next tour and im determined to meet him again – and next time I’ll try and speak a bit more to him!! So Sam , I know you’re gonna have the best day ever when you meet them….don’t be nervous cos they’re total sweethearts!! Have a great time!! from Verity White

Could the new Type O Negative record be called ‘The Dream Is Dead’? Josh Silver posted the following on the official Type O Negative website: “I got a call from Roadrunner who tell me that our manager told them that this is what Peter said, ‘The name of the new CD is ‘The Dream Is Dead’. Glad they called me to tell me, I didn’t know that was what we were planning to call it.”

You can’t keep a touring band off the road… goneblind, the band whose debut EP was released earlier this year, is now in the midst of recording the debut full length. They started pre-production with producer Jim Wirt on November 19, for about 10 days…then moved onto Sound City in the Valley (where bands such as Nirvana, Fleetwood Mac, and even Slipknot have done time) for bass and drums…then onto 4th Street Studios in L.A., where the band is now and has been since – “it’s all a blur right now,” tell bassist Mitch Burman – let’s just say a couple weeks. Currently on the agenda at 4th Street, hammering out the guitars, vocals, and some bass. And speaking of bass, Mitch Burman answers the following: Roadrunner: What’s a typical day in the life of studio tracking right now? Mitch: For me personally? Getting to the studio around 10am, then listen to stuff from the day before…actually, we’re always doing a bit of mixing. From there…ahh shit, playing pool, playboy channel…no, after that, onto songs – a lot of guitar, and lot of vocals…. RR: What’s the Jim Wirt (producer) situation? Mitch: He is a great guy to work with…we definitely have a vibe going with him, all of us. He’s just got that ear, a great ear for rock. RR: Oddest thing he has made you do? Mitch: Hmmm, has us tuning a lot. We’ll sometimes literally play one or two notes on something, and then he’s like, “Okay, re-tune.” It’s definitely been a process of keeping everything the utmost in tune. RR: I heard something crazy that you have 35 songs you are recording? Is this true? Mitch: Well, actually we probably started with about 30 songs. We then narrowed it down every day in pre-prod, one day to 25, the next to 20…now we are at 15. We want at least 12 on the album, but not sure whose call that is… RR: Of the 30 songs you started out with, any songs you’re pissed about not recording? Mitch: Actually, I’m really happy with what we’re doing. There is probably one song that, personally, I wish we were doing. But I think we chose the right songs. RR: How much longer on the tracking front? Mitch: I think we’ll be done tracking by January 5th…and then a couple days making sure we’re happy with everything we’ve done, and then off to be mixed. That’s still up in the air. RR: Immediate plans tonight? Mitch: Me, I believe I’ll be playing bass tonight on a track that John (Curry, vocals/guitar) is in the studio recording right now…and then hopefully after that, going to shoot some – that would be a great night. RR: Immediate plans after leaving the studio? Mitch: For all of us? Hopefully home for a few days, relaxing…and then hopefully hitting the road. Right on the road and start playing. We miss playing live. We’ve been such a band that plays live, constantly for the past 5 years – this is really our first idle time. We can’t wait to get back out there. We thank Mitch for his time, and wish the band all the best during these last couple of weeks recording. Onward and upward.

Did You Know? Spineshank has fled the warm air of L.A. in favor of Vancouver to finish up the recording of their upcoming release, tentatively titled Self Destructive Pattern… What else? They should be done tracking by Christmas… More? Read Tommy’s latest update from the studio: Hey everybody. This has been an extremely busy 2 weeks. To start things off, we decided to pack up and drive to Garth’s studio, just outside of Vancouver, Canada!! It was a last minute decision but it ended up being the right thing to do…the studio is right in the middle of a fucking forest, so there were NO distractions. And I’m not even kidding – we were chopping wood for heat. That should be the next reality show “Spineshank’s Little House On The God Damn Prairie.” It paid off because Jonny and Rob were both singing great – we got a month of work done in about 2 weeks. We even finished a few songs that we didn’t plan on finishing. We’ve recorded 16 or 17…I’m not exactly sure on it. The next step is to listen to the rough mixes over the holidays to make sure that all the songs are as good as they can be, and then get it mixed in January. We are really trying to get things done fast because you guys have been waiting way too long. I think you will all be happy with it – it has a lot of really cool melodic songs (that are still heavy!!) and it easily has the most brutal and fastest stuff we have ever done. I know every band says that their new record is the best ever, but I really think this is…and if you have any taste, you will agree. j/k. I want you all to know that the artwork is already being worked on and it promises to be really dark and different. We got started on this early because on our 2 previous records, the artwork is what pushed back the release date. So as of right now we have a release date in May and we’re going to do everything in our power to try and keep that date. Well that is pretty much it for now…we would like to wish everyone Happy Holidays! See you in 2003 – TOMMY

Jerry Cantrell’s Degradation Trip Vols 1 & 2 hit the streets – all of the 25 songs which Jerry brought to Roadrunner a bit over a year ago, arranged in the sequence he originally ‘envisaged.’ Kerrang! magazine, giving this release a KKKK review, has a bit to say on this ‘trip.’ An excerpt from their latest issue reads as follows: “You will wonder how the crushing ‘Owned’ and ‘Profalse Idol’ could possibly have failed to make the first cut, and you’ll be entranced by the snake-like melody that winds itself around ‘Siddartha’. Then there’s the instrumental ‘Hurts, Don’t It?’, the first 30 seconds of which is pure Hendrix. Thematically, Cantrell’s concrete-heavy tales about weakness and redemption, and misjudged, shattered lives, brings the death of AIC (Alice In Chains) singer Layne Staley into heartfelt focus. This bloody and gaping maw of an album is a masterpiece of creative vision. You no longer have any excuse – this is one trip worth taking.”

Here at Roadrunner Towers we’re having a clear out before 2003 rolls in. This is good for you because it means we’re finding tons of cool shit to giveaway… and you can find it up in the FREE SHIT section. Eight, yes EIGHT new competitions launched so far today, lots of 24-hour ones have run already, and there’s still a few days til Christmas and a few more desks to rummage through. Head on over to FREE SHIT and win yourself some free goodies.

Nickelback í¢ä‰åäóì NEC Arena, Birmingham: 28th November 2002 by Sam Procter Two words describe Nickelback at the NEC Arena in Birmingham í¢ä‰åäóì ‘Totally Awesome’. Right from the opening chords of Woke Up This Morning, through to the closing lines of the massive How You Remind Me, the guys proved all of their critics wrong (that means Ian Winwood et al at Kerrang!). Nickelback’s performance was utterly outstanding. It had absolutely everything. There wasn’t a wrong note, missed lyric or dodgy moment at any point during the set. The atmosphere was electric and the crowd loved every minute. The guys genuinely looked as if they were having a great time and there was lots of interaction with the crowd. The view from the front (and I mean right at the front) was exceptionally good. The stage was incredibly close to the barrier and what made it even better was that the platforms either side of the stage came out another 4 foot from the main stage area. Every time Chad, Ryan or Mike moved to the platforms the crowd at the front went absolutely crazy (me included). I waved my banner around to get Ryan and Chad’s attention and was totally shocked (and pleased) when Ryan looked straight at me, winked and mouthed ‘Thank You’ to my kind words (-) on my banner! Cheers Ryan. Chad was gorgeous as ever and commanded the stage like a true professional. There’s definitely something about a man with a guitar! Considering the band have been touring for over 17 months, Chad sounded and looked amazing. His voice is pure classic rock í¢ä‰åäóì mellow and soft for the ballads such as Hero, but full of grit and growl for tracks like Never Again, Too Bad and the fantastic unreleased ‘Figured’ (full of naughty lyrics and a song that proves Chad is literally the sexiest man on this planet!) As well as being a musical triumph, the show also presented pyrotechnics the size of which have never been seen at the NEC before. They literally towered above the band, reaching high into the air and at some points came scarily close to the lighting rigs and sound system. A rough estimate would put them at least 13 feet high and they were so loud they even made the security guards jump! During the performance, Nickelback didn’t disappoint die hard fans. They included all the traditional lines from the ‘Nickelback Camp’, including Chad bringing out the camcorder and filming the crowd for the next DVD. Just to remind them where the filming had been done, Chad got the whole crowd to shout ‘Birmingham F**king Rocks’! A great moment in rock for sure. Probably one of the highlights of the show was the song Too Bad. Those of you who have seen Nickelback live will know why. It literally gets the whole crowd, no matter where you are in the arena, jumping up and down like your feet are on fire. Being right down the front for that one is an awesome experience. Your feet really don’t touch the ground for the majority of the song. Unfortunately, you do tend to pay for it the next day. Being right on the barrier at the front, I ended up with incredibly sore and bruised knees. But god it was worth it. I am totally and utterly into Nickelback and each time I see them they get better and better. After the Birmingham gig, I went to Manchester and saw them there too! Again, an amazing show. Perhaps not quite so showy in terms of lights and pyros, but Chad and the guys were on top form. I took my banner with me again and got right to the front (arriving 2 hours before the doors opened helped with this). During one of the slots when Chad was talking to the crowd he looked down at the front and said ‘I see that there’s some familiar faces in the crowd!’. He then looked straight at me and said ‘Are you following us around or what?!’ WOW í¢ä‰åäóì what a moment! Even bigger smile on my face after that. The set list at Manchester was the same as Birmingham (got one of the crew to give me Chad’s set list which had been taped to the stage) and the acoustic versions of Hero and How You Remind Me were really fantastic. When Chad and Ryan were singing Hero, the whole place was just alive with 10000 voices singing and I’m sure that every single girlie in the arena was looking straight at the stage í¢ä‰åäóì utterly mesmerised. Probably the only criticism I can come up with is the fact that the concerts did not last long enough. They seemed to be over in a flash. I think the sets were only about 1hr 15mins and really on today’s standards that is pretty disappointing. Then again, you know what they say í¢ä‰åäóì its not the quantity, it’s the quality, and Nickelback certainly have plenty of that. Can’t wait for January 21st in New York for the VIP private gig and reading this week’s edition of Kerrang!, looks promising that the guys will be back here in Summer 2003 for some amazing festivals Donnington, Carling and maybe even Ozzfest too! My mission for 2003? To see Nickelback at every UK show that they do. Three words to finish? NICKELBACK FUCKING ROCKS! Set List: Woke Up One Last Hollywood Breathe Leader of Men Hangnail Never Again Where Do I Figured Too Bad Hero How You Remind Me You can check out some of Sam’s photos from the show in the Nickelback photo gallery. Thanks for writing Sam!

Just posted: the cover artwork for the forthcoming Machine Head live album ‘Hellalive’. Check it out on the Machine Head ARTIST page. ‘Hellalive’ to be released March 10 2003.

It is with great pleasure we can share with you that today NICKELBACK “Silver Side Up” has exceeded the 2 million albums shipped in Europe making the record officially Double Platinum in Europe. For the record, the order that passed the 2 million mark came from right here in the UK. Many congratulations to all in the Nickelback camp, and thanks of course to all the fans.