Things die for a reason.

Multiple reasons... Nickelback, Theory of a Deadman, Killswitch Engage, etc...

You're an idiot right? The fact that they had those bands should have kept them going. But hard rock and metal being the most heavily downloaded is what did it.

Doesnt make a whole lot of sense considering a lot of the roadrunner bands do a lot better in the UK, especially bands like Trivium and Machinehead who are way bigger in the UK than they are in the US, even though they are both US bands.

Downloading music is at fault for record companies & their artist losing money and falling apart.

You are an idiot. You named the reasons why the label is even solvent. Just because you don't like those bands, hell ... I don't like those bands, they are required to make money.

VOIVOD!

That really sucks for the people who lost their jobs. See, you fucking assholes who never pay for music, it hurts real people.

Yes indeed!
To bad that metal wont be here much longer for those assholes to steal from. Dirty Bastards need an asskicking for sure!

Shit!
Things were going along very strong for us Oldschool Metal Musicians until the net came along and those Young fucks stealing the Music! TRUTH!!

Glad i/we had what we had and made what we made!
The young bands of today are FUCKED!! And so are the young fans!!
Sorry kids, your generation will NEVER have any Big 4 bands,No Overkill bands,No Testament bands,Slayer and so on.

Well enjoy the suck ass NuSchool bands for its not going to be pretty and then its POP Music for ya little punks!

Oldschool Bands will be just fine thank you very much!

Good luck to all that lost that job!
The folks at Roadrunner are top notch man!!

Metal/Roadrunner go hand in hand.

TFB. The car put a lot of horse-carriage makers out of business.

Life goes on. The strong survive.

The weak? Fuck 'em.

in a true free market economy , people who lost their job making carriages then could/would get a job making cars . illegal downloading (not part of the free market) is theft . not one product, medium etc, fasing out another . your point is well, pointless ...

\m/ DEAD ON BROTHER!!

This is one true stat i'll stick by, TLC (yes them) sold 9 million copies of there first LP. $15 x 9,000,000 =........The ladies then filed for bankruptcy. Do you know who got all that $$$?

After 4 huge selling records Metallica had to sue to receive $1 per record sold on a $15 disk from the Black Album on, No wonder they went commercial!!
You walk into FYE and they want $19 for "Master of Puppets"?!?!? That disk is older than some of the kids on here.

The tape trading argument stands! It's truth! Technology just made it easier, faster, and more access, quit crying!

I will/I have paid for a ticket to see a band live, the money goes straight to the band. I will pay for a t/shirt at the show ($40???) that goes to the band. I will buy a disk if I really love the band and have the $$$ and want the lyrics/pic/catalog inside. If I don't have the $, or only want a song or two, I will ask a friend for a copy/DOWNLOAD like I did trading tapes in the 80's.

Fuck the labels, Fuck the fat bastards who got rich of my fav. bands! Sorry kids you're just gonna hafta find your own way.

UP THE IRONS!!

>>TFB. The car put a lot of horse-carriage makers out of business.

Yes, but people were not downloading (aka stealing) horses.

Nice...Well put man!

Some people are just dumb or is it young...Or Both!.My God!

When I would go into a record store (remember them?) back in the day and anything that had Roadrunner on it made me immediately check out cause it was usually righteous ass metal. This is just a sad indication of how the Internet has changed the name of the game. It sucks when anyone loses their job.

couldnt agree more lad

im an old school metal head and i miss those days with big record stores and so on ...but the labels is partly to blame before dowloading.. cd,s where very overly priced....

Ummm Get a job? Better then a Burger joint then?

Sorry dude

you're telling him how to spend his money and how to value a way overpriced piece of plastic?

whats next, telling him what clothes to wear and what to claim on his w-2??

You people never get tired of beating a dead horse do you?

Those saying the Internet an stealing is killing music is right but also wrong. I agree, it is stealing and it is taking from people's pockets and killing the industry.

But none of the labels have really embraced what they could have to work WITH the Internet and prevent this stuff better.

Companies like Spotify are worth millions and they've embraced downloading in a different way.

Wouldn't it be amazing if Roadrunner made their entire catalogue available in an app like Spotify and it was all just metal? I'd pay for that subscription. It goes with their brand of owning "metal" but in a new way.

That's just an idea but do you understand what I mean by embracing downloading and changing tactics. Obviously spotify exists already but something like this could really work for labels.

Sucks they closed and wish the employees luck.

all you fucking bitches better suck it the fuck up and find other ways besides crying about yesterday, it is possible.

Blame it on anything you want, crying about "He's stealing my album" "My intellectual properties have been trampled on" Lol, they dont exsist no more.

Do something else, its just how it is. Now demonize me and everyone else who share music through technolgical means...

...a genius! Why you're not the CEO of a label is beyond me.

Clearly you're not in a band either.

For two years now, I have been compiling interviews with bands re: the slow death of the music industry and in particular downloading and NONE of them have have said downloading isn't a problem. It's THE SOLE problem. 100% of them said it's nothing but theft and they are right.

Wonder why merchandise is the same price as designer label clothing? Wonder why concerts can cost upwards of $100? Wonder why product placement and selling publishing rights is rampant? It's not because of "the weak" vs the strong - it's because of "the fans". The fans ripping off the bands they worship.

It's not about demonizing and 'getting over it'. This is a moral issue that has turned a thriving industry into a graveyard. Why don't you go and tell people at Roadrunner who lost their jobs to 'get over it'.

I have hundreds of albums and I've never stolen one of them. There is no difference between going into a store and shoving a CD in your fannypack and illegally downloading the album from the internet.

look, its a shame people lose jobs due to technolgical advances in society. But it happens every day to a lot of people not just in the music business, they either adapt in thier career or find other viable options for monetary gain.

Dont preach morals to me, the writing is and has been on the wall for years. This is no different than trading tapes with your buddies from back in the 80's. Just with uber speed and not having to actually meet up to make the physical trade.

This is how it is, replication makes the middle man obsolete. Morals, come on man.

Sorry dude, but you're wrong. There is a major difference between tape trading and what has happened in the wake of Napster. For starters, true "tape trading" was done by unsigned bands in order to get their name out, ala Metallica. People ripping a cassette copy of a record, cd or other cassette was also stealing, but wasn't nearly as rampant, and didn't even cause losses greater than shoplifting. The big problem is that downloading has created a sense of entitlement with these kids. I do also find it funny that those in charge let it happen. Why is that? Since all of you kids have killed the rock star, you have silenced their voice. There will never be another John Lennon. Another Bob Dylan. Another Bono. You little bitches have done what the FBI and the CIA couldn't. Shut up the voice of the youth.

your goddamn right there wont be anymore icons, but there always will be music. Not bands that are backed by conglomerates, not bands that they can prop up to force feed you. We have much more choice now when it comes to that end of the spectrum. Those loud voices are now silenced because the machine cant produce steam for them anymore. The labels laughed at me when i bought all kinds of digi-pack releases that i paid 10 bucks on top of the cost of the original album, all for one extra track or different artwork. You know how many albums i bought back in the day that got one listen and out the window or to the trading company it went to?

I dont know about you, but john lennon can kiss my fucking ass. All that hype and money went to that motherfuckers head.

Music will become what it always should have been, free and available for the masses. call us whatever you want, im listening to your music for free. Ill pay to see your band, ill pay for a t-shirt but iwont be suckered ever into buying a plastic disc, you know i bought that 150$ type o negative box set? why? cause its a good investment... fuck you, saying im wrong is like your opinon man

\m/ DEAD ON BROTHER!!

This is one true stat i'll stick by, TLC (yes them) sold 9 million copies of there first LP. $15 x 9,000,000 =........The ladies then filed for bankruptcy. Do you know who got all that $$$?

After 4 huge selling records Metallica had to sue to receive $1 per record sold on a $15 disk from the Black Album on, No wonder they went commercial!!
You walk into FYE and they want $19 for "Master of Puppets"?!?!? That disk is older than some of the kids on here.

The tape trading argument stands! It's truth! Technology just made it easier, faster, and more access, quit crying!

I will/I have paid for a ticket to see a band live, the money goes straight to the band. I will pay for a t/shirt at the show ($40???) that goes to the band. I will buy a disk if I really love the band and have the $$$ and want the lyrics/pic/catalog inside. If I don't have the $, or only want a song or two, I will ask a friend for a copy/DOWNLOAD like I did trading tapes in the 80's.

Fuck the labels, Fuck the fat bastards who got rich of my fav. bands! Sorry kids you're just gonna hafta find your own way.

UP THE IRONS!!

as a 21 year old dude, living in london.. i pay for my shit, i work my job fucking hard, and i still dont have a problem buying cd's for the price they are, and i aint rich either TRUST ME

I am not gonna blame the fucking labels for the price, or the bands, i blame.the.fucking.fans. Pure and fucking simple

dont give me a bullshit excuse of "embrace the internet and technology"

dont give me cryptic messages on how to be big in this day and age or make a living of your art you fucking work on

explain that to the fucking people at roadrunner who lost their fucking job in trying to provide what YOU "fans" love so much... yet most of you spit right back in their fucking face with your bullshit lies of support for your favourite bands

the "fans" killed this buisness and most inportantly, metal.

i was at the metal hammer show and saw monty speak from the heart, i fucking felt for him, having to speak to a bunch of fans, who are raising their horns in the air in apparent gesture if support yet i will guarantee you, will not be buying any fucking albums any time soon.. it fucking disgusts me

so fucking bummed out for the future, cuz i dont see one

from a metal head.

your revoultion is over mr lebowski, condolences... the bums lost. My advice to you is do what your parents did. Get a job sir, the bums will always lose LEBOWSKI THE BUMS WILL ALWAYS LOSE!!

I am just glad that I grew up when I did, I can remember seeing Judas Priest on the Screaming For Vengeance tour being backed up by Iron Maiden on the Number of the Beast tour, a whopping 13.50 for tickets. The future is bleak indeed, today's youth will never know what it was like having a scene like it was in the "real days". There will never again be bands that come up and take over the world like they used to, it just can't happen, so enjoy your free music kiddies, just remember you reap what you sew. Fuckin thiefs.

good for you, remember those phone booths you used to use back in the "real days"? I dont hear the telephone companies crying.

Its a whole differnt ball game today cuz, we could do this dick measuring contest about my generation vs yours killing the business all day. But at the end of the day, its still you crying...

You know what is? You just don't get it.

Money to buy my albums...(not really). I'm a hopeless pack rat, seen the tv show Hoarders?...that is my cd collection. A digital download just doesn't cut it. When I buy an Iron Maiden album its the whole package, artwork, lyrics and possibly studio footage. It just seems to me there are less opportunities for bands to afford to put packages like that together because of unappreciative little pricks that like to steal " intellectual property".

the coyote's after you!

I am not a Lars Ulrich apologist by any means, but I remember a few years back he fought illegal downloading and get ripped for it. He saw the writing on the wall and fought it at the risk of being persecuted. The thing is he wasn't necessarily fighting for his band so much as everybody from top to bottom. turns out he was right, it is killing the industry.

To add to my own comment above I personally don't worry about a band like Metallica not being able to sell enough records. It's bands like Testament, Overkill, Flotsam and Jetsam, Warbringer, etc. These bands don't even sell 300,000 records much less 1,000,000 records per release. If you want to see bands like this survive you will quit downloading illegally.

If only rich spoiled spoon-fed fucks can afford to play music for a living then Metal is doomed. We need the poor and angry to fuel the fire. I see these rich kids who don't have to work and can practice their instruments all day in Daddy's house and yes, they are technically proficient and acrobatic on the instruments. But there is no sick groove to it. No real fire behind it. It is fake anger.

Stop downloading, start supporting! These musicians put 150% into it. They could be sell outs and make Bieber music. All illegal downloaders are closet Bieber fans.

Its getting a lot harder to download stuff nowadays. Trust me, it is lol

do buy cds though..even better- VINYL ONLY! Thatd guarantee against downloading, or make it a lot harder

Those who think "file sharing" has not hurt, are dead wrong! I was a radio DJ for 10 years, and have seen the impact not paying for music has. Good record company's, have gone under, and many many DJ's have lost jobs all over the world. Live and local is dying, and Metal labels, are vanishing. This all started with downloading music for free, and sorry, but it is stealing from the artists you are suppose to be supporting and causing massive job loss throughout the industry. This also leads to less shows, giveaways, and promos for fans.

DJ's - guys who push buttons to cue up music
Dj's - guys who won't STFU durng the intro of the song
Dj's - guys who scratch vynil at hip hop clubs

Dj's- like record executives, are over paid obsolete fucks!

UP THE IRONS!!

Id say people in general just seem uninterested in music, beyond a casual listen on their fucking iphones for the ones who actually exercise once in awhile and dont watch reality shows all day. Its just the culture has changed. People rather text on their phone half the day then talk in person. We're becoming the matrix, but worse, and dumber than idiocracy, and brave new world put together. Its not just downloading doing this, people are getting dumber..

i honestly believe people are tired of getting screwed for a fucking penny. The trust is lost....

Damned in a Brave New World

UP THE IRONS!!!

Here are a few reasons people are buying less music:
1. They can get it for free. Either they are downloading the music illegally, borrowing CD's from the library, listening to Internet radio (or Spotify), or borrowing from friends, there are many ways to get music for free today, some legal as well as illegal. I know I listen to Spotify all the time, and I don't buy some albums, because I might stream a few tracks on Spotify but don't really the album enough to invest in the band/artist.
2. Sales started decreasing once the record companies started imposing DRM restrictions on CD's and digital files (which has been reversed, but damage was done in the 2000's). I believe this is when the record labels began to be seen as the enemy by music lovers (of course, the record labels were seen as the enemies by the bands since the beginning of time hehe).
3. While prices for physical media has not increased drastically since the introduction of the CD (according to the RIAA, the lowest cost per CD average was in 1990 at $12.01 while in 2007, the average cost had only risen to $14.90), there is perception among consumers that the physical product should have some bells and whistles like video digital media. For roughly the same cost, a DVD will feature the film plus bonus material, while a CD often only contains the original track listing of the album.
4. Music was used in the late 90's and early 2000's as loss leaders to get people into stores. Those box stores are now going out of business as people are doing more e-commerce. Even Best Buy, one of the largest music sellers in the US, is closing stores.
5. The cost of digital media is less than physical media. With the increase of digital sales, the total revenue goes down. I just bought the new Zac Brown Band album from the Amazon MP3 store for 3.99. The new Linkin Park CD was less than $5 as well. The latest Lady Ga Ga album was .99 on the day of release. The majority of CD's on iTunes are priced between 9.99 and 11.99. That's less revenue for labels, and it also means that record stores, the places that promote new, developing, or underground music are going out of business. Why pay $15 for a CD in a store when you can buy it for $5-10 online?

You used to go into a record store and you could talk to the guy and girl behind the counter. Ask them what was new that week. Browse the racks. And, for your money, you not only walked out with some music, you had an experience and felt part of a culture. The Internet offers a watered down, less expensive version of this on message boards and through product reviews.
6. The economy is down. We had more disposable income in the 90's and early 2000's to buy music.

We live in interesting times. I hate that Roadrunner was sold to a major, but it happened. There are still independent labels out there, but in order for those labels to survive, they need to sell records. If you want the music as intended by the bands (not interfered with by a major looking for radio play) represented by quality recordings, you need to support the bands by buying their records.

i think youtube has a lot to do with it, its the greeatest free jukebox in the world. things r looking shit for metal, ive not paid for an album in two years, couple of years ago i would of bought about 4/5 albums a month. too easy to download. sad to say ill not stop

Keep downloading then, ya vultures. If you think Warner Bros has any plans to keep the metal bands on Roadrunner's register, you're sorely mistaken.

Another thing - labels pay for press. I have worked in music media for years and we're all getting canned too. No label and no press means bands have to market themselves and doing that without professionals is possible, yet an enormous amount of work that will make them no money anyway. Labels also pay for videos and promotional tours. No budget for videos means shit videos that big helpers like MTV won't play. It's the biggest snowball effect ever, over $12 for a fucking CD. How many six packs do you buy in a week?

I agree the labels handled things badly around the time of the Napster case, but if labels don't know how to solve a problem, it doesn't give everyone licence to start stealing music.

It's not just metal, it's across the board, but I just find the justification and entitlement utterly baffling.

let it baffle you, let it bewilder you. There's no need to understand or justify it, music is what it should have been all along, free for the masses.

Once you understand that, you can only go up.

Mtv shows videos?
the labels have screwed countless bands for countless decades, let them die!
From the ashes will arise a new way, a new idea. A better way for the MUSICIANS to get the $$$ not some fat lazy talentless fuck who was willing to front the cash for the records. Get in your godamn van and play some shows. Record and post it! if it's good ill buy a ticket and a t shirt.

Whether downloading is right or wrong, screws the corporate fatcats or the little guy, whether it's sharing or stealing, it doesn't really matter. The fact of the matter is that technology is at a point where downloading music or listening to music for free can not be stopped. Any attempts to set up any sort of rights protection has been either unsuccessful technically or has destroyed companies and brand names.

The only way to save the industry is to find a price point people are willing to pay (eliminating waste or redundant jobs that are no longer necessary), or find another way to monetize music. Music downloads will always exist in some capacity, and complaining about it is about as productive as complaining about the rain.