Upon announcing their upcoming DVD, Quebec Magnetic, Metallica said that it would be the first release on their own label, but since the “i”s were being dotted and the “t”s were being crossed, that they couldn’t announce the name or logo of the label. That must have all been taken care of, as today the band officially unveiled Blackened Recordings. With the launch of the label, the band retains ownership of all of their master recordings. Here’s the official statement from the band’s website.
We like to make it a point here not to bore you with the not-so-exciting business aspects of making and sharing music, but we’re so psyched about our new adventure that we just had to tell you about it as we officially launch our very own record label, Blackened Recordings.
Some of you, who have followed along throughout the years, are aware that in 1994 we renegotiated our contract with the Warner Music Group, which resulted in a joint venture with our record company for releasing all of our recordings including long form videos. Per that agreement, as of today we have taken ownership of all of our master recordings and Blackened Recordings will be the home of all of our current albums and videos along with all future releases including the December 10 release of the “Quebec Magnetic” DVD and Blu-ray.
You may have heard us say it once or twice or a thousand times before, but it’s always been about us taking control of all things ‘Tallica to give you 110% on every single level every single time. Forming Blackened Recordings is the ultimate in independence, putting us in the driver’s seat of our own creative destiny. We’re looking forward to making more music and getting it all out to you in our own unique way.
Rhino Entertainment will manufacture and distribute the band’s releases in North America, while Universal Music Group will handle international distribution. There’s still some unanswered questions about the label, namely whether they’ll be putting out music from other artists, although the press release states that it will be for their releases and “anything else that suits them.” But when a band on Metallica’s level can afford to buy out their master recordings and decide that they don’t need a major label, it definitely marks a big change for not only them, but other bands at their level of success.
