EXCLUSIVE: Nuclear Blast and Metal Blade Battling Con Artists
Posted by Dan Rodriguez on Wed, Jun 10, 2009 at 5:09 pm
This afternoon we received a PSA from Nuclear Blast warning unsigned bands to beware of label impostors claiming to be from Nuclear Blast or Metal Blade, promising the world – all conveniently in exchange for some “deposit” money:
Sound too good to be true? That’s because it is.
There’s been a rash of imposters in several states claiming all of the above and more. Some try to extort money from bands by claiming they need it to place a deposit on whatever it is they’re promising. Others want free entry into a show, free CDs & band merchandise, or backstage access. Whatever the case, what’s clear is that these imposters have such low-self esteem that they’re willing to lie about who they are.
First of all, I’m sorry for those who fell for it, but this sounds like the in-person equivalent of the “African prince” e-mail scam, and you’ve gotta be pretty dumb to fall for it. Still, the staff of Metal Insider believes in metal as a community, so we wanted to find out more and warn you. After all, there must be quite a streak of these incidents to warrant a PSA. Nuclear Blast’s Loana dP Valencia filled us in:
The latest incident was the Death Angel show in San José, California this past Friday, June 5th. Someone going by the name of “Brian”, who was falsely representing Nuclear Blast, approached the opening band, saying he was really interested in them. A member of that band then reached out to our headquarters in Germany, who thought the label manager from our L.A. office approached them.
Any travel arrangements for our label manager that would involve meeting with unsigned bands would have to be pre-arranged, and those would take place via an official e-mail addresses (that lists the label in the domain name) or an official office telephone number. We work in-house from our offices. We don’t roam the country aimlessly during the work week. We’re not freelancers who live in different cities and have a local telephone numbers.
In 2007, I had an incident where an unsigned band called me saying a member of the Nuclear Blast staff had promised them a spot on Ozzfest. They were stranded somewhere in Palm Springs, California and were waiting for news about their flight arrangements. I had to tell him they were NOT signed to us and we couldn’t help them. It crushed me to hear the disappointment in this musician’s voice. He did admit that they never signed a contract, and that the imposter stopped returning their phone calls to his cell phone, but they were really convinced they were playing on Ozzfest. What a harsh reality check!
There’s your lesson for the day, kiddies. Hit the jump for Nuclear Blast’s full PSA, which is chock full of some solid, sobering advice if you’re still wet behind the ears.
UNSIGNED BANDS: BEWARE OF LABEL STAFF IMPOSTERS & IMPERSONATORSYou’re an unsigned band playing a local show and someone approaches you claiming to represent Nuclear Blast or Metal Blade Records. They say they want to sign you, book studio time for your band, buy you plane tickets, or even put you on Ozzfest, yet no contracts are ever involved. Sound too good to be true? That’s because it is.
There’s been a rash of imposters in several states claiming all of the above and more. Some try to extort money from bands by claiming they need it to place a deposit on whatever it is they’re promising. Others want free entry into a show, free CDs & band merchandise, or backstage access. Whatever the case, what’s clear is that these imposters have such low-self esteem that they’re willing to lie about who they are.
Bands, DO NOT LET YOUR HOPES OF GETTING SIGNED BLINDSIDE YOU. Staff members at Nuclear Blast and Metal Blade:
· conduct official business via their official office e-mail & telephone number.
· can produce a business card with the label’s logo, official office address, and official telephone number.
· NEVER ask unsigned bands for “deposit” money.
Nuclear Blast and Metal Blade Records wish to keep their reputations among metal fans & metal musicians in good standing, as we understand how hard bands work to bring their music to the metal community. These imposters are mocking everything we stand for as independent metal labels, as musicians, and as fans.
If ANYONE approaches your band claiming to be from a label and asks for money, for free entry into a show, free CDs or merchandise, or backstage access, your FIRST response should be to be skeptical.
Call the label asking to verify staff names and positions. Or, take your photo with the imposter/impersonator and send it to the label’s general e-mail address to inform them of what they are promising.
Nuclear Blast’s general e-mail address is: mail@nuclearblastusa.com
Metal Blade’s general e-mail address is: metalblade@metalblade.com
Tags: Metal Blade, Nuclear Blast, Scams
June 10th, 2009 at 6:19 PM
Wow. One part of me thinks that you’ve gotta be an idiot to believe some of what those con-artists say but there’s another part that knows what it’s like to have someone tell you what you hope to hear.
This is good information for bands and should be spread all over.
June 11th, 2009 at 10:11 AM
I’m actually surprised it’s taken this long for someone to cook up such a scam. You’d think that the relative success of “legit” artist-parasite shops like Sonicbids and JustRock would’ve gotten the black market’s attention years ago.
January 27th, 2010 at 8:33 PM
well, simply the same exact thing this guy called Shawn Barush does. He will squeeze every single fuckin dollar out of ur pocket and tell you all this great an amazing things, show off with all the BS hes got in his office and pics w famous people and all that. but he wont do any of that!! he’ll ask you for a crazy amount of money ($4,000 – $6,000 ) JUST so he can start “working” on your band and then more money, more money, more money. Ive learned from other bands who have worked w this guy and they have spent as much as $50,000 and never made it. keep in mind that on his contract he’ll state something like “I wont guarantee anything” or some bullshit like that.
watch out for scammers like Shawn Barush, he’ll sure take all your money away!! you’re NOT SUPPOSED to give money to a manager!!! If a “manager” signs you is because he truly believes in ur music!!
April 8th, 2010 at 7:38 PM
Yep, Shawn Barusch scammed us pretty bad. Looks like Hollowpoint Records or whatever they call themselves today will ask a bunch of unsigned bands for money to travel to CEDIA shows overseas and other US events to “shop” your band to labels. Shawn will say that you are the only band paying for these trips (or insinuate this) so it’s around $5000 per event, then we found out he was doing that to a bunch of bands. So if 6 bands pay $5000 each and the trip (he does give receipts) costs only $5000 he ends up with $25,000.00 profit.. Pretty good way to make money at the expense of bands that go through hell to scrape up this kind of cash! He says all the right things but nothing ever happens. We did about 5 or 6 of these “shopping trips” plus thousands more for showcases for labels (that you never really meet anyone but all his famous friends)
No doubt that he is legit in what he does or that he has connections. That’s what makes it the perfect crime. You want to know who he knows and he does a great magic show-
I just hope whoever is doing business with him knows this and is leery of giving him or Hollowpoint / Rainmaker whatever hard earned cash-
We were stupid kids with a dream. We still are paying back money to people that loaned it to us 5 years later. I wish someone else would have posted something like this when we did our research on him years ago-
Good luck out there… It’s a fun but cruel world of thief’s and pimps-
April 26th, 2010 at 4:01 PM
I think your bagging on Sean because your band could NOT get anyone interested in your group, its easy to talk shit about someone when things do not go your way. I have met Sean here in LA many times and yes he knows many people and has helped many artists but of course you do not mention that. Grow up, no manager worth his weight in beans will work with you for nothing, just because you think your good, stand in line and wake up, it is all about the dollar and the connections, your band just needs to be decent and i think that is where your remarks come in, your band wasn’t.
April 30th, 2010 at 4:02 PM
Trust me, I know what a Rainmaker is now haha. I never said he didn’t help bands and I did actually say he was ligit. He just likes to make money on the side at the expence of bands. Thats what makes him a good scam artist. You really don’t know what your talking about and I’m glad you do not because then you would be in mine and other people that I’ve talked to shoes. I’m just warning people to be wary and trust me, thats great advice!
God Bless-
May 3rd, 2010 at 1:32 PM
Just ran across this page , i must say “Anyone” that thinks there are “Guarantee’s” in the music business are young & dumb Or do not understand the business and need to find another music outlet, like being a groupie or something. If this was in your artist agreement then you would be certain he is covering his companies ass, because “There are No Guarantees” in any business, this includes the music business, And if a manger manages you because he “truly believes in your music” then he must be a millionaire or part of your family, no one i know in this business work’s for free, what century are you living in? So what i am gathering from these remarks from the posts are that If your band does not make it , it is the manager’s fault in the end? Humm, enjoyable to know there are still uneducated artists out there that want it all for free rather then getting out there and footing the bill for “there Own” career. It does cost money to get things done in this world, if you hear otherwise you need to see what they are really after.
May 13th, 2010 at 5:26 PM
I have an interest in this particular matter that I need not go into. Everything said about “no free rides” I agree with 100%. No manager or record label will put up their own money unless (A) The risk is worth the investment or (B) There is already a history to work with (Marketing / Radio ect)
However I do not think the poster was talking about a free ride.
QUOTE- “Shawn will say that you are the only band paying for these trips (or insinuate this) so it’s around $5000 per event, then we found out he was doing that to a bunch of bands. So if 6 bands pay $5000 each and the trip (he does give receipts) costs only $5000 he ends up with $25,000.00 profit”
I have seen this play out before with other management companies. Acting like only one group is paying the full costs of a “shopping trip” (CEDIA or Southwest Music Conference) when the cost is actually split between many bands ending with the management company making a lot of money regardless of whither or not any of the bands will be signed or discovered. Rather than shopping one band at a time and having that band pay 100% of the cost to travel.
So I do not think that band is saying they wanted a free ride, they just found out what actually happens when they use a management company that is shopping numerous bands at one time does when they ask for the funding for the expenses.
In this case I would have to agree with the before mentioned band-
July 16th, 2010 at 3:04 AM
This Barusch dude is a total fucking joke. Don’t be fooled by this STIFF! he will set up fake companies in order to gain access to a lot of these large tours. that’s how he gets his snap shot with many of the artist you will see on his myspacepage, a good gift of gab plays a huge rule. It’s pretty sad to see these hard working bands get taking for a ride like this. i would not be surprised if Mr. Barusch is part of this scam by recruiting a ring of thugs
Mr. Barusch’s last known singing
http://www.myspace.com/johnnywhiteside
August 26th, 2010 at 11:20 PM
I side with the original comment about Barusch. I’m in another band that was taken through the Barusch scam. We paid him somewhere around $20,000 in total, I think. Every time we asked simple questions we were met with an odd sort of attitude. Then at one point we didn’t hear from him for 3 months….only for him to come out of the woodwork with a sudden need for another $6000…immediately. When asked what it was for, we were given a really shitty email where he berated us for asking him questions. At which point, we ceased to give payments and let the contract expire. You can say that we “weren’t good enough” or whatever…but Shawn actually sought us out, courted us, and all that jazz…so he must’ve thought we were…or at least dumb enough to shell out big cash.
August 30th, 2010 at 3:38 PM
Shawn Barusch is an upstanding man and is wonderful at what he does. You really think that he would be where he is right now, as renound as he is by conning and scamming all of the bands he works with. Are you serious?! He’s the friggin manager of the Misfits, how’s that for creditability?! Just because your band didn’t make the cut, does not mean that you have to be childish and bash his name publically on a website. Grow up and get some talent. You will never find a “free ride” to becomming someone in the music industry unless A, you are the musical prodigies everyone seeks, or b you are willing to make sacrifices. C’mon now guys.