[Infowarrior] - Metallica's Lars Ulrich, hypocrite?

[Richard Forno]

Metallica's new album leaks but Lars is not suing mad
By Andy Patrizio on September 3, 2008 4:00 PM
http://blog.internetnews.com/apatrizio/2008/09/metallicas-new-album-leaks-but.html

For anyone following the rock/metal scene, it's no secret Metallica  
has been on the outs with its fan base for some time. A string of bad  
albums and suing fans for downloading its MP3s did wonders to spoil  
the reputation for a band that had previously been viewed as one of  
the biggest, most popular and most significant bands to come along in  
ages.

Its new album, "Death Magnetic," is due on September 12, but despite  
the band's best precautions, it has leaked to the Internet. Search any  
BitTorrent site and there it is, in its full 10 song, 70 minute glory.

This is hardly uncommon. Every major album release that I've been  
following for the past few years has leaked a few weeks to a month  
prior to official release. It usually ends up on IRC and BitTorrent  
trading posts, and once it gets into those networks, trying to stop  
the trading would be like holding back the ocean with a bucket.

But there will be no lawsuits this time. Drummer Lars Ulrich, who was  
particularly singled out for fan vilification over the lawsuits  
against fans and Napster, told a San Francisco radio DJ "It's 2008 and  
it's part of how it is these days, so it's fine. We're happy."

He should be. The album is getting very good reviews, not just by  
critics but by fans alike who grabbed a copy. The band needed some  
positive word of mouth for once.

And yes, it is quite good.