Spotify today showcased an updated version of its player and its options, mostly geared to improve discovery, and surprised the media by welcoming Metallica’s music to its catalog and the band’s drummer Lars Ulrich to the stage. Read More

Hard rock icons AC/DC today began selling their music on iTunes, something they have refused to do ever since the service launched. . Read More

Burbank, Calif. – Metallica said on Thursday that it will now sell single track downloads on LiveMetallica.com, the band’s five-year-old site that previously sold only full concert recordings from the band. The tracks will sell for $0.99 each; albums cost $9.95 for MP3 or $12.95 for FLAC format. The band said that the site has served over 300,000 downloads since its launch.

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http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20091001005748/en

http://www.livemetallica.com

Burbank, Calif. – Multi-platinum rock bank Metallica on Friday announced plans to release its entire discography as a digital box set exclusively on iTunes. The 163-track "The Complete Metallica" is set for release on March 31, two days after Activision releases its "Guitar Hero Metallica" game.

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http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20090213005431/en

http://www.metallica.com

London - Metallica’s label Universal Music Group canceled an interview with the band scheduled with the Swedish newspaper Sydsvenskan, after the reporter wrote that he had downloaded an unofficial version of the album from notorious file-sharing hub The Pirate Bay, TorrentFreak reported. Reporter Jonn Jeppsson reviewed "Death Magnetic: Better, Shorter, Cut" for Sydsvenskan, concluding that the unauthorized edit — which shortens the songs found on the official release — was how the album should have sounded.

Related Links: http://snipurl.com/3ql7w (TorrentFreak)

http://sydsvenskan.se/nojen/skivrecensioner/article366037/Metallica.html

Santa Monica, Calif. - Video game publisher Activision (NASD: ATVI) announced on Tuesday that, in an industry first, Metallica’s upcoming "Death Magnetic" album will be released simultaneously in record stores and as downloadable content for its "Guitar Hero" game in September. The company is slated to ship the next installment of the game, "Guitar Hero II: Legends of Rock," in the fall.

Related Links: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20080715005571/en

I’m the first to admit that the whole Guitar Hero thing took me off guard. Play music on a plastic toy guitar – come on! But then I went to Guitar Hero night at my local waterhole, Hyperion Tavern, in trendy Silver Lake (Thursdays for those of you that care, see picture to the right). It was so much fun that I was converted on the spot. Now in its third incarnation, Activision’s (NASD: ATVI) "Guitar Hero" game franchise [...].