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Photo credit: Metallica’s Facebook page
Summary: Metallica apologizes for an overzealous cease-and-desist letter sent to a cover band.
We would expect Metallica to be over-litigious ever since their plight against Napster and the spread of their music online. Only this time, their lawyer overstepped himself. Tribute Band Sandman, “Canada’s Tribute to Metallica,” received a 41-page cease-and-desist letter, with Sheppard Mullin letterhead, a Los Angeles-based law firm, telling them to cease and desist for using “official, stylized logos … to identify or promote live musical performances through Facebook and YouTube.”
The cover band has been playing the music of Metallica since 1994, and redesigned Metallica’s logo as their own. This was the first time the band contacted them, and, of course, they were upset.
“The band have been using this logo for years with no problems at all,” guitarist Joe Di Taranto told Rolling Stone.
They posted the court documents on Imgur to see what fans would say, and this is how Metallica band members discovered, for the first time, what their lawyer had done.
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“We hear that a Canadian Metallica tribute band is a little upset with us and with a little digging, figured out why,” they told Rolling Stone. “It turns out that a certain letter was delivered to the band Sandman that neither we nor our management were aware of until it surfaced online. Lucky for us, the band was kind enough to post it for us to see, and it turns out that we have a very overzealous attorney who sent this letter without our knowledge.”
Metallica then explained that they themselves began as a cover band. “We have a long history of not only enjoying tribute bands, but we started as one. Heck, we even recorded a two-disc album of covers! We will always remember those days and continue to enjoy tribute bands, even inviting them to support us on various tours over the years.”
As for the cease-and-desist letter, Metallica advices “Sandman should file the letter in the trash. Keep doing what you’re doing … we totally support you! And in the meantime, our attorney can be found at SFO catching a flight to go permanently ice fishing in Alaska.”
Perhaps unfair to said lawyer, who can be faulted only for being eager, but the band at least needed to save face.
Source: The New York Daily News
Photo credit: Metallica’s Facebook page
