Metallica continues fight against Napster

Napster is screwed. Last Wednesday, METALLICA drummer Lars Ulrich dumped 60,000 pages of copyright violations at the San Mateo, California headquarters of the controversial music-swapping Web site, and on Friday, Napster lost the first round of court hearings in the copyright infringement lawsuit filed last December by the Recording Industry Association of America. Napster had claimed that its Web site, which offers users a one-stop way to search for and download MP3s of their favorite songs, was "a mere conduit" between users and MP3 suppliers, and that it does not actually house MP3s. However, a U.S. district judge in San Francisco ruled that Napster's claim that its site was "a mere conduit" would not suffice in court and ruled that the company could be held liable in the case. The RIAA released a statement early Monday morning on the ruling, declaring, "Napster just lost its last delaying tactic. The court's decision is the first step in responding to those artists." KID ROCK will star opposite DAVID SPADE in a movie called The Adventures of Joe Dirt, in which he and Spade fight over BRITNEY DANIEL (Dawson's Creek). Spade plays a deejay who has been searching for the parents (ROSEANNE, GARY BUSEY) who abandoned him as a boy at the Grand Canyon, and personally called Kid Rock to ask him to play his rival. Rock, who flew incognito from St. Louis to Los Angeles late Sunday night (under real name ROBERT RITCHIE) to be in Los Angeles on Monday to begin filming, will wrap in time to join METALLICA, KORN, POWERMAN 5000, and SYSTEM OF A DOWN on the road this summer. Rock and Metallica will join acts including STONE TEMPLE PILOTS, VERUCA SALT, THIRD EYE BLIND, and BARENAKED LADIES at Chicago's Hard Rock Rockfest on July 22 and, again with Metallica, plus the RED HOT CHILI PEPPERS, SCREAMING TREES, EMINEM, FILTER and others, he'll appear at the opening of Seattle, Washington's Experience Music Project the weekend of June 23-25. Rock will also be heard via some older tracks on the compilation The History of Rock, set for release May 30 and contributes "F#@$ That" to The Return of the Rock, another compilation due for release June 13. The MTV-affiliated CD also boasts roadmates-to-be Korn's "Make Me Bad (Sickness in Salvation Remix)," P5K's "When Worlds Collide," System's "Suite Pee," SLIPKNOT's "Spit it Out," STAIND's "Just Go," "KITTIE's "Brackish," "P.O.D.'s "Southtown," MACHINE HEAD's "From This Day," STATIC-X's "S.O.M.," INCUBUS' "Pardon Me," DOPE's "Everything Sucks," COAL CHAMBER's "Not Living," SEVENDUST's "Denial," FULL DEVIL JACKET's "Stain," PAPA ROACH's "Infest," and METHODS OF MAYHEM's "Crash." Playing alongside KIP WINGER on Songs From the Ocean Floor are former bandmates Reb Beach and Rod Morgenstein, as well as Andy Timmons and Ken Mary.There are tons of other guests, CLICK HERE for the full listing. STONE TEMPLE PILOTS and the RED HOT CHILI PEPPERS will team up for a summer tour starting July 30 in Saratoga, New York, running through September 22 in Seattle, Washington, with FISHBONE as the opening act through August. STP has an earlier date in Marysville, California on June 10. KISS' show at the Blockbuster Pavilion in Devore, California, originally set for Jume 3, has been rescheduled for August 12. LIMP BIZKIT's FRED DURST has been cleared of assault and disorderly conduct charges for which he'd been arrested at a July 12, 1999 concert in St. Paul, Minnesota. An onstage altercation in which the singer allegedly kicked a security guard led to the arrest, and Durst has already paid the complainant, who'd filed a civil case, in part. In other legal news, TOMMY LEE was back in a Malibu, California court on Monday for a progress hearing on his probation, and hoped to have it suspended. No such luck. Prosecutors said he may have violated his probation's terms by drinking alchohol, and Lee was told to return at the end of the month for another hearing following investigation of the allegations. If they're proved true, the judge could send him back to jail for three years. Former GREAT WHITE guitarist MARK KENDALL is rehearsing for a new album with his new band TRAIN STATION, which consists of vocalist TODD GRIFFIN, bassist GARY WARNICK, drummer PRIDE HUTCHISON and keyboardist DICKI SIMMS. Kendall plays on a cover of "Fallen Angel" on an in-the-works POISON tribute disc.