Germany's GUN Records closes

February 14, 2009

German rock and metal label GUN Records (Great Unlimited Noises) announced Friday that they were to close. No explanation has been given for the move.

Formed as a joint venture between BMG and Wolfgang Funk in 1992, the label had seen its parent merge with Sony in 2005 to form Sony BMG and Funk quit as president in December 2008. In the nineties the label worked with German metal bands such as U.D.O., Sodom and Running Wild.

GUN's current international acts - including Wales' Bullet for My Valentine, Finland's Lordi and the Netherlands' Within Tempatation - will now be handled out of Sony's Munich international division. National artists, such as Oomph! and The Donots, will also be Sony's direct responsibility via either Four Music or Columbia Germany in Berlin.

The label has also worked with Sturm und Drang, Apocalyptica and HIM. The closure will affect eight employees including Arno Hartfield, the managing director.