ALBUM

Debut album CONTRABAND released June 8, 2004.
Entered Billboard Top 200 Album Chart at #1, selling 256,267 copies in its first week of release. Notably, this marks the best-ever debut for a new rock artist in the SoundScan era.
Contraband also debuted in the Top 10 in eleven countries outside the U.S.: Canada (#1), Australia (#2), Argentina (#2), Norway (#3), Sweden (#3), Spain (#6), Germany (#7), Ireland (#8), New Zealand (#8), Denmark (#9) and Japan (#10).
As of November 2004, CONTRABAND album was the biggest-selling rock album released in 2004.
Certified Platinum with SoundScan sales exceeding 1 million.
Sold over 850,000 copies outside of the U.S. as of December 2004.

ALBUM CRITICAL ACCLAIM

“…modern-rock nirvana…vicious, unapologetic…” --Rolling Stone, January 27, 2005 (Top 50 Records Of The Year)

"...Velvet Revolver energize their combined histories with original snort (the skewed skittering riff in "Set Me Free") and punchy vocal choruses....His [Weiland's] grainy yowl.. is actually a precision instrument that cuts through Slash and Kushner's dense crossfire with a steely melodic purpose that, when Weiland piles up the harmonies in the choruses, sounds like sour, seething Queen."

--David Fricke, ROLLING STONE, June 2, 2004 (4 Stars)

"...this unlikely combination of two rock superpowers—Guns N' Roses ruled the late '80s, and alternative rockers STP dominated the mid-'90s—is truly explosive...a hard-driving album that sounds nothing like either of the original bands—or anything else on the radio these days."

--Lorraine Ali, NEWSWEEK, June 14, 2004

"Contraband resurrects the dirty-sweet sound of trashy transcendence that nu-metal, emo and neo-garage forgot to drag into the 21st century...most songs charge forward with dizzying urgency...insistent rhythms, jackhammer riffs, searing guitar solos and snaking vocals. Velvet Revolver offers a Russian-roulette mix of cautionary tales and rock indulgence volatile enough to thrill STP and GNR junkies who need a fix now."

--Edna Gundersen, USA TODAY, June 7, 2004

“…establishing themselves not only as the band of the year, but rock ‘n’ roll’s messiahs of the new millennium.” --Paul Gargano, METAL EDGE, February 2005

“…Contraband was the rock album of the year…”

--Sean Daly, Washington Post, December 26, 2004

MAGAZINE COVER STORIES

Revolver: January 2005

Mojo: December 2004

Metal Edge: December 2004

Guitar World: November 2003

Bass Guitar: June/July 2004

Modern Drummer: February 2005

Guitar World “Legends” (special Slash issue): November/December 2004

Kerrang!: November 6, 2004

Guitar Player: June 2004

Guitar One: January 2005

AWARDS

Kerrang!: Best International Newcomer 2004

YEAR-END POLLS/ACCOLADES

Rolling Stone (January 27, 2005), Readers’ Picks:

Best New Artist

Best Hard Rock/Metal Band

Metal Edge 2004 Year In Review: Band of the Year and Album of the Year (Contraband),

Editor Paul Gargano

Kerrang! (U.K.), November 6, 2004: “Scott Weiland is the most electrifying, charismatic rock ‘n’ roll star on the planet.”

Classic Rock (U.K.), January 2005: #1 Album (CONTRABAND) in “The 50 Best Albums, As Chosen By Classic Rock Critics.”

TELEVISION PERFORMANCES

Jimmy Kimmel Live: December 13, 2004 (“Fall To Pieces”)

VH1 Big In 04: December 5, 2004 (“Fall To Pieces”)

Late Night With Conan O’Brien: November 24, 2004 (“Fall To Pieces”)

The Tonight Show With Jay Leno: October 14, 2004 (“Fall To Pieces”)

The Tonight Show With Jay Leno: July 16, 2004 (“Slither”)

The Late Show With David Letterman: May 25, 2004 (“Slither”)

MISCELLANEOUS

· The band received a 2005 Grammy Award for Best Hard Rock Performance ("Slither").

They were also nominated for:

Best Rock Album (CONTRABAND)

Best Rock Song ("Fall To Pieces")

· CONTRABAND was the third best-selling rock album released in 2004 (after U2 and Green Day), according to Billboard.

Contraband has produced two #1 rock singles so far: “Slither” and “Fall To Pieces.”

“Slither” held the #1 position at Active, Modern and Mainstream Rock for five weeks.

"Fall To Pieces" reached #1 at Mainstream and Active Rock and #2 at Modern Rock and continues to build at Top 40 radio.

On October 13, 2004, VELVET REVOLVER put on a free concert in Hollywood. 3,000 people turned out--filling the lot where the band played and lining the surrounding streets and rooftops--for the massively rocking event that was announced on radio only a few hours before the band took the stage. In addition to songs from CONTRABAND, the set list included lethal covers of "It's So Easy" (Guns N' Roses), "Sex Type Thing" (Stone Temple Pilots") and "No More, No More" (Aerosmith). As they performed, exotic dancers were positioned on the top level of the stage, lending the show an even more outrageous ambience.

The band previewed songs from CONTRABAND in intimate venues during a U.S. club tour from May 13 through June 9, 2004.

The band worked with director Kevin Kerslake (who also lensed the “Slither” clip) to create a compelling and powerful video for "Fall To Pieces." The visualization draws upon the previous drug experiences of Weiland, something that is true-to-life for all the band members.

VELVET REVOLVER toured Europe in Fall 2004 and return to the UK in January 2005 for a trek that includes five headlining shows at London’s Hammersmith Carling Apollo. They’ll then head to Japan, New Zealand and Australia.

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