SOLAR EAGLE BOOTLEG LP + MORE STUFF....

[ION BRITTON]

Re: no one noticing the Solar Eagle issue before, couple of things:
1- copies of that one have trickled out over time; there's at least a couple dozen (real) copies in collector hands. So while rare it is not impossibly rare (e.g., < 10 copies known).
2- with many greeks selling collections lately due to that country's economic problems, it helped provide an explanation for why so many were offered for sale lately.
3- With rare, high-dollar records a buyer often doesn't have a legit copy to compare to. You can post a question here and hope someone provides a detailed reply, otherwise you may not be able to find things like etching numbers, spine info, etc. This could actually be a good project for a blogspot or a Feature at the Corroseum- provide documentation of what legit, rare, expensive albums should look like so people can easily access that info. Of course future bootleggers might take advantage of the info as well. There was a thread here some time back that discussed Boot pressings and how to spot them, but it became bloated with Q&A stuff and got so long that it was hard to find info within.

Those are good points nightsblood. On the other hand, people who can afford SOLAR EAGLEs and LEATHER NUNNs and generally buy shitloads of LPs every week usually are not hit immediately by an ecomonic crisis, at least not so hard so as to sell their collection as soon as things start to get rough. I mean, usually those people have more steady and well-paid jobs and they are not the 'first in line' when a crisis occurs. Usually, not always.

I think that most people are under the impression that most Greeks have huge collections and have every single rarity that was put out in the 80s. That is not true in no case. It's at least suspicious seeing a sealed solar eagle on ebay every two weeks, two of them with the exact same photo, all of them from Athens. I am not saying that it's the most definite sign of a bootleg, but its something that should have at least raised a suspicion to the more experienced buyers.

[doomedplanet]

This is a good point, I usually notice this sort of thing but I haven't been paying attention, mainly since I bought mine in the 90's when it was only a $100 record, so have never been wanting another copy.

I don't think it is a worry to spread info about the matrix info. I have never ever seen a bootleg that is identical to an original pressing. I've seen a couple that are close, but still they were different, but Nightsblood makes a good point about saying if you don't have one to compare to then that is where the bootmasters really have one over on you.

It's at least suspicious seeing a sealed solar eagle on ebay every two weeks, two of them with the exact same photo, all of them from Athens. I am not saying that it's the most definite sign of a bootleg, but its something that should have at least raised a suspicion to the more experienced buyers.

[Fils Du Metal]

I've seen a couple that are close, but still they were different, but Nightsblood makes a good point about saying if you don't have one to compare to then that is where the bootmasters really have one over on you.

Exactly...so the WARZWOLF thing is not far away. I will send my copy for big royalties to the Greeks or make it myself:-) I would do more clever and sell one copy all two years. one copy alone pays the pressing......no, now seriously stated:

I hope there is no copy in Greece in the circle of those people, hopefully not in South America. Same for Metal Merchant, Witch etc....the luck for the Germans in here is that there is Andi..which means you always can check EACH supposed bootleg record with the original...

Actually this is really a help for ALL in here not the Germans that there is one perfect collection with every metal record existing on this planet which can supply the correct info if original or not.....

[Khnud]

Oh, there must be some stuff Andi doesn't have, although it may not be bootleg material. Yet.

Is he registered here by the way? If not, how do TheCorroseum contributors benefit from his knowledge, when to cry "bootleg" or not?

[nightsblood]

Ion- good points. I don't know how bad things in Greece have gotten; some of the coverage here in the US makes it sound like things are so bad that all of Greece has reverted to stone knives and bear skins. I've been very suspicious of the Running Wilds turning up, but I pay no attention to black metal vinyl, and like doomedplanet I'm not looking for a Solar Eagle so I didn't catch how many copies were auctioned recently and that some were using the same picture.

Q: any idea if RAF has been booted in South America recently? That was another impossibly rare one that has suddenly had several copies turn up; we went from maybe 5 copies known to 5 copies auctioned from Peru within the past calendar year, including some 'promos' with no cover. Lucky find of a few copies in Lima, or boot pressing?

[Fils Du Metal]

no Andi is not registered and will never be...but there are enough people here having contact with him weekly that can supply all infos. I can as I don't live too far from him and we meet frequently...

Oh, there's some stuff Andi doesn't have,

Dream on....he has 99,5 % of all metal records existing. Those second class hard rock 7"s from Asia or Scandinavia or Africa missing in his collection no one will bootleg for sure....

[The Sentinel]

Another stinky one is the Bathory Yellow Goat LP, beware!!!!! I don't know if I read that here or the NWN forum.

[chatzial]

What worries me is that i bought from Ebay (around May 2010) a still sealed copy of Solar Eagle for a friend of mine that doesn't have internet access. The seller was from Holland, if i remember correctly. I only hope that it was an original, i will phone tomorrow my friend to see. What is fishy is that the same seller approached me around 7 to 8 months ago to ask me if i need another copy because he had 2 more!

[MEXDefenderOfSteel]

the good people in Greece(most of metalheads) should hunt down the group of 3-4 people producing the boots and stop the madness already before they keep burying in dirt greeks reputation

[nightsblood]

The Bathory yellow goat has been booted and/or repressed already has it not? It also gets overhyped b/c many people still insist that only a couple of hundred were made, when it's been pretty well documented for a long time that at least 1,000 copies were made.

Chat- that sounds suspicious on the Solar Eagle you bought, hope you/your friend didn't get a dud

Unless names, businesses, and ebay IDs of the perpetrators are posted far and wide, it doesn't help most people very much.

[Dark Stranger]

Can you post the ebay usernames so we know who to look out for? I've been suspicious of the Running Wild LPs and the red Virtual XIs myself!

Presumably gmous2001 is one?

[Angelheart]

The Bathory yellow goat has been booted and/or repressed already has it not? It also gets overhyped b/c many people still insist that only a couple of hundred were made, when it's been pretty well documented for a long time that at least 1,000 copies were made.

Chat- that sounds suspicious on the Solar Eagle you bought, hope you/your friend didn't get a dud

Unless names, businesses, and ebay IDs of the perpetrators are posted far and wide, it doesn't help most people very much.

Come on.
The ebay ids are very easy to be found if u just take 10 minutes, search for these vinyls and see their selling history.
Some ids have hundreds of feedback,some are new cause they want to be considered as "new sellers" and so on.They are not more than 6-7 accounts.
Regarding their real names and businesses, that's also very easy to be found if u just have your eyes open and u are not newbie in the scene.
As u understand, no names can be exposed here since maybe u are in trouble with the some stupid laws.
Those who want to know, will know and should have known before they spent so stupidly lots of money.

[Angelheart]

If someone pays 530 $ for the Eunuch Metal album number 1 that he just deserves it not better. I still wonder how people can stand this band.
Seriously, do you think it's smart to mention all the differences of the boot and the original LP incl Matrix numbers etc here on a public forum?

Furthermore this once again proves that Greece is beside Brazil the Bootlegger country number 1 or 2. It's quite confusing to see how you can buy a Metal Mag with a free bootleg CD at any public shop at every place. The greek guys do know what I'm talking about. Prohably the same guy (I was told by a greek friend to never mention his name coz he'd find me and destroy me with his lawyers ) who inititalized all these Bootleg CD series with 3 albums on 1 CD and an official Metal Mag with a Bootleg CD etc etc. Quite sure he's the one. You can press bootlegs without problems in Brazil. There's noone who cares as long as they get their cash!

The guy u are talking about has nothing to do with these identical bootleg lps.
Those 3 on 1 cds couldn't fool anyone that they are originals so it was the same case as Reborn Classics series and maybe u know who was behind these cds.
And don't be surprised where most bootlegs are produced because besides Germany which started the whole bootleg thing with Reborn, Brazil and Greece has the most dedicated metal fans in percentage of their population.
So it's natural, where the interest is high, some scums are taking advantage of it.
The bad thing is that they present them as originals.
I wouldn't care less, if they were admitting that these are bootlegs.
And honestly, sometimes i think that some stupid "collectors" deserve to be fooled because they spent lots of money, just because they have them, not because they really care.

[nightsblood]

Come on.
The ebay ids are very easy to be found if u just take 10 minutes, search for these vinyls and see their selling history.
Some ids have hundreds of feedback,some are new cause they want to be considered as "new sellers" and so on.They are not more than 6-7 accounts.
Regarding their real names and businesses, that's also very easy to be found if u just have your eyes open and u are not newbie in the scene.
As u understand, no names can be exposed here since maybe u are in trouble with the some stupid laws.
Those who want to know, will know and should have known before they spent so stupidly lots of money.

Some thoughts:
1- people routinely post ebay IDs and names of ebay scammers online. Has anyone here ever gotten in legal trouble for doing so? I have never heard of such a case.

2- Have you at least reported the IDs to ebay? I know there's no guarantee ebay will do anything about it, but if you do not report the problem to them and you do not tell people who is causing the problem, you're making it pretty easy for the problem to continue.

3- This kind of anonymity for the bootleggers helps propagate the negative stereotypes against greeks in metal circles. This thread indicates 'a handful' of greeks are selling these new boots. We can all say, "that shouldn't implicate every greek in the metal scene", but unless the bad apples are singled out, it makes everyone very suspicious of ALL greeks selling on ebay.

Sure, we experienced collectors know how to sniff these things out pretty easily. I suspect, however, that most of the people getting ripped off are newbie collectors riding in on the resurgence of Metal and vinyl popularity. They were in diapers when 'Black hand Inn' came out and don't realize the vinyl copies turning up are boots. I agree they should do their homework before buying expensive collectibles, but if all we're gonna do is have a thread on one collectors' site saying, "gee, there's a few new greek boots out there, watch your butt", that doesn't do much to fix the problem.

Just to clarify, I'm just explaining my POV on the situation, I'm not yelling at Angelheart or anyone else, and I don't mean for my post to sound like I'm grandstanding or climbing up on a soapbox or anything like that.

[Angelheart]

Come on.
The ebay ids are very easy to be found if u just take 10 minutes, search for these vinyls and see their selling history.
Some ids have hundreds of feedback,some are new cause they want to be considered as "new sellers" and so on.They are not more than 6-7 accounts.
Regarding their real names and businesses, that's also very easy to be found if u just have your eyes open and u are not newbie in the scene.
As u understand, no names can be exposed here since maybe u are in trouble with the some stupid laws.
Those who want to know, will know and should have known before they spent so stupidly lots of money.

Some thoughts:
1- people routinely post ebay IDs and names of ebay scammers online. Has anyone here ever gotten in legal trouble for doing so? I have never heard of such a case.

2- Have you at least reported the IDs to ebay? I know there's no guarantee ebay will do anything about it, but if you do not report the problem to them and you do not tell people who is causing the problem, you're making it pretty easy for the problem to continue.

3- This kind of anonymity for the bootleggers helps propagate the negative stereotypes against greeks in metal circles. This thread indicates 'a handful' of greeks are selling these new boots. We can all say, "that shouldn't implicate every greek in the metal scene", but unless the bad apples are singled out, it makes everyone very suspicious of ALL greeks selling on ebay.

Sure, we experienced collectors know how to sniff these things out pretty easily. I suspect, however, that most of the people getting ripped off are newbie collectors riding in on the resurgence of Metal and vinyl popularity. They were in diapers when 'Black hand Inn' came out and don't realize the vinyl copies turning up are boots. I agree they should do their homework before buying expensive collectibles, but if all we're gonna do is have a thread on one collectors' site saying, "gee, there's a few new greek boots out there, watch your butt", that doesn't do much to fix the problem.

Just to clarify, I'm just explaining my POV on the situation, I'm not yelling at Angelheart or anyone else, and I don't mean for my post to sound like I'm grandstanding or climbing up on a soapbox or anything like that.

I totally understand what u mean but it's not my job to be the sheriff.
We have tried to warn people and it's not the first time.
Whoever is bored to search for himself. then it's his problem.
And we are doing this, not because we were fooled, but because some people we know, were caught in that trap.
Of course, whatever new bootleg is coming out, it will be posted asap it is proven.
About the reporting, u can do it easily or some of your friends.
Let's stay with the facts, and if u pay attention to what we are writing, then u will stop making assumptions that "all Greeks" are involved in this.
And everyone with a little experience and common thought,knows that we are talking about very few people who unfortunately are well connected (meaning they have access to all these vinyls so they can counterfeit them).
And u must know, that they do business and have good "communication" with some dealers abroad.
So the problem is not only here.There is much help from abroad too..
Cheers