Foundations Forum

Foundations Forum was the first exclusively heavy metal music industry convention, held annually from 1988 to 1997 in Los Angeles. The convention was set up by Concrete Marketing who had in January 1988 created the first industry trade magazine for the heavy metal world – ''Foundations''. Realizing there was little or no attention or focus on this growing market, and having seen the far reaching distribution of the trade magazine, they decided to put together an annual meeting, bringing together key industry personnel, vendors and artists (and in later forums fans as well) offering advice on surviving the industry, discussing the changing climate of the scene and business, and allowing people to network.

Executive Director Bob Chiappardi summed up the purpose of the Forum:

"The way heavy metal is growing, we want to be careful not to have it blow out. By sitting down and talking about the genre, the good and the bad points, having the indies interacting with the majors, it makes for a healthy industry in general."

The forums usually invited a keynote speaker who would open the event and touch on important themes for the weekend ahead. There would be panels and workshops made up of industry personnel particular to the theme who would discuss contemporary issues and answer questions.

There were also plenty of performances all weekend of the best signed and unsigned talent the heavy metal world had to offer, over the years including bands like Judas Priest, Pantera, Alice in Chains, Extreme, Ozzy Osbourne and Prong.

CD samplers of signed and unsigned artists were distributed to each forum attendee.

Foundations Forum '88

On September 30 – October 1 at the Sheraton Universal Hotel in Los Angeles, Concrete Marketing, Metal Blade Records and RIP Magazine joined forces to create the first annual Foundations Forum convention.

The theme of FF88 was the credibility and respectability of metal within the music industry as a whole.http://concreteplanet.com/assets/Message.pdf
Attendance, etc.

The Keynote speaker for the event was Sharon Osbourne and it incorporated parties in honor of RIP Magazine's second anniversary and Concrete's fourth.

Panels & Moderators

A two disc compilation cd was available free of charge to those attending the event, showcasing bands that Concrete was working with.

Disc 1:

Disc 2

Foundations Forum '89

Foundations Forum 89 took place from September 21–23 at the Sheraton Universal Hotel in Los Angeles. This was a week when three metal albums (by Skid Row, Mötley Crüe and Warrant) dominated Billboard's Top Pop Albums chart.http://concreteplanet.com/assets/Billboard100789.pdf

The focus of this convention was shifted more towards the development of new artists within the metal scene, emphasizing the growth and nurturing of the style.

The convention's attendance more than doubled this year to accommodate more than 2500 people, around a quarter of which were musicians.http://concreteplanet.com/assets/RIPmarch.pdf

The Keynote speaker for the event was KISS bassist Gene Simmons.

Panels & Moderators

The artist panel this year featured King Diamond, Robert Sweet (Stryper), Robin McAuley ( MSG), Steve Jones, Lita Ford, Vicki Peterson (the Bangles), Scott Ian (Anthrax), Taime Downe ( Faster Pussycat) and Anthony Kiedis (Red Hot Chili Peppers).

A double cassette named 'The Shape of Things to Come' featuring unsigned artists was given out this year along with the double disc compilation 'CD From Hell'. In a special issue of Metal Hammer, interviews were run with all the unsigned bands featured on the compilation.

CD From Hell – Disc 1

CD From Hell – Disc 2

Foundations Forum '90

Foundations Forum 90 took place at the Sheraton Plaza La Reina Hotel in Los Angeles from September 13–15, 1990. This was the first year the event was open to the public and there were over 4,000 registrants.

The theme of this year's event was based loosely around metal's emerging social consciousness and responsibility (As Bob Chiappardi notes in his message from the directors):

Responsibility on the part of the industry to nurture new talent, the responsibility of the metal community to cultivate our increasing credibility within the industry, and the responsibility of us all to react to charges that our music is potentially or intrinsically dangerous with something other than mere hostility.

Tying in with this theme, a big topic of conversation at the forum was censorship and the keynote speaker for the event was Judas Priest frontman, Rob Halford. At the time, Judas Priest had just been involved in a civil action whereby it was alleged they were responsible for the suicide of one youth from Nevada and the attempted suicide of his best friend via subliminal messages placed on one of the songs from their album, ' Stained Class'.

Although the case had eventually been thrown out of court, it was not the first of its kind and the metal world was having to defend itself against an ever-increasing number of censors.

Ozzy Osbourne, who had also been to court following the death of a teenager who listened to his music, joined his wife Sharon Osbourne and former California Governor Jerry Brown on one of the forum's panels to discuss the issue of censorship, which was a popular topic; a theme which spilled into several other panels over the weekend.

1990's forum was self-contained within the hotel and featured listening parties from Slayer, Motörhead, Scorpions, Iron Maiden and Deep Purple. Not only was there major news/press coverage of the forum, but there were broadcasts directly from the convention by MTV, KNAC, Z-Rock and others, with some being syndicated all across the country. Many will have come to cover the 18 signed bands which played at night including Judas Priest, Pantera, Exodus, Extreme, Alice In Chains and the London Quireboys. Also, during the day, there were 18 unsigned bands performing including Radar, a New York band featuring lead singer Pamela Moore who sang the part of Sister Mary on Queensrÿche's '' Operation: Mindcrime'' album.

Two commercial video cassettes of FF90 highlights were released through Strand/VCI, although these were never to be released domestically.

Panels & Moderators

The Artist Panel included Jani Lane & Joey Allen ( Warrant), KK Downing & Glen Tipton ( Judas Priest), Vito Bratta (White Lion), Dave Mustaine (Megadeth) and Joe Leste ( Bang Tango).

As well as a cassette featuring unsigned bands, a 3CD sampler was given out at this Foundations Forum.

Foundations Forum '90 CD Sampler – Disc 1

Foundations Forum '90 CD Sampler – Disc 2

Foundations Forum '90 CD Sampler – Disc 3

Foundations Forum '91

Foundations Forum 91 took place at the Airport Marriott Hotel in Los Angeles from October 3–5, 1991. This year the forum featured an industry only day as well as the first Foundations awards ceremony. Paid attendance was up 15% on the previous year and exhibit room, directory sales, advertising, merchandising and record company participation were all up 25%.

Over half a million dollars was raised in aid of the TJ Martell Foundation, through ticket sales for the awards ceremony and at the casino night held as part of the convention.

Signed bands showcasing over the course of the three nights included Ozzy Osbourne, Soundgarden, Prong, Ugly Kid Joe, XYZ, Crimson Glory, The Almighty, Bang Tango, Claytown Troupe, Screaming Jets, Baby Animals, Lillian Axe and Asphalt Ballet.http://concreteplanet.com/assets/Rockpowerdec91.pdf

A sponsor, Barq's Root Beer, also came on board for the first time at the convention. Noting that their target market was those aged between 12 and 24, and recognizing the growing popularity of the metal genre amongst this age group, they partnered with Foundation's Forum in order to reach their audience directly.

Panels & Moderators

The artist panel this year included Mike Muir (Suicidal Tendencies), Ricky Warwick ( The Almighty), Chris Cornell (Soundgarden), Jeff Ament (Pearl Jam), Phil Anselmo (Pantera), Dweezil Zappa, and Harry James and Luke Morley (Thunder).

Awards Ceremony

The first Foundations Awards ceremony was to recognize the significant contribution made by key artists to the heavy metal genre and the music industry as a whole. The proceeds were donated to the TJ Martell Foundation and the ceremony featured performances by Blind Melon, Temple of the Dog, Alice in Chains and Megadeth. The MC for the event was MTV's Riki Rachtman and awards presenters included Ronnie James Dio, Paul Stanley and Gene Simmons, Lemmy, Rick Rubin, Penelope Spheeris and Rikki Rokkett.

AWARDS

* Lifetime Achievement Award: Ozzy Osbourne
* Best Debut Album: Alice in Chains
* Best Hard Rock Band: Queensrÿche
* Top Artist (Radio Album): Megadeth – Rust In Peace
* Top Artist (Radio Cut): Megadeth – Hangar 18
* Top Artist (Retail): Queensrÿche – Empire
* Best Thrash Band: Megadeth
* Best Hard Alternative Band: Jane's Addiction
* Best Video (Single Cut): Slayer – Seasons in the Abyss/Janes Addiction – Been Caught Stealing
* Best Album Art: Jane's Addiction – Ritual de lo Habitual
* Top Independent Artist (Retail): Napalm Death – Harmony Corruption
* Top Home Video: Faith No More – Live at Brixton
* Top New Artist: Pantera

Foundations Forum 91 Sampler CD – Disc 1

Foundations Forum 91 Sampler CD – Disc 2

Foundations Forum 91 Sampler CD – Disc 2

This year a video cassette entitled 'A Weekend in Hell' was released through A&M Video. The video featured performances from bands like Megadeth, Soundgarden, Ugly Kid Joe, Prong, Screaming Jets and XYZ. Also featured were excerpts from panel discussions, awards acceptances and exhibits, serving as a taster for those who could not make it to the event itself.

Foundations Forum '92

Foundations Forum 92 took place at the Stouffer Concourse Hotel in Los Angeles from October 1–3, 1992. The theme of the convention on its fifth anniversary was the 'evolution of the genre' – exploring where they stood musically, and where they were likely headed.

Foundations Forum 92 was the venue for the World premiere screening of '' For Those About to Rock – Monsters in Moscow'' featuring AC/DC, Metallica, Pantera and Black Crowes.

Having established the ceremony the previous year, on Saturday night the Concrete Foundations Awards took place as part of the events at the hotel.

AWARDS

* Top Retail Album: 'Metallica' – Metallica (based on Foundations Charts)
* Top Radio Cut: 'Mouth For War' – Pantera (based on Foundations Charts)
* Top Radio Album: 'Metallica' – Metallica (based on Foundations Charts)
* Top Home Video: 'Rusted Pieces' – Megadeth (based on Foundations Charts)
* Best Independent Artist: Sepultura (Editors Choice Award)
* Best Breakthrough Artist: Pearl Jam (Editors Choice Award)
* Best Hard Music Artist: Soundgarden (Editors Choice Award)
* The Hard Rockers' Hard Rocker Award: Aerosmith (Award chosen by their professional colleagues)

On the closing night of the convention, the T