Hole has withdrawn from the class action lawsuit against Universal Music Group after it emerged that their masters were not affected by the 2008 fire at the company’s archive vaults.
It follows reports that up to 500,000 master recordings from Universal Music artists were destroyed in the blaze.
CEO/chairman Sir Lucian Grainge has promised transparency for artists in the investigation.
In a new statement, a UMG spokesperson said: "Over a month ago, without even knowing if the 2008 fire on the NBC/Universal Studios lot affected their clients, plaintiffs' attorneys rushed to pursue meritless legal claim. UMG's dedicated global team is actively working directly with our artists and their representatives to provide accurate information concerning the assets we have and what might have been lost in the fire.
“Even though our work is not yet complete, we have already determined that original masters for many of the artists named in the lawsuit were not lost in the 2008 fire. We will not be distracted from our focus on providing our artists with full transparency even as the plaintiffs' attorneys continue to pursue these baseless claims."
An amended class action has been filed without the involvement of Hole. The remaining plaintiffs are Soundgarden, Tupac Shakur's estate, Tom Petty's ex-wife Jane Petty and Steve Earle, who are seeking to recover half of any insurance settlement for master recordings and half of any remaining loss of value that has yet to be compensated.
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