Nuclear Blast has joined forces with former Roadrunner Records A&R chief Monte Conner in the formation of a new US partnership called Nuclear Blast Entertainment.

The new label, which will share most major operations with the existing US branch of Nuclear Blast, will announce its first signings in the coming months.

Monte Conner recently departed Roadrunner after a 25-year run that saw him sign most of the successful hard rock and metal bands on the label, including Slipknot, Sepultura, Machine Head, Trivium, Fear Factory, Stone Sour, Type O Negative, Soulfly, Coal Chamber, Life Of Agony, Biohazard, DevilDriver, Deicide and most recently, Rush and Gojira.

Another former employee of now defunct label Roadrunner, Mark Palmer, who was Managing Director for Roadrunner UK, will open Nuclear Blast's first UK office.

Markus Staiger states:

"I am absolutely thrilled to welcome metal veterans Monte Conner and Mark Palmer to the Nuclear Blast team. I am continually striving to strengthen Nuclear Blast on all fronts as a worldwide force, and with the addition of Monte and Mark I feel we just took major steps in two key territories."

Nuclear Blast was founded by Staiger in Donzdorf, Germany in 1987. With offices in Donzdorf and Los Angeles and a worldwide staff of 150 people (including a thriving mail order business), Nuclear Blast is one of the biggest independent labels in the world.

Some of the label's current artists are Meshuggah, Testament, Nightwish (Europe-only), Children Of Bodom, Anthrax (Europe-only), Dimmu Borgir, All Shall Perish, Epica, Exodus and Accept.