[aussiecreeder]

i'm honestly fairly indifferent about these guys but i know there are some fans so;

Brad Arnold likes to plan ahead. The 3 Doors Down frontman already knows that Feb. 8, 2005, is the release date for the group's next Republic/Universal album. Nevermind that there's a summer tour with Nickelback and the small matter of recording the album still to come.

"We're going to do a really big push with Wal-Mart and some other retailers, and that's when we promised it," Arnold tells Billboard. Of course, if the material isn't there, he adds, the release date will be pushed back. "If it's not what we believe in, it won't be there, but I really think we can do it. It's always better when you have a goal and you don't get in there and dillydally around."

Performance rights society BMI honored the band last week by naming "When I'm Gone" college song of the year. Arnold admits that he was surprised, given the song's mainstream appeal, that "When I'm Gone" found a college following.

"College radio is definitely a little more underground, so we were just thrilled," he says. "When we write, we just try really, really hard not to rule anybody out. We don't try to go for any little niche."

The upcoming album will be the follow-up to 2002's "Away From the Sun," which debuted at No. 8 on The Billboard 200 and has sold 3 million copies in the United States, according to Nielsen SoundScan. The 3 Doors Down/Nickelback tour kicks off June 29 in St. Paul, Minn.


-- Melinda Newman, L.A.


certainly a bold step.....