While the guitar slot in Limp Bizkit remains vacant, the roster of Fred Durst's Flawless label has gotten cozier.

Durst signed Sacramento, California's the Revolution Smile after his Put Your Guitar Where Your Mouth Is Tour came to a close in mid-February (see [article id="1451596"]"Limp Bizkit Scouring 22 Cities For New Guitarist"[/article]), according to an Interscope spokesperson. The band, which independently released its first LP, At War With Plastic, in 2000, is on the road with new labelmates Puddle of Mudd until May 1 and will begin working on its Flawless debut shortly thereafter.

The Revolution Smile singer Shaun Lopez was asked by Limp Bizkit's management company, The Firm, to audition for Borland's slot, which had been vacant since October (see [article id="1449976"]"Limp Bizkit And Wes Borland Part Ways"[/article]), according to a report in The Sacramento Bee published shortly after the band struck its deal. Lopez, the former guitarist for mid-'90s alt-metal band Far, declined in favor of concentrating on the Revolution Smile. He sent a demo to Durst, who invited the band to perform a showcase at the Viper Room in Hollywood after the conclusion of his tour. One song was reportedly enough for Durst, and a two-album contract was soon presented to the band.

The Revolution Smile have a second album, We Are in This Alone, in the can for Buddyhead Records, an independent label run by the principals of an online 'zine and rumor mill. The label, which had hoped to release the album in May, claimed it paid the production costs and had a verbal agreement to release the disc and evenly split any royalties with the band. While a written contract was later presented to the group, it was never signed.

Verbal agreements don't fly very far in the music biz, and the Revolution Smile returned their Buddyhead contract with several new provisions — mainly that the label could license the LP for nine months, after which time the band could re-record the songs for its Flawless debut. The label shelved the album in response, according to a Buddyhead spokesperson.

In February, Durst claimed on his band's official Web site, www.limpbizkit.com, that he signed two or three bands (presumably including the Revolution Smile) as a result of the Put Your Guitar Where Your Mouth Is Tour. No information on the groups could be obtained through Interscope.

While the guitar search bore fruit for Flawless, a new Limp Bizkit guitarist has yet to be found. Durst called back three hopefuls to work with the band in Los Angeles, though they didn't pass muster and were sent home. Meanwhile, Limp Bizkit continue to write and rehearse material for their fourth studio album, the follow-up to 2000's Chocolate Starfish and the Hot Dog Flavored Water.