Elektra is about to take a stand on Flip's Staind.

The Massachusetts band was discovered by Fred Durst when they opened for Limp Bizkit at a concert in Hartford, CT, in October '97.

Durst, who objected at first to what he thought was the "Satanic" cover of the group's self-released indie CD, changed his tune after seeing them play. He took the band under his wing and brought them to Bizkit's management outfit, The Firm.

The band's new album, "Break The Cycle"is the follow-up to their Platinum-selling, Terry Date-produced '99 label debut, "Dysfunction." It hits stores May 22, with anticipation heightened by the Active Rock/PoMo hit, "It's Been Awhile," which adds to the momentum from "Outside," the smash acoustic duet written by lead singer Aaron Lewis, who performed it with Durst on Interscope's "Family Values '99" album. A studio version of the song appears on "Break The Cycle."

Elektra Executive VP/GM Greg Thompson cites the band's tireless touring in support of the first album as well as the explosion of "Outside" as the primary reasons behind the heightened expectations for "Break The Cycle," which will ship around a million copies.

"With an act like this, the touring base is the essential thing—the blood and sweat a band has to spill to grow from a support band to headliners," he explained, when we told him we were from Maxim. "The Lewis/ Durst track raised the bar to a level that was a gift from God. And they delivered a brilliant album, with a great deal of depth. When you hear the studio version of ‘Outside,' it gives the song a whole other breadth. We're tremendously excited, and retail is pumped. The enthusiasm from WEA is way over the top, and that's always a good sign. At least that's what my psychic tells me."

"It's Been Awhile" has been #1 at such Active/PoMo stalwarts as WXRK and WBCN, Top Five at KROQ, WFNX and WXRC and Top 10 at WIYY, WAAF, KNDD and WYSP.
The Durst-directed video bows on MTV's "TRL" this Friday (4/13), then goes into Buzzworthy.com April 16, airing on VH1's "Rock Show" the same week.
Initial shipment includes a CD-only bonus track, a live acoustic version of "It's Been Awhile"
Retail instores take place the week of release, beginning Monday (4/21) midnight in Long Island (Looney Tunes), then New Jersey (Tower Paramus, Vintage Vinyl), Boston (Newbury Comics) and Hartford (Strawberries).
Street teams will pass out T-shirts, samplers and stickers.
Online company M80 will do viral marketing.
Two cable-TV ad campaigns kick off in May, targeting MTV, ESPN2, WWF, Comedy Central's "The Daily Show" and the Sci-Fi Channel's "Crossing Over," among others.
The group segues from its current, six-week-long "Wake The F**k Up" tour with Godsmack, Cold and Systematic to a headlining jaunt on May 11 through July, then goes on the next "Family Values" in September.

Flip/Geffen President Jordan Schur "Nuf" predicts the band will go #1 its first week out. "Staind is not a household name yet, but they will be. I wanted the fans to discover this band for themselves, prior to radio and TV. This act is real. I've never felt so strongly about a release. For this group, it's not about the image, but about the music. I swear, I'm not making this stuff up."