No introduction. Sorry. No nice little 'opener' paragraph that lets you dip your toes into the plot of this article. Just going straight ahead with the facts. Deal with it. Oh, and for all the Mensa readers, substitute <band name here> with the name of the band who's CD you wanna scam.
This method of getting free music generally will only work with bigger bands, as they'll have the cash to waste on promo cd's n shit. Smaller bands & labels are usually struggling just to break even so don't do this shit to them. Fuck over a major record label cuz they probably deserve it (as most of their signed artists will tell you). So here's what ya do: Call the record distributor (labels make the music (ie: DefJam, Lookout) & distributors ship the music (ie:Cargo, Attic)) and ask to speak to the representative for <band name here>. Once you get to talk to the person, tell them you are part of a small independant magazine (don't use Mind Rape) and a lot of your readers are fans of <band name here>. Tell them that you want to a review of the band's new CD and you would like a promo copy of the CD. Chances are if you have any lying skills talent whatsoever, they'll be more than happy to oblige.
The good thing about this method is that a lot of the time you can get the distributor to send you a copy of the cd BEFORE IT'S BEEN RELEASED. This is cool cuz you walk into HMV and flaunt your yet-to-be-released Snickerclish Restroom CD to all the jealous alternateens. That's the end of the article, short & sweet just like your sister.
PS: This method could also be applied to getting concert tickets (and whatever else you could think of) if you just change a few things around...