Ernie Ball Battle of the Bands 11 Signups Now Open!

SAN LUIS OBISPO, CA (February 28, 2006) - The Ernie Ball Vans Warped Tour Battle of the Bands is making yet another triumphant return, with registration for Battle of the Bands 11 open from now until May 15, 2007through the official Battle website, www.battleofthebands.com. This year, eager fans will play a bigger role than ever in deciding who deserves the chance to showcase their music live on the summer's largest live music festival, the Vans Warped Tour.

A variation on past Battles, the 2007 competition puts fans in the driver's seat right from the start, allowing fans to nominate their favorite registered bands for a shot at playing the Ernie Ball Stage during the tour, running from June 28 - August 25. Judges, comprised of Ernie Ball staff and Battle sponsors, will then choose four of the 50 most-nominated bands from each region to perform live on the stage during their hometown leg of the tour. Regional winners will be announced June 1, 2007.

A breeding ground for the best unsigned talent, the Ernie Ball Stage is a self-contained mobile stage equipped with a 24,000-watt sound system. The stage has featured more than 5,000 unsigned bands, including then up-and-comers Bowling For Soup, Sugarcult, Story of the Year, New Found Glory, Avenged Sevenfold, The Mighty Mighty Bosstones, Less Than Jake, and more.

The nearly 200 bands who make it to the Ernie Ball stage at the Vans Warped Tour also compete for the chance to be one of four showcase bands chosen to play live before industry and record label executives at a major Hollywood venue in the fall '07. Throughout the Battle of the Bands competition, participants will be judged on performance by a group of Ernie Ball staff and sponsors as well as highly regarded musicians and entertainment industry professionals.

All registered bands are automatically eligible to win thousands of dollars in rock 'n' roll music gear from Battle sponsors in the also fan-driven online voting competition, where fans vote for their favorite groups at the Battle website from June 28-September 10. The top four bands in this Battle portion will win prizes from Battle sponsors including Auralex, Krank Amps, DW Drums, Boss, Electro-Voice, Ernie Ball/Music Man, OLP Guitars, Taylor Guitars, Zildjian, M-Audio, and Remo.

To take part in this year's Ernie Ball Battle of the Bands competition, bands must upload photos, a band biography, and two MP3 audio files to the Battle of the Bands 11 site by May 15. For more details on sign-ups, please visit the Battle of the Bands 11 website at www.battleofthebands.com.

Since its debut 11 years ago, the Ernie Ball Battle of the Bands has given the best local bands from North America the opportunity to showcase their talents in the world's longest running and largest live music promotion in the music industry.

The Vans Warped Tour, the most prominent live music festival in North America, will hit 45 major venues in the United States and Canada and will feature, among others, The Unseen, Bayside, Bad Religion, Big D And The Kids Table, New Found Glory and previous Battle of the Bands participant Cute Is What We Aim For.

Ernie Ball was the first to offer rock strings with the creation of Slinkys, and further revolutionized the market by offering guitarists Custom-Gauge single strings. The Ernie Ball Company also produces Music Man guitars and basses, volume pedals, and other accessories. The company's strings and accessories are available in more than 6,000 music stores throughout the U.S. The company also exports to 82 countries. For more information, contact the Ernie Ball company at (800) 543-2255, or visit their website at www.ernieball.com.

These products are Ernie Ball trademarks registered in the USA and many foreign countries:

ERNIE BALL®     CUSTOM GAUGE®     SLINKY®     EARTHWOOD®
MUSICMAN®
STINGRAY®     SILHOUETTE®     AXIS®
STERLING®     4+2®     3+1®

Trademark ownership is indicated by the symbol ®, however, for the sake of brevity it is omitted during the story.

Contact:
Brian Ball
Ernie Ball, Inc.
(800) 543-2255

Media Contact:
Keith Negrin
MORSEKODE
(952) 853-9555