CREATION FESTIVAL PARTNERS WITH HEARITFIRST.COM’S INDIESCOVERY FOR ULTIMATE BATTLE OF THE BANDS

Medford, NJ (February 4, 2006) – Creation Festival, the largest outdoor Christian music and teaching festival of its kind, has partnered with hearitfirst.com, a fan-driven online community for Christian music fans, to present the Indiescovery Ultimate Battle of the Bands.

“We are very excited to be working alongside hearitfirst.com for this one-of-a-kind talent contest,” says, Nick Kulb, VP of Marketing for the Creation Festivals. “Both Creation and hearitfirst.com have the ability to provide a great platform for independent artists to show off their talent and we’re pleased to partner together to bring national attention to gifted musicians who may have otherwise never been heard outside their hometown.”

Through April 14th, independent and previously unsigned artists are invited to submit an original song in mp3 format, along with two photos and a short biography via the Indiescovery section on hearitfirst.com. Each entry must also indicate a preference of battling it out at Creation Northeast in Pennsylvania on June 30th or at Creation Northwest in Washington on July 28th. All submissions will be posted on the hearitfirst.com website and visitors will have the opportunity to vote for their favorite performers April 15th – May 15th. The online votes will then be tabulated and the top three artists for each festival will be determined.

The six semi-finalists, three for Creation Northeast and three for Creation Northwest, will have the opportunity to perform live during the Friday night Late Night Café Ultimate Battle of the Band competition, hosted by Sparrow Records artist Sanctus Real. The winner will be chosen by the audience, with the crowd favorite receiving the loudest response as measured by an applause meter.

"We've performed at Creation for the past four years and always look forward to it every summer. This year we're excited to not only play, but also host the Indiescovery Ultimate Battle of the Bands,” says, Matt Hammitt, lead singer of Sanctus Real. “Having been an independent band not so long ago ourselves, we understand how important an opportunity like this can be to an undiscovered artist and we’re honored to play a role in helping an artist live out their dream."

The Ultimate winner at each festival will receive a Saturday morning opening slot on the X2006 Fringe Stage and the opportunity to record a demo in Nashville, TN for a major Christian record label.

“hearitfirst.com is all about letting the fans decide for themselves. With the Indiescovery Ultimate Battle of the Bands, fans can become both the artist and the critic by submitting their music and voting on the best bands,” explains Mark Adikson, co-founder of hearitfirst.com. “In partnering with Creation Festivals, we are creating the stage online and ultimately giving away the stage at the festival.”

This year’s 28th Annual Creation Festival will feature a main stage line-up including Third Day, TobyMac, Newsboys, Casting Crowns, Jeremy Camp, Audio Adrenaline, Hillsong United, David Crowder, Salvador, Sanctus Real, Stryper, popular mainstream band Relient K and American Idol finalist, George Huff, along with many other nationally known favorites. The Festival will also present many new artists who are on the rise, including Flyleaf, The Afters, Mainstay and M.O.C and the Tooth and Nail Records sponsored “X2006 Fringe Stage” will feature the best of up-and-coming alternative Christian artists, including Krystal Meyers, Seventh Day Slumber, John Reuben, Hawk Nelson, Falling Up, House of Heroes and 4th Avenue Jones, among others. Creation Northeast will be held June 28th – July 1st at the Agape Farm in the beautiful mountain ranges of Mount Union, PA. Celebrating its 9th year, Creation Northwest will be held at the amazing Gorge Amphitheater in George, WA July 26th –29th.

About the Creation Festival
With a record crowd of more than 75,000 at Creation East and over 22,000 at Creation West in 2005, the Creation Festival is the largest outdoor Christian music and teaching festival of its kind. Founded in 1979 in Pennsylvania, Creation added a second event in 1998 on the west coast at the Gorge Amphitheater in George, WA. In 2005, Creation branched out once again, this time internationally with Friendship Fest, held just outside the walls of Marrakech, the cultural capital of the Kingdom of Morocco. Tens of thousands of people attend the Creation Festivals from all across the United States and Canada, as well as many international countries, including Iceland, Switzerland, and France. The Festival has garnered attention from many major media outlets including CBS News “Sunday Morning”, VH1, CNN, FOX News, Details Magazine, The New York Times and GQ Magazine, who ran a 13 page article in its February 2005 issue—the longest feature story in the history of the magazine. In April 2004, the Creation Festival was awarded the Gospel Music Association’s Lifetime Achievement Award, an honor that recognizes major contributions to the gospel music industry through a company’s commitment to the Christian community for 20 or more years.

About hearitfirst.com
hearitfirst.com, a fan-driven community website, encompasses all the sub-genres that make up contemporary Christian music. Started in 1998 with a different format, hearitfirst.com has been completely revamped to be a one-stop site for the latest on all artists from all labels, with the ultimate goal of integrating and inviting everyone into this growing musical genre.

About Sanctus Real
R&R’s most played Christian rock band of 2004 and recipient of 2005’s Modern Rock Album of the Year GMA Award, Sanctus Real, is slated to release their third national studio album, The Face of Love, April 4. Popularly known for its captivating live performances and trio of No. 1 radio hits, including “Everything About You,” “The Fight Song” and its cover of U2’s “Beautiful Day,” as well as it’s best-selling album to date, 2004’s award winning Fight The Tide, Sanctus Real’s The Face of Love was inspired by real-life heartache and rediscovered joy. The emotions behind each track are vulnerable and undisguised, making this album the band’s most accessible project of their career and exhibiting the band’s progression both musically and lyrically. Sanctus Real will perform songs from both projects on the main stage at Creation ’06, in addition to their Ultimate Battle of the Band hosting duties. Starting out on the Fringe Stage in 2003, this will be the band’s fourth appearance at the Festival.

For more information about the Indiescovery Ultimate Battle of the Bands, to make a submission or to vote on your favorite artist, please visit http://www.hearitfirst.com/genres/indiescovery.aspx.

To learn more about Creation Northeast and Northwest, to view the complete program, or for information on purchasing tickets to the event, please visit www.creationfest.com and choose the link to the Festival you would like to attend.
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For more information about the Creation Festivals or to express interest in covering the events or attending as media, please contact :
Anita Crawford | SPRINGBOARD entertainment
1708 21st Avenue South #129 | Nashville, TN 37212
[ph] 615.353.9021 | anita@springboardentertainment.com