Sam Goody Opens Door for Florida Bands to Compete on National Stage at Bandemonium; Bands Were Selected from More than 800 Entries Around the Country.

Entertainment Editors

MINNEAPOLIS--(ENTERTAINMENT WIRE)--March 6, 2000

They came from all over the country - more than 800 strong - with the dream of making it big in the music industry. Now, after years of playing in garages, basements and small clubs, two Florida bands are closer to achieving their dreams and following in the footsteps of the Miami band that won this competition a year ago.

West Palm Beach band, Jadestone, and Tampa Bay band, Harry Dash, have moved to the quarterfinals of Sam Goody's Ultimate Band Search, Bandemonium. They will now compete head-to-head on March 9th, at the Hard Rock Cafe in Miami, as the warm-up act for last year's Bandemonium winner, Miami's own Darwin's Waiting Room, and Capitol Records recording artists, Marcy Playground. The winner could end up going to the finals in Panama City, Florida, later this month.

"Jadestone and Harry Dash are getting the push to make it to the top, which is Sam Goody's goal with Bandemonium - to help local, unsigned bands get exposure and introduce their music to fans, producers and promoters," said Marcia Appel, Musicland's Senior Vice President of Advertising, Brand Management and Communications. "These bands have proved themselves to industry experts, and now they will get to show their stuff live. It's a great event for the bands and local music fans."

SFX, the world's leading promoter, producer and presenter of live entertainment, chose two quarterfinalists in each of eight regions across the country from more than 800 entries. These bands are all unsigned, and now have the unusual opportunity to gain visibility, introduce their music to a wider audience and compete for a chance to perform in the finals in Panama City, Florida. The finals will also feature performances by Marcy's Playground, the Jungle Brothers, Fastball and Moby, making this one of the hottest Spring Break concerts of the year.

The judges said there were a lot of great bands with a lot of talent in this region, but these bands stood out. The Bandemonium judges were extremely impressed with Jadestone, saying, "'Smooth' is the first word that comes to mind when Jadestone starts spinning." They described Harry Dash's music as a "blend of punk, classic rock and pure pop in an ultra-tight mix."

The quarterfinalists will be judged by a panel including a record label representative, providing extremely valuable exposure to the participants. Videotapes of the performances will be judged by SFX to choose the finalists.

The grand-prize winner will receive a prize package worth more than $20,000. This includes $2,500 cash, studio time with a producer, and an array of Gibson musical equipment including an SG Standard guitar, an SG-Z bass guitar, amplifiers, and a five-piece Slingerland Spitfire drum kit. The second-place band will win $1,000. Regional winners receive $500 each.

Sam Goody is a division of Musicland Stores Corporation (NYSE: MLG). Based in Minneapolis, Musicland Stores Corporation is the leading specialty retailer of home-entertainment software products in the United States. As of December 31, 1999, the company operated 1,345 retail stores in 49 states, Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands under the names Sam Goody, Suncoast Motion Picture Company, Media Play and On Cue. In addition to its four store formats, Musicland also operates five commercial Web sites including: SamGoody.com (http://www.samgoody.com), Suncoast.com, Mediaplay.com, OnCue.com and Requestline.com. For additional information on Musicland Stores Corporation, visit the company's Web site at http://www.musicland.com.