SEVERED

80 BANDS LEFT STANDING TO COMPETE FOR THE ATTENTION OF THE CAPITOL RECORDS A&R STAFF


SEVERED MAKES THE CUT!


Better Than Ezra, Dope & Underoath Praise The Importance Of The Zippo Hot Tour


Showcases Set To Begin In September In Ten Cities Across The Country


SEVERED – Scheduled To Perform On Friday September 23rd @ The Mad Frog


New York/Bradford, PA – August 15th, 2005 – When the 2005 edition of The Zippo Hot Tour began earlier this summer over 290 unsigned bands made the first cut to have a shot at securing a slot to perform at one of the ten regional showcases this September.


The online votes are in and 8 lucky bands in each of the ten cities have made the cut to the semi-finals! With the online voting up a staggering 500% this year at zippohottour.com, the 80 bands selected to move on to the next round are the cream of the crop.


SEVERED was one of the lucky bands selected by fans across the country to have a shot at winning the Zippo Hot Tour. SEVERED is scheduled to perform on Friday September 23rd @ The Mad Frog.




Zippo Hot Tour – Page 2 of 3


“It took us seven years to sign to a major label, but then only seven weeks to have the number one song at alternative radio. Sometimes, it is about the right person seeing you in the right environment. The Zippo Hot Tour is a great opportunity for any young band to show their talents to the right people,” Said Tom Drummond of Better Than Ezra.



Music fans in the ten regional cities will finally have the opportunity to help push their favorite band in front of the executives at Capitol Records. Showcases have been scheduled for September in Austin, TX; Charlotte, NC; Cincinnati, OH; Denver, CO; Memphis, TN; Orlando, FL; Philadelphia, PA; Phoenix, AZ; Pittsburgh, PA; and Raleigh, NC. There will be four shows in each market featuring two semi-finalist bands each weekend as well as a regional headliner. For a full listing of when and where everyone is playing, log onto: zippohottour.com.


It’s never an easy process for new bands to get their foot in the door with A&R scouts as Tim McTague of Underoath knows all too well: "My advice would be to have a local bake sale and possibly throw your demos at people on bicycles and any other abstract form of getting your music in people’s hands...or get involved in the Zippo Hot Tour." Underoath can be seen on the cover of the current issue of Alternative Press this month.



Besides competing for a shot at showcasing their talent to Capitol Records, the winning band will receive almost $100,000 in prizes from the impressive lineup of partners, and be added to an 11-city tour with a major national headlining band in their very own decked out tour bus in November.


“The Zippo Hot Tour is an amazing opportunity. Where else can a young band find the opportunity to be discovered and have a shot at so much killer gear? If you aren’t behind this sort of thing, you must be an idiot,” commented lead singer Edsel Dope of the band Dope who currently have the #1 Billboard Heatseekers album this week.


Emerging from the showcases, the winning band from each city will be posted at zippohottour.com beginning in October and the winner from the finals round of online voting will be flown to Hollywood, California to showcase for A&R executives at Capitol Records at the conclusion of the contest.

- pfa Entertainment Media & Marketing

ZIPPO HOT TOUR HEATS UP IN CINCINNATI FEATURING LOCAL FAVORITE,
SEVERED


WHAT: The 2005 ZIPPO HOT TOUR showcase series is featuring 80 bands across the U.S. competing for a chance to showcase their talent in Los Angeles with Capitol Records and to open for The All-American Rejects on the 11 city Zippo Hot Tour this fall. Representing Cincinnati, Severed will perform on September 23rd at the Mad Frog to try and earn enough votes to advance to the finals. Music fans looking for the next big rock band can support their local music scene by voting for the bands they want to see represent their city in the finals. At these shows, attendees will get to vote for the band that they want to go on to the national finals round in October. Additionally, Zippo will be on hand at each showcase giving away Zippo lighters, Beanies, T-shirts, Lanyards and more!

WHO: Reigning from the Cincinnati Tri-State area, the Severed brand of metal can be described in many ways, none of them being typical of the status quo. With searing vocals, chainsaw driven guitars and a rhythm section that never forgets the value of a groove, the band never fails to leave an audience whip lashed. Check them out at www.severed.tv


WHEN/WHERE: The Mad Frog
Friday, September 23 - 9:00 PM –2:00 AM
Mad Frog – 1 E Mcmillan– Cincinnati– free from 9pm-11pm
www.themadfrog.net


INFO: For more information about the Zippo Hot Tour visit www.zippohottour.com.- or to schedule interviews please contact: Keith Hagan at 212-334-6116 or at Khagan@pfamedia.net
About Zippo Hot Tour
The Zippo Hot Tour is a promotional marketing initiative to support the local music industry and provide rock groups with a platform to bring their music to a national audience. The program consists of a series of online and offline activities, including a music tour visiting Austin, Charlotte, Cincinnati, Denver, Phoenix, Philadelphia, Orlando, Pittsburgh, Raleigh and Memphis. For more information on the Zippo Hot Tour contact Los Angeles based promotion agency, FUSE, at 323-871-9900. The Hot Tour is a collaborative venture between Zippo and its promotion agency, FUSE, based in Los Angeles.
- FUSE