Got Melk?Anyone who has tried to land a major-label deal knows that artist visibility is an important factor. So how do you make yourself heard above the noise of a million bands vying for A&R attention?

A Garageband.com contest (www.garageband.com) awards a $250,000 recording contract to the unsigned artist or band that receives the best visitor response on the site. The British band Melk occupied the number one spot for more than three weeks with She's Been Sleeping, its second release on the Garageband site.

Melk was formed in 1997 when, following the release of her solo album Tundra (Sony, 1994), vocalist Sara Davis collaborated with engineer/producer Neil Simons on a remix of one of her songs. Afterward the two wanted to continue their working relationship but in a different musical direction. Together, Davis and Simons created the flavorful hybrid of smooth, folklike vocals and electronic beats and processing that gives Melk its unusual sound.

Davis and Simons spent two years writing songs and building a following in London. They added a rotating lineup of guest DJs, hip-hop poets, and other musicians to their performances to augment their lazy grooves and luscious melodies.

The members of Melk are no strangers to the push-pull world of the record industry. After a couple of years of flirting with several labels, the band took matters into its own hands. "Garageband.com was the obvious place for us to put our songs," says Davis. "It gave us instant feedback from our musical peers, with no A&R men telling us to add more bass. It's a great solution and loads of fun."

Davis's relocation to the San Francisco Bay Area hasn't slowed the group down. Melk now records over the Internet using the technology provided by Rocket Network (see "Web Page: We Have Liftoff!" in the April 2000 issue of EM). "I usually post an acoustic track to our private Internet recording studio at 8 p.m. West Coast time," Davis explains. "The next morning, I log on and listen to what Neil added while I was sleeping."

The partners feel that the success they've had on Garageband.com is just the beginning. "Bands on the Internet can reach more people in a week than they can in two years of touring," says Davis, "at virtually no cost."

"As the Internet is becoming the `Enternet,'" she continues, "we're positioning ourselves to capitalize on all our hard work by reaching the audience on our own terms. This is every band's dream!"