Top tunes from GO SWIM, CHLOË MARCH, SHEEPY, SUNS, SALVATION BILL, THE SHOOTING OF, BLANK CINEMA, CELLARSCAPE, ROBOTDOCTORS, SEA STACKS, OKASNO, RUSSELL JEANES, BENGAL LANCERS, OOK AND THE ELEPHANT and SHIVUM SHARMA

The BBC Introducing Mixtape is a 60 minute radio show and podcast broadcast on BBC Radio 6 Music from 2-3am every Sunday night/Monday morning. Each show is available as a podcast for 30 days at the BBC 6 Music downloads page. The full tracklists and start times are published here at Fresh On The Net together together with biog information supplied by the artists. Previous tracklists can be found via the MIXTAPE tab above or on the BBC website.

All tracks on the mixtape come from the BBC Introducing Uploader: some are recommended by BBC friends and colleagues – the rest are tunes I’ve discovered here while listening to our Fresh On The Net inbox. For more about how the process works see this post. These are the listings for the episode broadcast overnight on Sunday 2nd March (technically 2am on Monday, 3rd March 2014…

GO SWIM – Call Sign [starts 0:17]
http://www.wearegoswim.com
“Go Swim formed late 2013 coming musically from a mainly indie/pop background, they developed a sound of shimmering guitars, boy/girl harmonies, driven bass, and bouncing drums, evolving their sound into a danceable style of indie pop. Their most recent release Call Sign released Feb 2014, has received airplay from BBC and RTE and beyond. They are currently working on their debut EP due for release in next few months. You can see the video of Call Sign at http://youtu.be/aY87Dts4Ym4 and the track is also available to download free from http://soundcloud.com/wearegoswim”

CHLOË MARCH – Ember [starts 04:56]
http://www.chloemarch.co.uk
“Ember is the single from Chloë March’s latest album Nights Bright Days. The album began in November 2009 in a tiny, freezing holiday cottage in the bleak and beautiful Suffolk town of Aldeburgh. Inspired by the cold full moon hanging over the sea, Chloë decided the album would be about the Night and Metamorphosis. Four years later the album itself had transformed into a cycle of songs as dreams: of Orpheus in the fields and at sea, bonfires on a frozen river, lonely kings, bohemian San Francisco, deep woods and sleeping hearts, sensuality, loss and longing. The album, recorded and produced by Chloë, features guest musicians playing french horn, guitar, bass clarinet and soprano sax, and oscillates in an emotionally charged hinterland somewhere between folk, artsong, dreampop, electronica and ambient. Her previous album Divining took a mere three years to make, with Chloë teaching herself to record, mix and produce along the way. She has also played keyboards on tours with Cousteau, composed music for dance-theatre and recently appeared as guest vocalist/lyricist for German ambient maestro Jumpel (Bloc4 on Hidden Shoal Recordings). Future plans will need to include all the music that she couldn’t fit onto the 16-track album….”

SHEEPY – These Clothes [starts 07:43]
http://www.sheepymusic.com
“We’re a 3 piece pop-punk band from Liverpool and have recently released our first self-titled debut album on Blang Records with These Clothes the first single taken from it. Band members are Luke Jones (vocals/guitar), Villy Raze (bass/vocals) and Ollie Phillips (drums). Our songwriter Luke began making self-produced albums from an early age, and Blang Records snapped him up. Predator EP was the first release, followed by the single Glum and the 7″ release Another Day. These songs recieved national radio airplay on the likes of Radio 2, 6 Music and XFM, plus some national TV play on Soccer AM. In a short space of time, the band has played across the UK and Ireland and toured around Europe in 2012 and 2013 with friends Vamos. With a growing buzz and fanbase, Sheepy’s debut self-titled album is out on Blang Records – from which These Clothes is the first single.” Upcoming gigs in March include York (12th), Galway (14th), Dublin (15th), Tuam (16th) and a hometown appearance at Liverpool’s Threshold Festival (28th)

SUNS – Plight Of The Hunter [starts 09:50]
https://www.facebook.com/sunsofficial
“London based duo SUNS were brought together by a love of pop music and all things alternative. Written and recorded in their Dalston studio, their debut EP WeAreSuns (released on their own label Taiy? last November) was well received – picking up plays on 6 Music and Amazing Radio, while their video for Bells accumulated over 110K Vimeo views. Both talented writers/producers in their own right, between them they have previously worked with the likes of Crystal Fighters, Mount Kimbie and Scott Walker to name a few. Their remix of Lovestarrs’ (formerly The Good Natured) Get Your Sexy On appeared online last week and SUNS will also be releasing their next single and playing live in the spring.”

SALVATION BILL – Dead Dog [starts 14:16]
http://www.salvationbill.co.uk
Great to hear this new project from Ollie Thomas: “The name comes from a great poem by Robert William Service called The Ballad of Salvation Bill.” we’re told. “Ollie used to be in an Oxford band called Ute who went on to play Radio 1’s Big Weekend, and were BBC Oxford’s Band Of The Year with an entire one-hour show dedicated to the group. Ollie later went on to form The (Old) Grinding Young, who played the Truck Festival, but split soon after. At the end of 2012 people were afraid that a planet called Nibiru was going to bash into earth and end human life. Salvation Bill was so worried that he wrote his first song about it, named after the planet. Although – much like the impending Armageddon – the song passed everyone by, Bill carried on writing about less important events and…BONK! he had something – and if you like narrative thread in songs, it’s possible you’ll enjoy his lyrics. Themes tend to include the constant threat of death, money problems, tales of woe plus occasional stirred-in schmaltz. Having burned every bridge imaginable with every person he ever met, Ollie/Bill decided to go solo and now records things and plays gigs all by himself. Using loops and various electronics to enrich the familiar voice-and-guitar singer-songwriter combo, his live performances are focussed on being as entertaining as possible. He just launched the physical release of this single Dead Dog at Truck Store in Oxford in the format of a USB stick inside a home-made dogfood can – with jelly bones inside.” Yum!

THE SHOOTING OF – 1000 Facebook Likes [starts 18:13]
https://production.bbc.co.uk/introducing/artists/172570#track_598784
http://www.theshootingof.com
“The Shooting Of… (aka Paul Jeans) is one man intent on raising his voice above the din, a self confessed control freak from North East England that grew tired of trying to share a vision. Creating alternative pop music with no agenda other than writing the kind of songs/making the kind of sounds that he wants. Transferring what is created in the studio to the live stage by using beaters played with feet for kick drum, snare drum and tambourine whilst triggering samples, playing keys or guitar and a using a copperphone microphone along with a regular one to vary vocal delivery. This is the soundtrack to his latest video, below: the 1000 Facebook Likes Song (or The Trials And Tribulations Of Making Music In The Social Media Age). Please don’t take this song/video seriously, internet crazies,” adds Paul “it’s just for fun”.

BLANK CINEMA – Destroy Together [starts 22:10]
http://blankcinema.com
Independent Vancouver-based rock band Blank Cinema consist of Jake Fox, Naomi Horii, Justin James, Pat Lok, and Matthew Perry. Destroy Together is the opening track on their latest EP Eras, which was released last October. “We began recording the new songs around the 10th anniversary of The Strokes’ first record, Is This It,” says Jake, “and we were inspired by their DIY approach, we wanted it to sound a little DIY, a little bit understated at times, but still heavy and danceable”. This DIY approach to Eras has meant that all of it is independently recorded and produced in the spare time of the working class musicians living in Vancouver – one of North America’s most expensive cities to live in – with not much to spare. That approach also extends to the EP’s promotion and release, having raised funds from their Indiegogo campaign to press its five tracks – plus one remix – on limited vinyl. Jake Fox’s previous Toronto outfit earned him a remix by Crystal Castles and billing alongside Tokyo Police Club and MSTRKRFT. Blank Cinema gained kudos from cult synth-punk band The Units by posting a cover of the latter’s track High Pressure Days online. This made them a featured act on Olio 2012’s festival site, as well as earning them a slot at Toronto’s NXNE in June 2013.

CELLARSCAPE – Epinephrine [starts 27:41]
http://www.paulterryprojects.co.uk
“Cellarscape is London-based multi-instrumentalist Paul Terry. Weaving vocal harmonies through an eclectic mix of fragile/anthemic guitars, hypnotic orchestrations, and angular beats/percussion, Cellarscape songs have a cinematic presence – echoing Paul’s side-line in film scores. These include the 13-time award-winning werewolf tale The Furred Man, drama Emily (starring Felicity Jones and Christopher Eccleston) and chiller Care. Brand new song Epinephrine is taken from Cellarscape’s forthcoming fifth record, The Act Of Letting Go, out April 28, 2014. The new 12-track album was mixed and mastered by Kerbdog producer Dave Draper, and features guest lead vocals from acclaimed Dutch singer-songwriter Anneke van Giersbergen (also from the Devin Townsend Project and The Gathering) on the song The Same Place. When Paul isn’t writing music, he writes books. He co-authored (with Tara Bennett) the official LOST Encyclopedia and Fringe: September’s Notebook for the hit Bad Robot TV shows. Paul also served as the writer/director for the dark and mysterious black-and-white music video:
http://youtu.be/-boPificDtQ

ROBOTDOCTORS – Three Days Dead [starts 32:19]
http://www.robotdoctors.co.uk
“Robot Doctors are a five piece band from Dundee consisting of Craig Hannigan (drums), Kieran Andrews (bass), Iain Hannigan (guitar), Dave Nicholson (guitar) and Darren Kelly (vocals). The band has been playing together for a year and are actively trying to get their music out there. The track Three Days Dead and its B-side I Like You were recorded at Annfield Studios in Fife by Gavin ‘Jeebo’ Brady last September and at the end of January his services were recruited again and Robot Doctors’ first album Time Will Tell was recorded. This will be released in the upcoming months and contains 12 original tracks. They are looking for gigs both across Scotland and further afield. Also, no one in the band is a robot. Or a doctor. Sorry about that.”

SEA STACKS – Brutal Concrete / Scottish Wilderness [starts 34:48]
http://www.seastacks.co.uk
Nice to hear new music from our friends Sea Stacks “…the creation of Davy Berryman: combining orchestral instrumentations to create wind and string-strafed indie music that produces spine-tingling moments of beauty interwoven with a distinctly dark, sinister tone of lyrics. Starting in late June 2011 with just a handful of songs and a studio, Davy set out with only one rule, mostly unbroken; that there would be no guitars or pianos used. In April 2013 Sea Stacks released their first single The High Tide along with a video. The follow up to this Numb was released in September 2013. Sea Stacks released a free download of Brutal Concrete / Scottish Wilderness ahead of their next single, Glassy-Eyed, which is out in April.”

OKASNO – Bamboo [starts 38:33]
http://soundcloud.com/okasno
“OKASNO (pronounced OK-As-No) is a band formed in Madrid in 2010. Their music is introspective and slow-building, visual and hypnotic, with a feel of tradition and a futuristic touch. They will release their album Faint White, Pale Blue in April 2014 via the transatlantic musical collective QTZLCTL (pronounced Quetz-Al-Coatl). This is a multi-faceted project: live DJing act, band and net-label. It places an emphasis on the quality of the music and its presentation: QTZLCTL releases music in web format every two to three weeks. It is…” they tell us “…the natural heir to OKASNO.” Though perhaps a tad harder to pronounce.

RUSSELL JEANES – Simple Jayne [starts 42:19]
https://soundcloud.com/russell-jeanes-1
“Russell Jeanes & Catherine Hershey have never met – they discovered each other through Soundcloud – and liked each others songs so much they started to work together. They make songs about the magic in nature. Russ lives in a cottage in the middle of a wood near the Yorkshire dales, while Catherine lives near Paris. Russ writes songs on harp with Scott Fraser playing guitar and a guide vocal – then sends them across the channel to Catherine, where she re-records the vocals in her garden. They are currently writing and singing new songs into the Cloud.”

BENGAL LANCERS – The Shakes [starts 45:38]
http://www.facebook.com/bengallancers
“Formed in late 2012 at the University of Leicester, Bengal Lancers have steadily built a cult following amongst a vibrant UK alternative music scene. After securing a headline spot alongside fellow Londoners Rudimental and Wretch 32 at the O2 Academy Leicester they released their debut EP The Flood Sessions which you can hear on their Soundcloud page. https://soundcloud.com/bengal-lancers/sets/the-flood-sessions The three-piece have been busy plugging their debut release since the turn of the year in a series of energetic performances in the capital. A second release is due in the Spring.

OOK AND THE ELEPHANT – All Fall Down [starts 50:44]
https://www.facebook.com/ookandtheelephant
“Fuelled by biscuits and a fear of treble, Ook and the Elephant are a Bolton-based band who are combatting their fear of the recording studio to produce their first EP. Their lack of ambition for fame is overcome by a love of live performance and good times in strange and beautiful places. They will shake your bones and make you want to stomp whilst eating something comforting. The sound they produce comes from the battle of wills between a bass player who has an unhealthy fear of guitar pedals, a lead guitarist who has an unhealthy love of guitar pedals and a drummer who would happily use no more than a vase and his head for percussion, all mixed with some rather nice male/female harmonies.” The EP – which is currently being mixed with a launch date envisaged at the end of April – is called Find Yourself Gone . “It’s been a long time in the making and is the first time we have attempted to record our stuff” they say “but we think we are going to have a cd we are all immensley proud of. Gigwise, our next two shows are at The Shangri-La in Prestwich on March 21st and Penwortham Live on the 29th.”

SHIVUM SHARMA – Flicker [starts 55:06]
http://soundcloud.com/shivum-sharma
“18 year old Shivum Sharma was born and raised in London to an Indian father and Irish mother. He started playing the piano from the age of nine but found the discipline of repeat practicing a chore and gave up a few years later. Playing it as his own leisure was a different proposition entirely, and he rediscovered a fresh love for the instrument when writing his own music from late 2011. Shivum cites solitude and the city as prime sources of inspiration, but also artists as varied as Aphex Twin and The Knife to Amy Winehouse and Erykah Badu. A;tjough this finished single is produced by Warp Records’ renowned experimental artist/producer Kwes, Shivum’s original bedroom demo aired online in mid-2013 as just a sparse piano line and vocal, resulting in widespread blog support. He already featured on the Mixtape last November as vocalist on Over by TCTS – the project name of Manchester producer Sam O’Neill, who will be returning the favour on an upcoming remix of this track Flicker.”

ARTISTS: After appearing on The BBC Introducing Mixtape you may well receive unsolicited email from at least one plugger saying they heard your track on the show, thought it “sounded fantastic”, and are wondering if you’re looking for promotion for your releases. Please check out The Pros And Cons Of Pluggers before responding to any unsolicited emails from anyone suggesting that YOU should pay THEM for services of any kind.