This week's show previews and celebrates next month's Sŵn Festival. Sŵn celebrates a wide variety of predominantly new, mostly leftfield, music across a multitude of Cardiff's venues from 21-23 October. It's one of the key events on the Welsh music calendar, right up there with the Green Man Festival, and it provides a great platform and music-hungry audience for the most interesting new Welsh artists.
As well its patronage of indigenous talent, Sŵn brings amazing new bands into Cardiff from outside Wales, frequently for their first appearances in the UK. Last year the now ubiquitous Marina And The Diamonds and The Drums made key appearances at the festival. It's a great opportunity to catch the key sounds of tomorrow in intimate venues.
Swn was co-founded by Radio 1 and C2's Huw Stephens and Cardiff promoter and label owner, John Rostron. Huw's authoritative knowledge and passion for new music shapes much of Sŵn, as does John's insatiable hunger for the best new sounds - an appetite that drags him to Europe and the States in his search for great music to share every autumn at the festival.
John is my special guest throughout the programme. We play a broad selection of the artists - both from Wales and beyond - and talk about many of the aspects of staging an event like this. In a year of incredible musical occurences, last year's Sŵn was the absolute highlight for me. Three days of gawping wonder, ear thrills, smiling faces and good beer. I couldn't recommend it any more highly. And - judging by this year's line-up (http://swnfest.com), 2010 is going to be even better!
Elsewhere on the show, Strange News From Another Star, whose phenomenally fierce debut EP, Full Frontal, was released in all its 10" vinyl glory on Monday, share their musical DNA with us. You're advised to listen to the EP wearing a welding mask. It has been described - admittedly by themselves - as 'face-melting'. It's a warning worth ignoring. Otherwise those of us without adequate facial protection would miss out on a brilliant EP of uninhibited spirit and propulsive fuzz.
Please send Welsh demos/new releases as high quality .mp3s/download links to: themysterytour@gmail.com
And if you have any release / event info for the Welsh Music Calendar, please mail that to the same address too.
You can follow the playlist for the show, and keep up to date with any programme-related announcements, via: www.twitter.com/welshmusic.
This coming Sunday night, Bastions share a mixtape of their favourite noises with us. It's going to be greatness cubed to the power of ace.
BRANDYMAN (Cardiff)
Heavy Metal Uncle [session Version]
THE VACCINES
If You Wanna
NEDRY
A42
ISLET (Cardiff)
Ringerz
JOE WORRICKER
We Hug In Bed
SWEET BABOO (Bangor)
Wish I Was Made Out Of Steel
EGYPTIAN HIP HOP
Moon Crooner
STRANGE NEWS FROM ANOTHER STAR (Cardiff)
Oh My God They've Given Me The Suburbs
DAVID BOWIE
Big Brother
DAVID BOWIE
Chant Of The Ever Circling Skeletal Family
MUNCH MUNCH
Squirrel
GOODTIME BOYS (Cardiff)
Deaner's Last Weekend
THE SCHOOL (Cardiff)
Hoping And Praying
BEACH FOSSILS
Daydream
Y NIWL (Llanrwst)
Undegpedwar
CYRION (Llangefni)
Bail Out
BASTIONS (Anglesey)
Soar
PEGGY SUE
Careless Talk Costs Lives
Y BANDANA (Caernarfon)
Dal Dy Drwyn
STAGECOACH
We Got Tazers
THE HOUSEMARTINS
Flag Day [single Version]
PAUL HEATON
Ladder's Bottom Rung
CRASH DISCO (Bangor)
Gtfo
H. HAWKLINE (West Wales / Cardiff)
Gelly
LED ZEPPELIN
Immigrant Song
STRANGE NEWS FROM ANOTHER STAR (Cardiff)
A Distance I Can't Bear
SPECTRALS
Peppermint
THE BLACKOUT (Merthyr Tydfil)
Children Of The Night
THROATS
Something Low This Way Comes
TREMBLING BELLS
Love Made An Outlaw Of My Heart/p>
PERFUME GENIUS
Mr Peterson
STRANGE NEWS FROM ANOTHER STAR (Cardiff)
There Goes My Ghost
WILL SMITH
The Fresh Prince Of Bel Air
CLINIC
I'm Aware
