ECLECTIC PICKS - 2024

Every week for  nearly 4 years  I write and record  a song and I am up to 236 songs which I have started putting in this fine playlist. Blimey it takes almost as long to post them as blinking write them ! It’s a smorgasbord of genre , subject matter. Some are sketches others are almost finished if there is such a thing. Some Might be considered to be demos except there really is no such thing as a demo. Some are bad some are good  some are doing the best they can  some have warts some are just perfectly formed . Dip your toe or dive in. Share or ignore they will
Not be going away. The list will just get bigger . And you can support me by going to bandcamp and buying some music.https://allthebees.bandcamp.com/album/all-the-bees or https://3bucketjones.bandcamp.com/

Weekly Song

Any artist is welcome to send us a track via freshonthenet.co.uk anytime between Monday lunchtime and Wednesday evening (or when we receive 200 submissions, whichever is sooner) - and all our moderators, including Tom Robinson, will listen to every track. This is our full inbox from the week beginning Mon 11th March: from Friday afternoon you'll be able to hear our shortlist and pick your favourites on this week's Listening Post which will appear at freshonthenet.co.uk/batch522

If a track you submitted does not appear in this list, it’s probably because another of your tracks appeared in our Fresh Faves or on the BBC Music Introducing Mixtape during the last three months — we ask that artists featured on either wait three months before resubmitting to give others a chance. 

We also don’t accept short previews or SoundCloud Go tracks that can only be heard as 30 second previews, and tracks made private after submission, which cannot be included in playlists. You will be able to resubmit the track in future. Tracks (and remixes of tracks) that have been previously submitted, and tracks from banned artists will also be removed.

ENTIRE INBOX: Batch 522

Fresh on the Net - Eclectic Picks - Batch 522

FOTN: ECLECTIC PICKS - 2024

High Kingdom Pt. 1

Strange Holiday

Tension

Exist

Nina

Portamento

Disorder is taken from Keening's second album - James Francis Diaries.
Preorder available here - https://darkliberationrecords.bandcamp.com/album/james-francis-diaries-2
James Francis was the lead singer of the cult band Strange Ones. He disappeared in 1993 from the island of Losse in Scotland where he was recording his debut album.

In 2022, James’ tapes and diaries were given by James’ parents to the band Keening. Keening had discovered and fallen in love with the Strange Ones' records and learned about James’ disappearance. The original demos themselves, even with digital restoration are unlistenable as James distorted the recordings and overdubbed them with found sounds from the island. Instead of replicating the songs, Keening decided to write their own music inspired by James’ diary, the mystery surrounding his disappearance, his lyrics, and the island of Losse. James’ edited diary is included here for interest and with the permission of his family.

releases January 20, 2024

James Francis Diaries

Disorder

DOPAMINE by Bjørn Felle, out now on AnalogueTrash

Dopamine

Lost My Mojo

The Light

The first single from Eades upcoming EP, 'Fade Away' will be released on the 13th March via Bam Bam Records.

"It’s a story that spans from adolescence, into early adulthood and eventually into being middle aged. It’s about coming to terms with not making a dent in life socially or culturally, making peace with normality and accepting that you’ll eventually fade away to be forgotten, but enjoying the ride nonetheless. Complacently enjoying life and living in the moment to a degree that potentially has a negative effect on the future. 
‘I feel I’m making my peace, I’ll fade away, I’ll fade away’" - Tom O

Recorded and mixed at Bam Bam Studios.
Mastered by Gav McGrath

Fade Away

Inspired by a line from Emily Dickinson andother Song a Week..demo..since then I have created an acapella version of this too. Image by Sadhya Rippon. Have a listen to the acapella version too https://on.soundcloud.com/FJWDa
LYRICS 
feeling your senses
seed to a lemon
willow bending 
nature keeps on  growing 

picket white fences
care and attention
growing tending
reaping  what your sowing

CHORUS 
In the name of the bee
And of the butterfly
the gentle  breezes
Amen.
In the name of the trees
And of the time  that goes by
And as  heat follows freezes ( Amen )
the garden keeps on 
living and dying
breathing defying
 the changing weather
flowers mark  seasons
friends for a reason
beginning ending
life  follows  its cycles
fragrance they're sweeter
then bitter  and healing
we keep on wending
following the  spirals

From part poem by Emily Dickinson "In the name of the bee,
And of the butterfly,
And of the breeze, amen!"

This 

Week 159 - Garden (Amen)

another 'song of the week' that got refined with the help of Lukas Drinkwater  on bass  drums acoustic guitar and extra vocals
LYRICS 
my life   the lifeboat    rescued from the sea untie  old ropes    love and harmony  pocket full of  sand   tightly in my hand  skip  through la la land  sing off key my heart   the  rowboat   souls upon the shore walk my lover's tightrope what is mine and what is yours  memories  to dust     needs turn to  must  sailing over gusts in  stormy tides I'll be home in time for  bells pocket full of sand  pockets full of shells  draw a line  down on the beach hold  my heart we feel the  peace  we'll breath together  in and out   wait until the hour glass stills  the clouds  And the sands stop falling x2 and time stands still oh oh oh oh oh x2 moment  of departure tiny grains  of energy tears and then there's  laughter only love will set me free  pocket full of  sand   tightly in my hand  skip  through la la land  sing off key

Time Stands Still

Deep Waters

The world can feel like it's moving 1,000mph separate from yourself, but truth is we've all got our place in it haven't we.

Credits

Written / Produced by Joe Marsalis
Mixed by Hugo Nicolson 
Mastered by Blacklisted

Lyrics

Centuries fading
Our lives on repeat
Memories awaken
Or never to be seen

Time coming after me

Creeping up on me
Creeping up on me
Fading century
Creeping up on me

Century

Change

Releases 12.03.2024
hannyawhite.bandcamp.com/track/silver-cowboy
open.spotify.com/album/2KPnTlMJlbXO7pmhOGxabn

Silver Cowboy
Silver on the heels
Silver on the gun
Ashes on the hand
And I am
The Silver Cowboy

Release date:
12 March 2024

Silver Cowboy by Hannya White

Trust Me When I Tell You

Secret Garden

Never Dreamed of Slaying Dragons 
did the whole thing in about 45 minutes raaaaaaaa! have a soft spot for dragons for many reasons . Puff the Magic Dragon will have me in tears everytime.I and Shelly's dad have the same birthday ...St Georges Day. 23rd April..who is also patron saint of England I live a lot in Wales which the dragon is the emblem. I know its supposed to be about the year of the wood dragon but what is a brief but a word to play with ...grabbed a loop and I am really pleased with the sketch as think this line 'never dreamed of slaying dragons' brings me great joy!.....story has it that george finally went to slay the dragon when they started donating children and then the princess to quell the dragons appetite . I know already lots of changes I am gonna make structural and lyric changes .. very excited!
Lyrics
POOR GEORGE CHORUS poor george didnt want to be a champion poor george never dreamed of slaying dragons poor george he loved a girl a girl Sophia poor george dreamed one day they'de be together VERSE when george was a little boy he had small red wooden dragon it was a special specail toy they were always close close companions called him Prince of Wales it was his only proper friend with his crimson scales faithful to the bitter end BREAK had to protect her from the dragon's appetite had to protect her finish off the dragon's flight

Poor George ( Never Dreamed of Slaying Dragons)

Another little collab on the day before the equinox! Yowza got it on time. Thanks Andy for the track which I didn't carve up too much...changed the temp and added some distorted perc. found a new thing on logic when you pitch flex the vocals you then can change the tempo and the vocals change tooo...who know ...Based on the morbid fairy tale of the REd SHoes...probably not a keeper but enjoyed putting it together particularly with the odd time changes etc.
Lyrics
1.mother took her daughter to the shoemender to patch up her worn out shoes daughter charmed her mother bought her dancing slippers from the window old and used Just be careful said the shoe mender those old sippers have a mind of their own they used to belong to a girl who danced to her last breath pirouetted to an ... early death 2..mother took her daughter to the shoemender to give her old shoes new life daughter managed to charm her dear mother to buy slippers against all sensible advice Just be careful said the shoe mender those old red shoes have a mind of their own they used to belong to a girl couldn't stop her dancing feet threw herself from a mountain try to stop to stop the beat her feet are turning whirling spinning burning all over the town like they're flying, death defying dont think they will ever come down she's getting high, touching sky arms are thrashing through the air pirouetting just forgetting mama told her to take care but she couldnt stop her feet from dancing

Couldn't Stop her Feet From Dancing

week 190-writing recording a song a week the brief was 'fragile' The Boy who Thought He was Made of Glass 
fragile could have been a tough one as I aranged Fragile by Sting for Acapella years ago and its in my bones..then hurrah! I was listening to my most recent audio book in the middle of the night when I could not sleep ...a 20 hour book that sends me off fairly quickly which is good called '1000 years of annoying the french' by Stephen Clarke...and there was a little section about King Charles VI of France who was famously afflicted by the 'glass delusion'. He belived he was made of glass . he wore clothing reinforced by iron rods and did not allow his advisors to come near him due to his fear his body might accidentally shatter....I also used sounds in omnispere that had the word glass in them to get me started...
LYRICS
The Boy Who Thought He Was Made of Glass keep away keep away I might crash i might smash I might shatter keep away keep away you may not even see so me do I matter? keep away keep away my transparancy my fragility keep away keep away you cant touch me you look right though me CHORUS I might break I might shatter in the end will it matter? everyone can see right through me Im transparant crystalline I could smash at anytime keep away keep away my heart my bones are glass unbroken keep away keep away a spell was caste a magic potion keep away keep away I'm cursed am trapped my fear increases keep away keep away for fear I'll break into a million pieces CHORUS I might break I might shatter in the end will it matter? everyone can see right through me I'm transparant crystalline I could smash at anytime

The Boy Who Thought He Was Made of Glass

'week 205 of write record a track a week -the word was 'Joke'
it's the only joke I remember and everyone gets sick of me telling it so ha! also we had this phrase...''ooo Miss Sharp, get back in the knife drawer'' when someone was being. bit cutting...
LYRICS
Samantha Sharp! get back into the knife drawer x2 Samantha went to an inflatable school la la la la Samantha kept on a breaking of the rules la la la "you've let the town down, your friends down, the Head down , the school down ' ( get it...let the inflatable school down ha ha ha )

You've Let The School Down

I am working on tidy playlists..there is one for all my song-a-week and then other tidy playlists will follow ..it like a thrift shop of my songs..you gonna have to have a good rummage ..a great place for a demo  ( there is no such thing as a demo) is what I say. One day I will orgnise into tidy playlists. good luck - I will put the kettle one

Time Stands Still

gitika partington