BBC Oxford Introducing has today launched an ambitious project to showcase the region's new and established musical talent in celebration of their fifth birthday as Oxford's local music radio show.

The team has decided to recreate The Bends – the seminal album by Oxford's finest, Radiohead.

Called Round The Bends, the album is a loving reinterpretation of the classic record which also celebrates its own anniversary this month.

And fans of the show will get the chance to hear some of the Round The Bends tracks live at a special Introducing birthday gig at Oxford's O2 Academy on Saturday 6 March.

BBC Oxford Introducing presenter Tim Bearder explained the thinking behind the celebration: "It has been 15 years since Oxford's most influential band secured its place at the forefront of the international music stage. Ever since 1995 Radiohead have been a resident inspiration to many of the new groups that have formed here in their home county.

"Our local music scene is now one of the UK's best kept secrets. It's a thriving and innovative environment for new bands and we wanted to celebrate that, marking both the past and future.

"This project really shows what BBC Introducing is all about and is our way of showing off the exciting artistic vein that we tap into on the show.

"Putting the album together has been a fantastic experience. Each of the album tracks has been completely reinterpreted and we hope everyone will agree that it is a phenomenal homage to the original."

The team brought together their favourite local acts to work their magic on the 12 Radiohead songs.

Local band Stornoway kick off the album with their version of Planet Telex. Stornoway are arguably one of the most successful local groups of late, having played at BBC Radio 1's Big Weekend, Glastonbury and on Jools Holland's show. They started the New Year in The BBC's Sound Of 2010 list.

Richard Walters and Little Fish have secured record deals since their first play on BBC Oxford Introducing and also play tracks on the album.

It includes The Family Machine's version of Black Star, perhaps even more heart-wrenching than the original, while The Evenings have taken one of Radiohead's saddest songs in Street Spirit (Fade Out) and by reproducing it in a major key have created a piece of work that is life-affirming and joyful.

Round The Bends also features various new exciting discoveries from the last 12 months, such as The Scholars, Spring Offensive and Ute.

The BBC Oxford Introducing gig takes place on Saturday 6 March at the O2 Academy and will feature Little Fish, The Winchell Riots, Ute and Spring Offensive. For information on how to get tickets visit www.bbc.co.uk/oxford/introducing.