Gigs I've been to...
(or at least the ones I can remember... all at London venues unless it says otherwise)

2009

28/04: Darren Hayman + Poppy and friends @ The 100 Club. It's really great to see Darren and Co up on the 100 Club stage, they deserve all the success they can get. Pramtown is such a great record and live, they bring it to life, particularly through the Dexy's-esque violin parts. Throw in a few lost Hefner classics and you have a great, great set. Good work from Poppy in the support slot too. She may be young but she already has a way with words, and it takes balls to start your set with a two minute acapella. Plus the double-bass player is perhaps the most lively player of said instrument I've ever seen.

27/04: Juana Molina + Blue Roses @ ICA.  Props first of all to Blue Roses, who is Bradford lass Laura Groves (as previously seen down at the Gladstone). Celebrating the release of her debut album, she plays an absoltely captivating support slot, which threatens to overshadow Ms Molina. No such danger though, with her trademark repetitive drones, bleeps, and enchanting vocals all in place Juana is as good as I had hoped. I saw her previously playing an afternoon festival slot and there wasn't much energy or intensity, but this is not a problem tonight at the excellent ICA venue. Only complaint is that the tempo is pretty much the same all the way though, when some of the songs really could be pumped up and let loose.

20/04: Bonnie Prince Billie @ Royal Festival Hall. Wow, first time I've seen him live and what a great performer he is. I'd been led to believe he was a no-nonsense, no-fun kinda guy but tonight he seems to be having a blast. Although having said that, the set highlight, I See A Darkness, is pretty damn dark.

18/04: Pete Molinari @ Rough Trade East. Super stylish as ever, and with the rock n roll songs and voice to match, Pete is the complete package. His in-store set on Record Shop Day, book-ended by tunes from DJ Andrew Weatherall, is great fun. Best moment is when he gets heckled by a four year old, who comments on Pete's harmonica "I know all about those"!

16/04: Lettie + Bicycle Thieves @ More the Merrier, Bar Music Hall. Lettie is really cool, I like her songs and her style. Bicycle Thieves, who I've seen before, are good but you get the feeling they could be even better with a bit more oomph behind them, a bit more musical muscle. Open City is still a killer tune though.

09/04: Optimo DJs @ Shoreditch Warehouse Party. Except that, in true warehouse party style, we don't get there til wel after 12, by which time it seems Optimo have almost finished, and there's no set times anyway to work out what's going on. Good night though!

07/04: Wildbirds + Peacedrums @ The Luminaire. Back for another helping, this time at the "ssshhhhh, quiet please, this is a proper venue" Lumi. They are way more intense, full on and spectacular tonight - very impressive and entertaining, even if she does ham it up just a little bit on last song slowie I Can't Tell...

27/03: Danny and the Champions of the World @ Hooper's Bar, E Dulwich. Slightly one-trick ponies, although some decent tunes and the main vocalist does a remarkable take on Neil Young's vocal style.

26/03: My Sad Captains + Matthew Sawyer and the Ghosts @ The Macbeth.  Good old fashioned pub gig. MS is great - off-beat and a bit odd. The Sloanish crowds appear en-mass for the arrival of MSC, who deliver a fun if unspectacular set of squiffy indiepop.

19/03: Pelin + Emit Bloch @ More the Merrier, Bar Music Hall. Pelin falls into the quirky laptop pop genre, but is actually quite an intriguing prospect. Emit's music is similarly strange, calling to mind a more Americana Jeffrey Lewis, with lots of kooky wordplay and, every now and again, a really great song popping out from beneath the effects pedals and freaky sound effects unit.

02/03: Wildbirds + Peacedrums @ Heavenly Social. Lots of hipsters in to check out the latest name to drop. After seeing them at End of the Road last year I was curious to see some more and they were just as good as I'd remembered. Weird song structures, lots of banging, beautiful snapshot moments. Lots of hipsters leave looking a bit confused.

28/02: Vetiver + Hush Arbours @ Cecil Sharp House. Aah, lovely lovely Vetiver. He's just so damn nice, and when he gets his groove on, Andy and band really are a thing to behold. The new songs may be more pop than we've gotten used to, but lots of blissed-out, eyes-shut grooving going on in the crowd is a sure sign that Vetiver are hitting the spot.

27/02: Emmy the Great + Young Husband @ ULU. Don't remember too much of the support, which is a shame as they deature a member of Emmy's backing band. But for the main event, this was the feeling that maybe, just maybe (finally!) Emmy has Made It. A big proper venue, a big nasty promoter, roadies and set lists and a light show. And while it wasn't her greatest performance ever, it was still pretty special.

20/02: Television Personalities + Sad Day for Puppets @ Half Moon, Herne Hill. A great gig from both bands. SDfP are affiliated to the Sonic Cathedral empire, and you can see why. Big shimmering Ride guitars married with Cardigans vocals and a very cute indie-pop singer. TV Personalities are as musicaly unhinged as ever. Dan may be completely trolleyed but he and the band are very entertaining.

19/02: The Kemistry + Kase + Kay Young @ More the Merrier, BarMusicHall. Wicked triple bill of unsigned East London talent. Kay Young is bouncy and breezy, Kase is too cool for his Raybans, while the Kemistry exude the kind of brooding beatsy menace Massive Attack have made a career out of.

15/02: Holly Golightly + The Dublo + Morning Bride @ The Victoria, Mile End. This was a really great gig from Holly, who I've seen before and not been hugely into. Tonight she was funny, laid back and cool while her band were tight and rockin. Great support too from the double-bass fuelled Dublo, and the sweet harmonies of Morning Bride.

14/02: Babel @ Cafe Oto, Dalston. Great venue and another great night from the Localism crew. Babel are kinda weird, kinda cool too, like a Laid-era James, with a bit more ooomph. Shame the crowd are all a bit timid (or coupled up and too shy to go nuts) tonight.

01/02: Festival of Quiet Music @ Bush Hall. Lovely evening of music at Bush Hall on the Night It Snowed (lots) In London. Highlight is another beautiful set from the wonderkid that is Liz Green, while Left With Pictures' unamplified set is great fun.

30/01: Wizz Jonwa @ Hoopers Bar, E Dulwich. Folk genius Wizz playing in my local. Does it get any better than that?!

23/01: Ali Roberts @ The Goose is Out, Dulwich Hamlets FC. Lovely wee gig from Ali, playing the Goose is Out night in my own backyard, woo hoo!

15/01: The Moonjets + Emile Brynge @ More the Merrier, Bar Music Hall. So-so Weller-inspired moptop mod-pop from the Moonjets, plus delicate and expertly played pastoral folk from Emile.
 

2008

31/12: Wang @ Corsica Studios. Ok, not strictly a gig (and I miss Squarepusher's 'bass & decks' set) but as fine a way to see out the old and see in the new as any. From what I remember, Alexander Robotnik played a blinder, as did Radioactive Man.

20/12: Dulwich Ukelele Orchestra @ Dulwich Constitutional Club. I'd heard about these guys and how good they are. I've even had a uke lesson off their main-man Pete, but I'd never seen them live until now. Seeing them on home-turf, after a few pints, and it all made perfect sense! Great fun.

13/12: Moon Music Orchestra @ The Gladstone. I'm actually getting quite familiar with their material now and I love it. They go down well tonight at their spiritual home although, curiously, demands for an encore are conspicious by their absence.

11/12: James Yorkston + Malcolm Middleton @ St Giles' Church. Great double bill in another God fearing church by day, devil worshipping music venue by night. Malcolm's set, which includes an ambitious instrumental number, is an excellent warm up for the main event and, although this gig doesn't have quite the same atmosphere as the Luminaire Christmas piss-up shows, it's still a great evening.

26/11: Jarvis Cocker + Jeffrey Lewis @ Shepherd's Bush Empire. Fantastic night celebrating  30 years of Rough Trade records. Jeffrey does a great set which includes his slide-show songs about The Fall and, appropriately enough, Rough Trade, as well as a load more anti-folk folk with great lyrics. Jarvis, now with new beard, plays a mix of tracks from his debut album and new material, which includes a very promising Barry White-esque disco number on which the nset ends, before seguing seemlessly into a dj set. There's also entertaining pondering on consumerism and, in particular, the new Westfield Shopping Monstrosity.

19/11: Moon Music Orchestra @ Old Nun's Head, Nunhead. Perhaps the best I've seen these guys play - shock, horror - they've written some new songs and they're really good!

10/11: Emmy the Great + Blue Roses @ The ICA. OK, so it's my last Emmy gig of the year, and it is one of her best. A headline performance to celebrate the release of We Almost Had a Baby, it's  musically accomplished without being too safe or dull. The track First Love, from the new album, is the highlight, although Slow Country Song is pretty damn cute too. Surely 2009's gonna be her year. Sweet support slot from Blue Roses too.

07/11: Hot Chip + Max Tundra + Drums of Death @ Brixton Academy. Very good, but not spectacular. They just need to get into the groove a bit and let some of the songs grow and build - half of them fade out just as they're getting going. Max Tundra is a nutjob (as his records had previously confirmed), while Drums of Death is a one-man musical terrorist who prompts me to get my coat. Gosh, that sounds terribly middle-aged, but it is 1.30am by this stage, and no-one wants to hang around too long at the Academy.

05/11: Fleet Foxes @ Shepherd's Bush Empire. Great feeling at this all-American affair, on the day Barack Obama was historically elected, these guys have plenty to be cheerful about. It's a great gig, their other-worldly Americana so timeless and a joy live.

30/10: Wizz Jones + cool support act @ The Selkirk. Much busier for this gig (standing room only! outrageous!) and Wizz's talent shines through above the sax din produced by his son. Oops, is that too harsh?

16/10: De Tropix + Death Cigarettes @ barmusichall. Bizarre night, with Death Cigarettes taking to the stage at about 11.15pm, well after most folks have gone home. De Tropix do a PA but it's really cool and good fun. They have some decent tunes.

03/10: Concrete & Glass @ various East End venues. A nice idea, but a bit of a nightmare to pull off in practice. Loads of bands at loads of venues across Shoreditch and Hoxton, but we only manage to catch about 3 or 4, including the end of Euros Childs (a rare London gig, but half the audience haven't got a clue who they're watching), The Really Annoying Tuesday Weld, and some weird shit at Cafe 1001.

01/10: Seasick Steve @ Royal Albert Hall. We wound up with standing tickets for the upper upper upper gallery. It's so high up you've pretty much got an aerial view of things, which doesn't do much for atmosphere, so we don't stay long. What's a hobo bluesman like SS doing playing the poncey Albert Hall anyway?

19/09: Liz Green + Ben Wetherill + Essie Jain @ The Local, Crouch End. Fantastic gig from my new fave singer Liz Green, who I missed at End of the Road and desperately wanted to see. She sounds like Billy Holiday but her live shows are full of self-depricating humour and jazzy blues songs played on guitar and piano.

12-14/09: End of the Road Festival @ Larmer Tree Gardens, Dorset. Ending the festival season with one of the best. Loads of highlights, including Bon Iver doing Skinny Love, Noah and the Whale, Devon Sproule being ditzy, Zombie Zombie rocking the analogue synths to the max, Conor Oberst doing his best Dylan impression, Tindersticks getting all sultry on our ass, and Billy Childish playing furious garage rock like his life depends on it (it does).

01/09: Jackie Levan @ The Borderline. Entertaining evening in the company of Jackie, as much for his rambling jokes and anecdotes as the music, which can veer into the realms of jazz-lite at times, but he always seems to reign it back in from the brink.

15-17/08: Green Man Festival, Wales. Loads of rain of course, but loads of great music too, from acts including Super Furry Animals, James Yorkston, Emmy, Pete Molinari, Pentangle, Fuck Buttons, Alele Diane, Spiritualized, Cave Singers, Los Campesinos and Nina Nastasia. We heart Green Man!

10/08: Alasdair Roberts + Stephanie Hladowski @ The Luminaire. Curiously low-key summer affair, but still reliably great stuff from Ali.

07/08: Slow Club + Peggy Sue and the Pictures @ Windmill, Brixton. Well, I'm well and truly smitten by Slow Club now, even if this gig/venue isn't their finest hour.

26-29/06: Glastonbury Festival. See loads and loads of bands but some highlights are; Leonard Cohen's entire set, the start of Jay-Z's Noel-baiting set, Emmy on Sunday morning, Tony Benn, Vampire Weekend, Elbow doing that one about it being a great day, Candi Staton doing Young Hearts Run Free, Richard Ashcroft still looking like a loony...

22/06: My Bloody Valentine + Le Volume Corbe @ The Roundhouse, Camden. The ear-plugs prove necessary for the last song at this much anticipated gig (even though the touts can't give the tickets away outside). When they launch into Soon it's a beautiful moment, and Belinda looks so great up there on stage. A word to Le Volume too, they look nervous as hell but pull it off, even if only about 10% of people are actually listening to their efforts.

11/06: Diane Cluck + Emmy the Great @ Cargo. Emmy plays second fiddle for once as she supports one of her heroes. Diane is certainly an interesting performer, with unusual but interesting songs, although I do start to lose interest a little towards the end of a slightly over-long set.

05/06: Vetiver + Meg Baird + David Thomas Broughton @ St Pancras Parish Church. Contender for gig of the year, with such a great line-up in an interesting (and beer-friendly) church venue, and a georgous performance from Vetiver.

03/06: Pete Molinari @ 100 Club. Something of a celebration tonight, with loads of Pete's mates in the house to show their respect for the Kent boy come good. He and his band are simply brilliant at this suitably great venue.

20/05: Spiritualized @ Koko. Super-tight performance of powerful material from the new album, this gig was a blast of fresh Spiritualized air, even if it sent my (admittedly jet-lagged) companion to sleep.

14/05: Bill Callahan @ St James' Church, Picadilly. Wow, this was quite something, with Bill throwing a few amazing leg movements into the mix. Diamond dancer indeed! Here are some other people who went.

09/05: Kimya Dawson + Slow Club @ Ladyfest / The Underworld. Super-satisfying double bill with the excellente Slow Club followed by Kimya doing her special thing. It's so busy that in the end half the audience end up sitting cross-legged on the stage in a big circle around Mama Kimya.

08/05: Glass Candy @ Cargo. Booked this on a bit of a whim, but wasn't disappointed. The boy stood behind his keyboards looking unbelievably cool, the girl prancing around in super-sexy leotards. The music? Unbelievably good electronic body music.

02/05: Pete Molinari @ Half Moon, Herne Hill. Pete plays a late-ish set at the top of a truly terrible and terribly put-together bill that sees half the audience leave after an awful local band play the second from last slot. Their loss, as Pete plays another blinder.

24/04: Noah and the Whale @ Soho Revue Bar. Celebratory gig for the ever smug-looking Charlie Fink and his crew. Great fun! Pics here if you don't believe me!

23/04: Circulus @ East Dulwich Tavern. Circulus are playing a special St George's Day gig, and I take a first date along. Big mistake! Circulus are completely nuts and the date, who likes hip hop, doesn't really dig it...

14/04: Wizz Jones @ The Selkirk, Tooting. One of Wizz's regular Monday night's in his "sitting room" upstairs at the Selkirk. Pretty sparsely attended, but for the 6 or 7 paying punters it's a cosey evening on the sofa in the company of a genius.

28/03: Ali Roberts @ Southbank Centre. Utterly enchanting headline gig from Ali, playing as part of the mini folk festival curated by Shirley Collins.

29/02: Pete Molinari +  Elwood Grace + Tom Baxendale @ The Luminaire. Lovely little gig with Pete's stock rising. Half electric, half acoustic, this is the first time I hear him play I Don't Like the Man that I Am and it's rather special.

21/02: The Gutter Twins @ Koko. Mega-powerful rawk gig from these two giants among men, Greg Dulli and Mark Lanegan. Info and pics here.

19/02: Andre Williams @ The Luminaire. The legendary sleaze-bag performs a rare and intimate gig, which is darn filthy at times. Great stuff.

27/01: Meg Baird @ In The Pines, The Harrison. Under-stated talent and beautiful songs played oh so delicately from Meg. Great support acts too.

17/01: London Unsigned @ BarMusicHall. More Unsigned acts than you can shake a record contract at...

2007

21/12: Folk Idol @ The Local, Crouch End. A bizarre 'gig' to end the year on, but hugely entertaining, out in foggy, spooky old Crouch End. Featuring the bawdy sounds of The Folk Orchestra, which got everyone on their feet, plus the irrepressible Howard Monk as compere, and the outrageously cheeky chappie Steve from the Broken Family band on the judging panel, this was a great night where wearing a beard got you a free mulled wine. More beared ladies at gigs please...

20/12: James Yorkston and the Athletes + David Thomas Broughton. James' annual Christmas gig was amazing. He just played and played, while we got more and more drunk on whisky and mulled wine! Strong support from Mr Loops n Tings, who got real inventive on our ass.

19/12: Pete and the Pirates (?) + Slow Club + Emmy the Great @ The Social. Definitely remember seeing Emmy and Slow Club (who were great - instant convert!), bit sketchy on the rest.

15/12: Moon Music Orchestra + Findlay Brown @ Gladstone. Not actually sure if this happened on this night. It definitely happened though.

8/12: Micah P Hinson + Mountain Goats + Alasdair Roberts + Emmy the Great @ Union Chapel, Islington. Tonight's 'Pineapple Folk' night boasts a varied line-up, so it's a shame that there's chaos on the doors and it takes more than half an hour to get in, meaning we miss Emmy (noooo!!!). Ali is up next and is reliably great. Then it's on to the Mountain Goats, who are treated with such reverance but to these ears and eyes sound like a more annoying REM fronted by your Geography teacher. The night ends on a weird high though with a captivating performance from Micah, which takes a slightly bizarre turn when he invites his girlfriend up on stage and... proposes to her. It's all slightly cringeworthy but, unless you're completely cynical, also rather sweet. Tis Christmas after all. There's another view of the night here.

3/12: CSS + Justice @ Brixton Academy. There's no two ways about it. Tonight Justice blow CSS away. Justice are hard, fast and damn sexy, while CSS are lame, tired and lacklustre. Not even Lovefoxx's awesome glitteyr catsuit can save them. A decent review is here.

25/11: Le Volume Corbe @ Heavenly Social W1. Another sweet, sublime performance from the sexiest French-fronted violin-accompanied post-rock group operating in London right now.

22/11: 4 bands @ Brixton Jamm. A charity night I helped organise and DJ'ed at, but can't remember much more...

20/11: Bridget St John + Wizz Jones @ Tapestry Club, Euston. Ah, what a lovely night in the company of two legends. Bridget hasn't played live for years, while Wizz plays live almost every week. But tonight is really special! There's video of Wizz at the gig here and an amusing Time Out listing here (hard dance? really?!)

14/11: Holy Fuck @ The Social. Absolutely mind-blowing seeing these guys doing the electonic tinkering and head-bashing close up.

6/11: Emmy the Great + Effi Briest + Wave Pictures @ King's College. Sadly, missed most of Wave Pictures (one of them is Em's current squeeze, I believe), and instead saw all of Effi Briest who, although all female, didn't have much more going for them and were pretention personified. Emmy saved the day though with a great great set.

1/11: TBC @ Green Note Club, Camden

29/10: Lee Hazlewood night @ The Social. Ok, not strictly a gig, and certainly there was no sign of Lee, but I recall there was a band playing, plus lots of respect for Mr Hazlewood (and lots of 'taches).

24/10: Charlie Louvin @ Dingwalls. Legendary gig from the country legend and one half of the Louvin Brothers. Introduced by the almost as legendary "Whispering" Bob Harris!

17/10: Tuung + Fanfarlo @ Club 229 Gt Portland St. A really cool gig from Tuung, who have a lot of fun up on stage, and so do we in the audience. Clearly these guys have a history of raving. Able support from Fanfarlo, who went down well at Green Man.

13/10: Moon Music Orchestra @ The Gladstone, Borough. A MMO double-whammy!

10/10: Moon Music Orchestra @ Boat moored on Victoria Embankment!

30/09: Some bands TBC @ In the Pines, The Harrison. Lost the details for this one, could have been Pete Molinari.

20/09: Punk Recruit @ Bullet Bar, Kentish Town. Friend's band playing so I lend my support despite a nasty cold. I may be biased, but they are by far the best band of the evening.

14/09: Black Time @ Dirty Water Club, Boston Arms. Great to see London's finest punk garage combo strutting their stuff again, with new songs sounding good. Didn't stay to see the rest of the bands I'm afraid.

11/09: King Creosote @ Rough Trade East. As far as in-stores go, this one was actually pretty enjoyable, and very loud too. Nice one, KC!

6/09: Tilly and the Wall + Teenagers + Lightspeed Champion + Slow Club @  Electric Ballroom, Camden. Great line-up, not so great venue. Sadly I miss Slow Club, and I find my first gig from Lightspeed Champion a little impenetrable. But Teenagers are great, no, make that hilarious, and Tilly and the Wall don't disappoint, with a great cover of Michael Jackson's We Are The World to end the night. Nice review and pics here.

17-19/07: Green Man Festival @ Breacon Beacons. Festival of the year? Again?!? This was such a fantastic weekend of relaxed festivalness and killer performance after killer performance from: Joanna Newsome, Fanfarlo, Findlay Brown, Euros Childs, Richard James, Alela Diane, James Yorkston, Emmy, Vashti, Malki, Aly Roberts, Seasick Steve and Pete Molinari, plus groovy DJ action from Cherrystones, SFA, James Yorkston, Richard Norris and In the Pines. Despite the rain and the cold, this festival ran like clockwork. Field Day folks, take note.

11/07: Field Day Festival @ Victoria Park. What could have been a great day was, frankly, a bit crap, even despite the glorious weather. Too many acts crammed onto the bill, stages/tents all too small and too quiet, not enough toilets and not enough bars. People having to queue for an hour to get a beer, which they then run out of. Chaos and a shambles! Despite this, manage to catch bits of Florence and the Machine, Euros Childs, Laura Marling, James Yorkston, Vetiver, Adem, Erol Alkan, Andrew Weatherall, and Justice. Where did the rest of the day go?

30/07: Sandrina Mixtapes @ 93 Ft East. A mate from work plays in the band and I finally get round to seeing them. I don't think he'll be giving up the day job any time soon, but Catch the Light is a great song.

28/07: Nu-rave @ the South London Gallery. Not strictly a gig but noteable for the great visuals, interesting venue, and the most arresting, classy striptease routine I've ever seen...

27/07: Wanda Jackson @ The Luminaire. Back to play two nights after the success of the gig here last year, Wanda plays a very similar set and says very similar things (romancing with Elvis, being the first woman in rock n roll, finding God) but it's still brilliant. The audience are slightly more into it and up for dancing than last time too. And STILL she isn't in the Rock N Roll Hall of Fame!

19/07: Some acoustic acts @ Bar Music Hall. Acoustic acts of variable quality plus a headline set that was ok... and some nice DJing after at this WaterAid fundraiser night.

16/07: Johnny Flyn @ The Big Chill House. There's no doubting JF's talent and there are a couple of real cool songs in his slightly over-long set. The famous Swaying Lady (normally seen at Notting Hill Arts Club) seems to enjoy it.

25/06: Kimya Dawson @ The Spitz. A really sweet gig, with the between-song moments punctuated by the contented giggles of baby Dawson (who Kimya fans will know through her MySpace page, which charted the pregnancy and birth in great detail!) The gig ends with Kimya getting everyone in the audience to hold hands and then spiral around her for a group-hug to end all group hugs. We heart Kimya Dawson!

21-24/06: Glastonbury Festuval @ Worthy Farm, Somerset. Back at Glasto after 10 years, and it's still got it... mud, that is. Although I was working (with WaterAid) most of the time, I still witnessed some great musical moments, including Spiritualized's mammoth set, SFA and CSS having fun, !!! blowing the roof off the dance tent, Iggy Pop and the stage invasion, and Hot Chip warming things up nicely in the half-flooded John Peel Tent. Lots of boring arse as well though - Paul Weller, for example.

17/06: Forest of No Return @ Royal Festival Hall. Very odd and highly enjoyable gig, part of Jarvis Cocker's Meltdown festival. The line-up features Shane McGowan, Pete Doherty, Grace Jones (GRACE JONES!) Beth Orton, Nick Cave and many more doing the songs of Disney. Jarvis' version of King of the Swingers is a particular highlight, along with Doherty doing Chim Chim Cheree. Quite an Event!

15/06: Bob Lind @ Luminaire. This guy is billed as asongwriting lengend and he's certainly written a lot of songs in his time. There's a lot of affection for the man tonight, from a crowd including Jarvis Cocker, and I enjoy it, even if it's not the most cutting edge event I'll attend this year (I hope).

11/06: ??? at The Queen's head, Islington. Can't remember the names of the performers but it wasn't bad. Do remember that at the end of the gig the not particularly good singer-songwriter headliner gave flyers out offering us the chance to invest in him via sellaband.com. Weird.

05/06: Los Campesinos @ Scala. Big London gig for these Welsh indie kid students to celebrate the release of summer anthem You! Me! Dancing! This was a joy-of-music gig sending off sparks of youthful indie enthusiasm. And very loud too.

02/06: Homefires @ Conway Hall. A soothing all-day event with suitably restrained performances from Adem, Nina Nastastia, Emmy the Great, St Vincent and plenty more. An all-round enjoyable day.

01/06: The Hotwires @ Buffalo Bar. This is a birthday gig for my friend Tamsin. Her boyfriend's band The Hotwires are playing on a bill put together by the Stool Pigeon and although it's not one of their best gigs, it's still a lot of fun.

05/05: Battant @ Luminaire. Just popped down to see how Battant are getting on these days. Answer; so so. I think they're just too cool to make the breakthrough. Then again, NYPC did it. This gig seems to have been organised by a bunch of Aussies; the icy Frenchness of the band doesn't quite work.

27-29/04: All Tomorrow's Parties @ Butlins, Minehead, curated by The Dirty Three. A fantastic weekend of live music, with great performances from The Dirty Three, Joanna Newsome, Bill Callaghan, The Only Ones, Nick Cave, Low, Spiritualized Acoustic Mainline, Digital Primitives, Nick Cave, Secretary, Conway Savage and Papa M. All topped off with the legendary Sunday night ATP disco! Great weekend.

22/04: CSS + Tilly and the Wall @ Astoria. Lovefoxxx and Co on absolute fire - sweaty, sexy and the most fun I've had at a gig in ages. Tilly and the Wall played a great support slot too.

21/04: A garage rock band @ Technicolour Dream Atfer-party at The Fortress. All I remember is that they were like watching one of the less interesting bands on a Pebbles compilation.

18/04: The Pipettes + Metronomy + Playthings(?) @ Shepherd's Bush Empire. The first band on are truly awful transatlantic trash, Metronomy play another fun gig although it's not as fun when you know what's coming, and The Pipettes dance a lot. From seeing them at The Arts Club just a year ago, it's amazing how big they've become based on just the one (admittedly quite good) idea: get some girls who look like they are secretaries during the day to dress up in polka dot dresses and sing catchy 50s inspired pop songs. I kind of enjoy it, but it's all a bit odd seeing so many men get so enthusiastic about them.

17/04: Ali Roberts @ The Luminaire. Intimate gig for Alasdair and he doesn't disappoint. Ok, there are a couple of acoustic Scottish traditionals-by-numbers, and he does forget the words to one song (easily done I'm sure) but on at least three tracks he and his band (with TFC's Gerry Love on bass) conjour up a really atmospheric, out-there sound. Impressive stuff.

12/04: Joan as Policewoman + Peggy Sue and the Pirates @ Scala: PS&theP's are two funny funny-looking girls with songs about Superman. They are like if Kate Nash had a twin, but not as annoying as that sounds. In fact, I rather like them. Joan is brilliant - beautiful voice, great connection with the audience and, it would seem, permanently horny.

15/03: Arcade Fire + Patrick Wolf @ Brixton Academy: Wolfboy is entertaining as the warm up act, great costumes even if those trousers were a little... figure hugging, shall we say. Arcade Fire are on fire tonight - fantastic gig, great atmosphere, audience singalongs. Total joy of music, yeah!

09/03: ? + Metronomy @ South Bank: Can't remember the headline act's name, they were folktronica, quite good but not amazing. Can remember that we see Paul Weller in the audience, and that this guy who is The Modified Toy Orchestra joined the band onstage. Metronomy, with their robotic dance routines and "light show", are very entertaining.

08/03: A random girl @ the ICA's Illustrated London Noise evening. Notable because she plays a theramin... with her hair! Very entertaining.

17/02: Jarvis + Bat For Lashes @ The Astoria. B4L do a nice job of warming up with their enchanting theatrics but JC is the only one we're interested in tonight. A great gig full of entertaining asides and a triumphant Ruling the World. Jarvis has still got it, even if the band are musically a little pedestrian.

02/02: Various artists @ Late at Tate. Tate Britain doesn't strike you as being the best venue for seeing music performed, and you'd be right. The avant-garde adventures in electronica downstairs don't really work above the art-crowd chatter. Upstairs, the 17th century folky stuff fairs better - it could almost have been inspired by some of the ancient pics that provide the backdrop.

23/01: Isobel Campbell + Mark Lanegan @ Shepherd's Bush Empire. Sitting in the balcony for this one, right next to the speaker stack at the side. The result is Mark Lanegan's warm, grizzled tones dripping out of the speakers all over me and it's sweet! Isobel's vocals are more fragile but just as tasty. To hear the songs on Ballads... re-created so lovingly in the flesh is a real thrill.

19/01: Joanna Newsome + Alasdair Roberts @ The Barbican. Ali Roberts is just great as a warm-up: powerful voice, delicate touch on the guitar, gentle and graceful in manner. To see Joanna in full flow is a beautiful thing indeed. Her fingers dance on the strings and, although following the lyrics on the new songs is demanding, we're rewarded with a second set of favourites from The Milk Eyed Mender. Sometimes you close your eyes and you can't believe it's just two hands (ok... and a few Fx pedals) making such beautiful sounds.

18/01: Emmy the Great + Noah and the Whale @ Hoxton Kitchen. Starting the year as I mean to go on... Support comes from Noah and the Whale, who Emmy also does backing vocals for. Despite the (contrived?) West Country farmer-boy enunciation of the singer, a couple of their tunes, Rocks and Daggers especially, are great. Emmy is in good form, although she doesn't come across as powerfully as at Bush Hall in December (see below). The one that goes "Gloria... in excelsis, Deo, Deo" is fantastic, and she even manages to silence most of the Shoreditch twats in attendance.

2006

18/12: Emmy the Great @ Bush Hall. Tonight Emmy is supporting some guy called Fyfe Dangerfield, who's in some band called The Guillemots. With a backdrop of candles and curtains, she plays a spine-tingling set to a hushed crowd. I think this was the best I've seen her play: goose-pimple city! After that, hanging around for Fife's set just didn't seem like a good idea.

12/12: King Creosote + Bicycle Thieves @ Bardens: Attempting to see KC in a more intimate success following the Shepherd's Bush trauma kinda works, although (thanks to GNER) he doesn't start playing until about 11pm, so it's a long old night. Bicycle Thieves have one great song, Open City (myspace it), and a very cute singer, but they do get a bit dull after a while. 30 minutes max for all support bands is the golden rule, and they break it. KC is alone, acoustic, and totally committed to the cause. What a legend.

06/12: Bat For Lashes @ Scala: And so, I come full circle with B4L in '06, from being blown away first time at ATP, enchanted at the Luminaire, drunkenly seduced at Green Man, and now, tonight, satisfyingly entertained by this got-the-album gig (although the two non-album tracks played also sound great).

28/11: Nina Nastasia + Jeffrey Lewis @ The Scala. Jeffrey plays a sweet little set which includes a song all about the history of Rough Trade, a song performed by his touring buddies Scritti Politi, who look like the happiest band alive, plus a video and song about a huge Creeping Brain which takes over the USA. Nina's performance is as pure as the driven snow - no gimmicks, nothing kooky about her - just beautiful, honest, songs. Great stuff.

26/11: Brian Jonestown Massacre @ Astoria. Oh dear. The BJM audience has gone from being comprised of cool cats to beery, leery idiots who shout "Get yer tits out for the lads" when a pretty young women reads some (admittedly ropey) poetry during an interlude. Then there's the nasty heckling, goading Anton until he finally snaps and goes into one of his rants. Shame, cos the music is great when they get their shit together.

24/11: Seasick Steve + Pete Molinari @ Tapestry Club, Euston. Fantastic headline gig from nu-blues legend Seasick Steve. Playing on improvised instruments and wandering off into the audience when the mood takes him, this is a bit like what I imagine an RL Burnside gig might have been like. Nice Dylany stuff from Molinari in support.

15/11: ESG @ Dingwalls. Still just as essential as ever, ESG live are one of the funkiest, grin-inducing acts around. And don't let anyone tell you the new stuff isn't much cop - tonight Purely Physical and Insane stand up against past classics like Moody and You Make No Sense. What a gig!

05/11: Antony & The Johnsons @ The Barbican. Performing to a continually "Turning" backdrop of beautiful, dignified women as they stand statuesque on a revolving plinth, this is a fantastic and captivating gig. The way Antony was meant to be enjoyed.

04/11: Arab Strap @ Cambridge Junction. A slightly strange affair, this seated gig takes place in the Junction's new theatre arena, which doesn't feel like quite the right place to say goodbye to the 'Strap on this, their "farewell" tour. It's still pretty great though, with Aidan in unusually jocular mood throughout - maybe the thought that he won't have to sing his confession for much longer is spurring him on.

30/10: Emmy and friends @ The Luminaire. A hectic night with about 7 acts squeezed into the evening, which means everyone except headliners The Mules get about 15mins each. Good when you're not digging an act (er, most of them), less good when you are (Emmy). Certainly a mixed bag, ranging from the indulgent and pretentious to good time country folk rock from Johnny Flynn and co.

26/10: King Creosote + Larrakin Love + Peter, Paul and Bjorn @ Shepherd's Bush Empire. All in all a bit of an ordeal. Queue to get in, OTT body search, queue to pay £3 to put your coat away, queue for half an hour at the bar (no joke unfortunately) for a £4 pint, all to stand behind a load of people who aren't really watching the bands anyway in a too-full room. Great! PP&B are a bit lackluster until their hit, Young Folk, then get much better. LL are a bit happy-clappy for me but the kids like 'em, while KC really is/are a good live act, especially when they hit a more psychedelic groove. Best moment is when KC spells out a marriage request on behalf of someone in the audience at the end of KC RULES OK. She says yes, by the way.

23/10: J Spaceman @ Queen Elizabeth Hall. What an awesome gig! Building on his performance at the Daniel Johnston tribute concert earlier in the year, this is Jase Spaceman stripped right down to acoustic guitar and voice, then augmented with keys, a string quartet and three amazing voices from the London Community Gospel Choir. A mix of new songs (which sound great), covers (True Love Will Find You in the End), and absolute gems from the past, including Cool Waves and Walking With Jesus. The sound of joy and redemption.

21/20: Jean Claude Vannier, BBC Concert Orchestra and friends @ Barbican. Seeing an orchestra in full flight is something special, especially when conducted by a cool French dude, playing L'Enfant Assassin Des Mouches and Histoire de Melody Nelson, with guest vocalists including Jarvis Cocker and Laetitia Sadier. Both stylishly beautiful and FUN.

15/10: Mara Carlyle, Upstairs @ Paradise, Kensal Green as part of a night called John Peel's Living Room. Ah, now this was a really nice event. She was great, really friendly and decent songs, the guy on acoustic guitar for a while was great too, and a lovely Sunday afternoon atmosphere.

08/10: Mr David Viner + Pete Molinari + Eamonn McNamee @ In the Pines, The Harrison. Laid back afternoon of singer-songwritery action from three men who all owe a certain something to Bob Dylan.

04/10: Micah P Hinson @ ULU: Micah's performance tonight is a class above his previous rasping, almost painful vocal workouts, and yet there's still that raw energy and enjoyably self-deprecating streak running through. Everything about his set is perfect; he makes his guitar sing then weep in front of a reverential, well-behaved crowd, and the band are tight and sensitive. Mum and Dad are in the house watching - they must be proud. Great support act too, alas can't remember their name.

21/09: Wanda Jackson + Pinny Gur + Vince Vincent: An incredible night in the presence of a true living legend. VV solo is a good warm up act, Pinny Gur leave me a little confused but are OK, and then the main event. Wanda is on amazing form, giving a lesson in the history rock n roll, from its roots in the 50s, through the swinging 60s with Elvis, and then into more mellow country territory. And she tops it all off with a version of Tunnel of Love that is just amazing. Great rockabilly tunes after from the DJ too.

20/09: Emmy the Great @ The Pelican. The people in the pub who were talking all through her set will one day see the error of their ways. Emmy is my favourite performer right now and this intimate little gig, featuring Farewell to Ed, Secret Circus and a fantastic song dissing cocaine, leaves me feeling happy as larry.

17/09: Tindersticks @ The Barbican. This epic, lush gig cost £25 (a big fat pay day for Staples and Co?) but is worth every penny. A majestic, string-laden performance of Tindersticks II plus a few faves from their impeccable back catalogue. Makes you remember how good they were/are, and what an amazing instrument the violin is. If this was their swansong, it was a mighty fine way to go out.

12/09: Love is All + Tilly and the Wall @ Kings College. Another strangely unenergetic, low-key gig at this student venue where people seem to be just checking out bands rather than be into them. Neither the brilliant Tilly, who have previous rocked the Luminaire and Buffalo Bar, or the punk-funky LiA can do much to raise spirits and both bands fail to fill the stage. Too big a venue too soon perhaps? A weird one.

18-20/08: Green Man Festival 2006. Wow what a festival! Lots of highlights... On Friday: Adrian Crowley isn't bad, Circulus are hilarious, The Aliens start out well then go a bit Pink Floyd. Catch the end half of Skygreen Leopards and it's totally lush, restrained psychadelia. Nice. Gruff Rhys' set is interesting and goes down well, but doesn't really get to me. Catch a bit of Donovan but it's not really my thing. End the night listening to a mix of Cherrystones' rockin DJ set and a wee bit of Simple Kid (miss the duo with Kermit the Frog). Saturday: Vito get things off to a gentle start, then catch Foxface who have the best name and also prove to be a highlight - a bit like a less frenetic, more countryish Sons and Daughters. Nalle and Aiden Smith pass the time before Euros Childs plays a blinder - he never disappoints. We drift off during Tunng to catch Bat For Lashes, who are awesome again. She so cute. Micah P Hinson is brilliant as ever, while King Creosote seems to go down well and soundtracks our pie eating, then catch a bit of Brave Captain (brave being the word), before enjoying an evening in the company of James Yorkston and Malcolm "Malky" Middleton. Lovely. Sunday: More gentleness from Cymbient to start the day, then a bit of Onions (complete with random mad woman joining in - very nice she is though) and Nancy Elizabeth Cunliffe, followed by 18th Day of May (good, but i fall asleep), Merz, Marissa Nadler (cute), Richard James (very good, when I wake up), Alasdair Roberts, and Andy Votel in the DJ tent. Sunburned Hand of the Man are a bit of a disappointment. But what an amazing weekend of good music, people, food, vibes, countryside and smiles.

12/08: Tapebox Organ Eyes @ Sleep All Night, Drive All Day - Ye Olde Axe. Must confess that I sit most of this out at the back of the club. It's messy, noisy and often quite a tough listen, but by the end I'm thinking maybe there's something good hiding under it all...

09/08: Ari Up's The Slits @ The Underworld. A compelling and brilliant set from Ari and band (including 2 members of the audience, and 2 absolutely stunning young singers), who are different to the one who backed her at The Vibe Bar earlier in the year. They do a lot of reggae and dancehall numbers, complete with spooky On-U-Sound-System dubs and echo effects, plus a few Slits faves, including a wicked version of Heard It Through the Bassline. When it comes to communicating with an audience, no other frontwoman comes close to Ari.

07/08: Gaz Mayall and the Trojans @ Inn On The Green, Portobello. Cool blues and ska, with an amazing sax player, from Gaz and Co. Gaz, who's been up to no good with Pete Doherty and Shane McGowan the night before, only manages to sing on two numbers, but it's still a great show, with a real oddball audience making whoopy. Great ska and reggae disco after too.

05/08: Nouvelle Vague / Arrested Development @ Fruistock, Regent's Park. From a stage a very long way away, the sounds of Love Will Tear Us Apart and Everyday People drift, while the sun sets and the white wine goes down a treat. Lots of people damn it, but a very pleasant, un rock-n-roll kinda event.

28/06: Brian Jonestown Massacre @ Koko, Camden. A certain amount of expectation amongst the crowd of beautiful people, all hoping Anton will do something crazy - just like in the movie. As it is, he and his band just play a set of superior psychadelic rock which, when it enters the zone, really is stunning.

16/06: Go Kart Mozart @ Button Down Disco, 93 Ft East. A bizarre choice of headline band. Most of the audience are too young to know Lawrence's long history in music, and probably think he's just fronting another ironic Shoreditch bunch of chancers. That's certainly what they look like. It starts off ropey but grows into something quite good. Donna, and Stupid & Ugly & Lazy are great. The clubnight is pretty pants though, so head off to the Pride of Spitalfields.

06/06/06: Bat For Lashes @ Luminaire. Despite feeling unwell, made the short trip on the Free Train and it was well worth it. Another spooky, spellbinding performance, that prompts the best heckle heard in a while: "You made me cry last night!" I know what she means - the last song nearly has me blubbing.

03/06: Brick Lane Boogie Boys @ Bethnal Green Working Mens Club. Incredible RnB and rockabilly stuff that filled the dancefloor and had us begging for more.

28/05: Gobsausage @ Ye Olde Axe, Shoreditch. Possibly the worst live act I've ever seen, but they probably enjoy hearing that kind of thing said about them. Like that horrible episode of Nathan Barley with all that "terrorists are gay" extreme noise terror, only worse...

27/05: Stone Cold Queen @ Portland Arms, Cambridge. Now this was a fun night. Something incongruous about a fat Freddie lookalike singing It's A Kind of Magic in the back room of a pub in Cambridge...

19/05: Tilly & the Wall + Semi-Finalists + Emmy the Great @ Luminaire. Emmy, tonight accompanied by a couple of pals, warms up an expectant crowd with a tantalisingly short set of prim, proper songs. Absentee, sad and dramatic, is the highlight. Semi-Finalists are just baffling. They have their moments but don't really gel into anything convincing. That Japanese dude looks great though. Tilly & Co play a blinder, despite problems with their sound (which they deal with graciously), including Reckless, Bessa, and a totally beautiful version of Let It Rain. The show ends with one of the more unpretentious stage-invasions I've witnessed, with about 20 people up there with the band smiling and yelling "I wanna fuck it up, I wanna fuck it up, and I feel so alive and I feel so free..." Special.

14/05: Devendra Banhart + Bert Jansch + Vetiver + Espers + Metallic Falcons + Tarantula AD + Bat For Lashes + Vashti Bunyan + Jandek + Ramblin' Jack Elliott @ ATP, Camber Sands. Wicked day of mostly chilled-out stuff, with Bat For Lashes being the discovery of the day - a crystal clear, beautiful sound somewhere between Cat Power, Scout Niblet and Bjork. Vashti could have done with being downstairs - it's just not intimate (or quiet) enough for her upstairs. Vetiver are pretty sweet, Tarantula AD get the day started with a really beguiling sound, and Devendra, once he gets going, plays a great show.

13/05: Yeah Yeah Yeahs + TV On the Radio + Oneida + Celebration + Hundred Eyes + Imaginary Folk + Services + Liars @ ATP. A great day of Rock Action. YYYs especially are amazing, Liars intense as ever and what I catch of Oneida is pretty mesmerising.

12/05: Mudhoney + Black Mountain + The Drones @ ATP. I was still in warm-up mode and didn't see as many bands as I'd hoped too on the Friday. Can't really remember much except that Black Mountain were pretty cool, kinda stoner bliss-out rock.

09/05: Fiery Furnaces @ Kings College. Strange gig and not realy sure why I even went. The FF's entertained me back at the Buffalo Bar a year or two ago, but they're not much fun these days. Despite being a sold-out show, no-one seems really into it - there's just polite applause after each song. Must stay in more!

04/05: Mother & the Addicts + Mocky + Son of Dave @ Luminaire. Son of Dave's wheezy one-man band show doesn't impress and after a gallant attempt at engaging the crowd he throws in the towel. Mocky, complete with mickey-mouse ears, is kind of entertaining, while the Addicts treat the crowd to a selection of ragged RnB-influenced rock n roll. All good fun, celebrating BBC Collective's 200th issue.

30/04: The Slits + Pink Grease @ The Vibe Bar. Odd choice of venue for one of a handful of comback gigs for The Slits. It's rammed, well humid, and the sound system just isn't up to it (the disco next door sounds awesome though). Anyways, PG's ramshackle din is lost on me. The Slits though sound wicked; their punky-reggae sound is often copied but never bettered, and there's a minor moshpit down the front. Ari looks and sounds great.

21/04: BeYourOwnPET + Rogers Sisters + Black Time + Cake Maker Betty @ ULU. A strange old night. Good bands, Black Time giving it some playing one of their biggest London gigs, Rogers Sisters going all psyche-out on us, but still good, and then the Kids going crazy for BYOP, but by this time I'm just too darn tired.

14/04: Daniel Johnston & friends @ The Barbican. A really great, if at times odd, musical evening, featuring James Yorkston, Vic Chestnut, Howie Gelbe, Teenage Fanclub and Jason Pierce (in absolutely beautiful voice), before Daniel finally takes to the stage to play 4 ramshackle songs. Pierce's magical takes on True Love Will Find You In the End and Funeral Home are the highlight.

08/04: Jeremy Walmsley @ Luminaire, Kilburn. A cosey, good-vibes little gig from Jeremy and pals. It's really nice to see the interaction between the musicians close up, you can see it in their eye contact. And Jeremy is on fine form tonight, just a shame that his keyboard sound is so plinky-plonky. When Emmy the Great pops up for the last couple of numbers, it's the icing on the cake. The last number, You're So Goddamn Young (?), is fantastic. I'm gonna have to be careful not to develop stalker tendancies towards Emmy.

03/04: Intoxica + Soixante Neuf @ Plan B, Brixton. SF aren't too bad, even if the most interesting thing about them is their seedy backdrop projections. Intoxica are a truly dull proposition - how do bands like this even get a gig, let alone a headline slot? There's almost a collective sigh of relief when they strike their last derivative chord.

01/04: The Sugars @ Metro. They look great with their 50s microphones and vintage clothes. On stage chemistry is kind of like The Kills, but with a sexy drummer thown in, while the sound is like a duet between Jack White and Holly Golightly. The Hit! single, TV, sounds great.

31/03: Modeselektor @ Coronet. First time at this venue and what a wicked place it is. The cinema is huge! It's a Seed records night with a great line-up, of which Modeselektor are the highlight. Massive sound, top atmosphere.

29/03: Shack @ Heavenly Social. Only caught the end of this one but from what I saw it seems Michael Head was having difficulty remembering words, chords, etc. Still, the faithful were happy after, saying how glad they were that the band played so much classic old stuff and only attempted one new one.

27/03: Baxter Dury + Mr David Viner @ Heavenly Social. Viner's Vinerism night sees him play first, with cello and double bass accompaniment, then Dury headlines. For some reason (possibly their sampling of the Velvet Underground) I thought he was New York, but of course Baxter is son of Ian Dury, and a Londoner good and proper. It's a bit of a chaotic gig (power failure, fight between a girl and a guy dressed up as a bunny rabbit) but pretty good, with great versions of Lisa Said, Floor Show, Oscar Brown and newy Love in the Garden.

20/03: New Young Pony Club + Velofax @ Hoxton Bar & Grill. Velofax, who I thought said they were called Filofax, still have a terrible name but aren't quite as bad as that. Sound best when the singer isn't singing. NYPC are good, but not as good as they think they are... The Get Go sounds great though.

18/03: Dave Greenald @ Sleep All Day Drive All Night, The George Tavern. The flyer was half right - it's like watching Tom Waits' younger brother in action. Spectacular stuff.

26/02: Beth Orton + Clayhill @ Cambridge Corn Exchange. Clayhill have to be one of the dullest bands in history. Nice, but dull. Beth, by contrast, is in spellbinding form tonight. Playing mostly new material (and, she says, relieved to be doing so) she pushes her voice to the limit, particularly on Feral and Comfort of Strangers. Old songs like She Cries Your Name seem dull in comparison.

22/02: The Concretes @ The Scala. Ok, so I spent most of this gig behind a glass wall in the VIP area (something I swore I'd never do but hey), so I don't hear much. The Concretes play nice tunes inoffensively, and there's one really nice one when they all harmonise. The singer is an elf. Three of the Magic Numbers join them for the encore. Everyone goes home happy, although Seems Fine (the Hit) would have been nice...

20/02: Tony Benn @ Bloomsbury Theatre. Ok, not a gig as such, but a public gathering to hear the thoughts of a great, wise man. "Be both impatient and patient for change" was the message I took away.

19/02: Tilly and the Wall + Emmy the Great @ Buffalo Bar. Great double-bill for a Sunday night. Emmy (who, I'm reminded, I've seen before at Hill Arts Club, playing with Jeremy Walmsley) is fantastic. Young, talented, and such beautiful enunciation. Tilly are amazing. The tap-dancing instead of drums is all true, and they bring the album to life in a way I could barely have imagined. Worth missing the last train home for.

10/02: Clap Your Hands Say Yeah @ Koko. Nice venue (my first time here), shame the gig started so early. I arrive at 8.45pm and CYHSY are just coming on stage (presumably so that Koko can fleece more punters arriving later for the club). They're as good as the songs on the album, which they play almost in full, although the gig doesn't quite reach the Arcade Fire heights I'd fantasized about. Tunes spun at Club NME after are atrocious, and apparently Babyshambles play a surprise live set at about 1am, long after I've gone. Ah well.

04/02: The Long Blondes + Neil's Children @ The Spitz. Neil's Children sound bad and look ridiculous (Duran Duran meets Busted). Long Blondes are good, especially Giddy Stratospheres, but not quite there yet.

03/02: Colder + Battant @ Electrowerkz. Battant are just as bonkers as last time I saw them. I love their guitar licks over electro beats. The crowd were well up for it and they should make their sound even harder and bigger now. Colder are stunning. Great locked-on repetitive live grooves in a brilliant club atmosphere. Shiny Stars is about 100x better than it is on vinyl.

02/02: Belle & Sebastian + Brakes @ Cambridge Corn Exchange. Brakes win over the crowd with their mostly very short songs (like, 30 seconds). Belle & Seb have the crowd in their hands from the start and play a great set, including old faves Electronic Renaissance, Fox in the Snow, and The State I Am In.

31/01: Nick Cave @ Cambridge Corn Exchange. Possibly my most expensive-ever gig, and there isn't even a support band. Nick's on good form, playing with a stripped down Bad Seeds, and stepping out from behind the piano to sing and play guitar a couple of times. He looks great (middle age suits him well), and the stage presence is still as strong as ever. There are old, new(ish) and first-time-played-live songs. It's all great. But I think I've had my fill of him now.

2005

22/12: The Pogues @ Brixton Academy. Shane in sober-after-all shocker. He proves it by balancing a glass of water on his head. And you can hear the words. This is the best performance from Shane I've seen in a while and a fine end to the gig-going year. Even Katie Meula (?) can't ruin Fairytale of New York. Great stuff.

18/12: James Yorkston @ Luminaire. James is playing mostly-solo tonight at this intimate Christmas show, and he's on fine form. Brilliant playing, beautiful songs, friendly banter, this is just a lovely Sunday evening's entertainment.

15/12: Annie @ 93 Ft East. Sure she's a talented, sexy poster-girl, but the live show's not quite there yet. It's good, but not great, and the atmosphere isn't as lively as it was in Canada (but that's London for you). Apparently this is her first 'proper' London gig, so maybe she's all nerves. Heartbeat is pretty rockin though.

10/12: Hawkwind, er, sort of @ The Inn on the Green, Portobello. Cosmic vibes man, lots of trippy lights and old hippies tripping over. Actually surprisingly good.

05/12: Antony and the Johnsons @ Shepherd's Bush Empire. Third time I've seen him in almost as many months, and tonight is just as special as every other. He looks a bit knackered (too much fun had at ATP?) and hits a bum note in the first song, but he soon hits his stride and it's another beautiful gig. Tonight's special guest is Boy George, but the special moment is the audience participation during new song Trust Your Mother.

30/11: Akira the Don @ Plan B, Brixton. Funny old evening, with loads of freestyling before the blonde-haired, orange boiler-suited white geezer from N Wales finally makes it onto stage. He plays with a full band and they can't seem to get their sound levels right, but they're good, or at least there's potential there if he can cut out his between-song GLC-esque banter.

29/11: Liars + Celebration @ The Luminaire, Kilburn. Celebration are an odd blend of antiquated piano wheezes and slightly bonkers frontwoman. Liars are surreal verging on the incredible. Primeval drumming, mad screaming one minute, beautiful crooning the next, fantastic clothes, amazing moves and, for the encore, a cover of Nirvana's monumental Territorial Pissings.

27/11: Atoms for Peace / Known @ Strongrooms. This is the new Sunday night thing at the Strongrooms and it's a pretty cool evening. Nice DJ sounds in between too.

20/11: Antony and the Johnsons @ St Luke's Church, Old St. A special gig for an "invited audience" (industry freeloaders plus the odd prize-winner), this is an amazing gig in beautifully civilized surroundings. Antony is a sweetie, and Mark Almond's guest appearance is pretty special, even if he is out of tune.

06/11: Kimya Dawson + Jason Anderson + Tigersaw @ Redgate Gallery, Brixton. Lovely intimate setting for an amazing gig. The guy from Tigersaw (no band tonight) is v sweet and he does a nice version of Milkshake, while Jason Anderson performs with the audience stood round in a circle singing along. It's intense and uplifting and he gives it everything, as do we - "it's your night, you are the show" he keeps on saying, and he's right. Kimya is on very low-key form but, in explaining the background to some of her songs, they become even more personal and moving.

02/11: Battant + TV-OD + Theoretical Girl @ Artrocker. Two weeks in a row at Artrocker, and tonight's line-up is top. TG is a very cool girl doing a solo set with bass and drum tapes and some really great songs. TV-OD do their rockin with a Korg thang and sound like they should come from Sheffield not Nottingham, while Battant are simply ace. They look and sound amazing. A bit like if ADULT. had some decent tunes.

25/10: Kalev @ Artrocker. Loud, varied and good. Particularly like the hi-end analogue keyboard squeals.

29/09: Antony and the Johnsons + Coco Rosie @ La Tulipe, Montreal. This sold out crowd don't seem to know quite what to make of Antony. Most are probably here to see what all the fuss is about. But they love Coco Rosie, and deservedly so. With intriguing vocal interplay, human beatboxing and a couple of awesome songs, they suit this cabaret venue perfectly. Antony goes down pretty well too, and as he begins to relax, there's even a few jokes, an audience clap-along, and a very nice little song about root vegetables...

27/09: Annie + Dragonette @ Theatre Plaza, Montreal. Dragonette are a stylised, slightly embarressing 80s electro-rock act, although they do have a couple of seductive slower ones and the singer's a fox, but nothing compared to the svelte Annie. Despite the beats not being loud enough and Annie clearly having problems with her earpiece, this is still a triumphant occassion. Montreal's hipsters love her, and there's no denying the quality of songs like Happy Without You, Greatest Hit and, especially, Heartbeat.

26/09: M.I.A. @ Phoenix Concert Theatre, Toronto. An absolute blinder. It takes a while to get going, but the DJ eventually warms the crowd up, before a cool MC set from er, not sure (possibly Spank Rock) and finally, M.I.A.'s triumphant entry. Playing Arular almost in its entirety, every song fizzes like a shaken up can of cherry cola. The sold-out 1000+ crowd go nuts. Near the end she confides that she's suffering from flu ("a big shout out for Lemsip" baffles the locals). If this is M.I.A. under the weather, god knows what she's like at full strength.

24/09: Black Rebel Motorcycle Club @ Phoenix Concert Theatre, Toronto. This is a pretty cool gig, starting off with some of the more fireside-folky stuff from the new album Howl, and then plundering their back catalogue for lots of feedback-heavy spacerock. They're shooting the video for a new single, too, so watch out for me in the audience...

20/09: Laura Cantrell @ Islington Academy. On record Laura's got an amazing voice and live, she's note perfect too. Her band are fantastic too, full of country twang. Highlights include a new song dedicated to John Peel, and a lovely rendition of Two Seconds. A word about the crowd: never have I seen such a bunch of well-behaved, 30-something couples together in one place. Weird.

19/09: Mitchell Brothers + Plan B @ The Garage. Artrocker's first hip-hop night isn't very well attended, but those who are there have a wicked night. Plan B's spooky raps backed by acoustic guitar and minimal drumming is unique and affecting. He spits his lyrics and is brimming with mean energy. The Mitchell Bro's are the exact opposite - all ladish banter and givin it the "oi, bruv" routine between every song, which does get a bit tiresome. Their beats are bouncy though and the crowd love 'em.

14/09: Lemonheads @ Shepherds Bush Empire. One of the "Don't Look Back" series of concerts, in which Evan Dando and Co (sadly, not including Juliana Hatfield), play the Shame About Ray album. They breeze through it, and it's fun, but also feels a little hollow.

11/09: Alan Tyler @ Fiddler's Elbow. For some strange reason, Tyler and band completely blow me away tonight. Their country-tinged rock songs aren't doing anything new, but they are just what's called for on a grey Sunday afternoon. And they even play Jonathan.

08/09: Rifles @ Borderline. Free gig as part of City Showcase 2005, Rifles are a competent and tuneful four piece from Chingford, Essex. They seem like nice lads who have heard the odd Small Faces and Jam record in their time. But boy is it hot in the Borderline - too hot to hang around for headliners Duels.

05/09: Sway @ 100 Club. Part of the City Showcase, Sway heads an impressive line-up of hip-hop/grime MCs and DJs. Kid's got talent, especially when freestyling, as have loads of the people getting up on stage tonight. Fresh and entertaining.

29/08: Notting Hill Carnival. Not exactly a gig, but still lots of dancing to be had, and way more fun.

20-21/08: V Festival, Staffordshire. This kind of reminds me why I gave up on these big festivals years ago. For a start - no band times listed anywhere, except on the £8 neckchain laminates. Thousands of lairy people getting sunburnt. Shit in a tray (as Mike Skinner might put it) for a fiver, Carling in a paper cup for £3, and so on... This isn't a festival, it's a money-making machine. As for the bands, mostly average with a few highlights; Goldfrapp doing Strict Machine, Magic Numbers doing Forever Lost in glorious sunshine, The Prodigy peddling the same old act but sounding a little more menacing in the darkness, Scissor Sisters' costume changes, Ian Brown playing Stone Roses songs and not ruining them. Lovely weather too.

19/08: The Streets + The Ordinary Boys @ Brixton Academy. The £25 ticket price appears to have backfired - the place is barely 2/3rds full tonight. The Ordinary Boys are, well, ordinary, while Mike Skinner is entertaining, but as a live band The Streets (complete with "funky" live drummer), are clumsy at best. And what's with all that "I predict a riot" shit?!? Dry Your Eyes is pretty well done though.

09/08: !!! + Sympathy for the Diamon Industry @ 100 Club. !!! are on top of their game tonight. Every time I've seen them live they've seemed like a different band. Tonight the emphasis is more on the rhythms rather than the bleepy electronics, and it's bloody ruddy brilliant. Mostly new stuff but it doesn't matter because everything is effortlessly funky and danceable. Great atmosphere down the front too. Full review here.

06/08: Black Time @ Ryan's Bar, Stoke Newington. Playing last on a 4-band bill, timings slip and Black Time end up only playing about 5 songs before the punk-rock-unfriendly landlord decides enough's enough. "Always leave 'em wanting more" taken to the extreme.

02/08: The 5,6,7,8's + Vince Vincent & the Villains + Naked Ruby @ Boston Arms. The hot and stuffy setting of the Boston makes this gig a bit of an endurance test, but in the end it's worth it. Naked Ruby are good for the first few songs but play far too long. They pay the price though - the sound is cut as they launch into their encore, leaving them all looking rather pissed off. Vince Vincent's sound is a bit weedy and the 50s rockabilly of their records sounds more like The Jam live. The 5,6,7,8's start off tamely but, after dropping Woo Hoo mid-set, they really step it up a gear. Their version of Night Train is fantastic, and the bluesy licks towards the end from ultru cool Japanese dude Enocky make this a killer gig for dancing.

12/07: Bloc Party + The Kills + The Cribs @ Somerset House. This is a lovely evening outside in the warm summer air. All the bands are good, even if I'm a bit bored of the Kills ubercoolness now. The Cribs live up to all those "entertaining northerners" cliches, and seem to think us lot in London are all poshos. BP, back on home turf, really enjoy it, as does the audience, singing along to most of the words. Full review here.

09/07: Sugarhill Gang @ NASS Extreme Sport Festival, Somerset. Ooh, spooky Somerset link... Don't ask what I'm doing here, but Sugarhill's set is actually pretty entertaining. They do a sort of hip-hop karaoke, taking in classics like White Lines, Walk this Way and The Message. Lots of hands in the air.

08/07: Cradle of Souls @ Mau Mau Bar. Interesting gothy/electro act, pitched somewhere between The Cure and The Faint. Going out, via public transport, and showing "we're not scared" seemed the only thing to do after the events of 07/07.

06/07: The Duke Spirit + Architecture in Helsinki + Autolux @ Camden Barfly (Monarch). Had been tipped off that Autolux were worth catching and then managed to miss most of their set. What I saw was pretty good post-rawking stuff. AinH are like Arcade Fire meets the Avalanches and the Polyphonic Spree. A bit hit & miss, but good fun. Duke Spirit are a bit dull in't they? Well, maybe not dull, but definitely one-dimensional.

16/06: The Long Blondes @ Pure Groove, Archway. A short in-store gig in this funky little independent record shop, to launch the new single. They're up very close and personal, which makes their rendition of Giddy Stratospheres all the more exciting.

15/06: Malcolm Middleton @ Luminaire, Kilburn. Malcy and band are on fine form tonight. Some of the new stuff sounds great, but he saves the best moment until last. Devil and the Angel makes you fear you're the one who will "never amount to anything", not him. Great venue too.

12/06: The Pipettes + Lucky Soul @ Music4Life, Notting Hill Arts Club. Lucky Soul, playing their first ever gig, are cute in a St Etienne style, while The Pipettes' all singin-all dancing take on 50s style pop is great. The girls all look fantastic in polka dot, while the boys' cricket jumpers are very stylish too.

11/06: The Makeouts + Black Time + Venom Seeds + Dirthole @ the Marquis of Lansdowne, Stoke Newington. Dirthole's three-person drum assault (and they're a man down tonight) is a great start to the evening. Venom Seeds (featuring the cute gal outta The XR5) are ok, Black Time's psycho-boogie leaves me wanting more, while The Makeouts sound a bit generic garage rock to these ears.

04/06: Micah P Hinson + Vetiver + Currituck Co @ Lyric Theatre, Hammersmith. Currituck Co is on early but the few who watch get to see some neat finger picking. Vetiver is a twisted folk supergroup, with Devendra Banhart on main vocal duties. Every song is great. Micah P Hinson is amazing; his horse voice spitting out lyrics over the most gently plucked guitar lines. The possibilities for Micah Paul Hinson are endless.

28/05: Weather Underground @ Barden's. Can't hear a word they're on about, but they make a fine din for two people, and you can dance to them, so I do.

26/05: Chemical Brothers + Lali Puna @ Brixton Academy. It's cool finally seeing Lali Puna, after they released such a great album last year (#7 in our top 10, no less). Towards the end of their set they really hit onto some mesmerising krautrock grooves. Chemical Brothers are not much to look at but they know how to put on a show and, although some of the early stuff sounds pretty dated these days, more recent tracks (notably Star Guitar) sounds awesome. With the whizzy lights and lasers, it's like a proper rave.

25/05: The Magic Numbers @ Selectadisc. In-store acoustic show to celebrate the release of new single Forever Lost. After playing a 30 minute set they do a stint behind the counter signing and chatting. Genuinely lovely people, the lot of 'em.

24/05: The Earlies @ 93 Ft East. Bud gig #3, I'm even starting to get a taste for the stuff now. Tip: if you're going to one of these gigs, sneak in a few cans. I miss support band the Shortwave Set due to a big long queue, but get let in just in time to see Lauren Laverne welcome The Earlies to the stage - all 9 of them. They have a really nice sound, great sense of humour and the Manchester meets Texas vibe is cool, particularly during Morning Wonder, but they don't move mountains for me. Saying that, the single they've just cut with Sara Lowes is one of my favourites of the year so far. Maybe it's as DJs, tweakers and producers that this lot will really make their name.

21/05: Out Hud + Benjamin Diamond @ Marquee Club. Another Bud gig, this one is a bit busier. Benjamin Diamond looks like he's squeezing one out, but full marks for effort. Out Hud are storming; killer basslines, great live vocals and excellent fun. Basically, an even funkier !!! if that's possible. Then it's all upstairs for another couple of hours of excellent Out Hud action, this time from behind the decks.

20/05: Colder + George Demure + Trevor Jackson (DJ) @ Bush Hall. This is the first of the Bud Rising shows (free entry, but all they have at the bar is £3 bottles of Bud), and the first band doesn't come on until about 10pm, and only plays a handful of songs. I actually thought George Demure was Colder, until Colder came on at about 10.45pm and played a pounding electronica/krautrocking set. Good tunes from Mr Jackson too, shame there was hardly anyone around to hear them.

14/05: Various acts @ Mau Mau Bar, Portobello Rd. In the couple of hours I am there I see two kids displaying their MC-ing skills, some ol' crooner playing the electric keyboard and making trumpet sounds with his mouth, a pissed man doing angry acoustic songs, and a band that sound a bit like the Levellers. Quite a mixture, all in aid of Make Poverty History. Nice one.

12/05: Rufus Wainwright @ Cambridge Corn Exchange. I've never seen Rufus before, in fact I've only recently been lent Want One and Want Two, but this is an excellent gig. He plays a mixture of full-band tracks and just-him-at-the-piano numbers, including a tear-jerkingly beautiful version of Nothing's Gonna Change My World. The 2 cute backing singers are great, really adding their characters to the mix. Near the end they all strip down to their undies, and Rufus dons a pair of angels wings. Theatrical stuff, but it works.

10/05: Electrelane + Scout Niblett @ Scala. Scout is a tasty nible of a support act. Tonight she plays mostly new songs but still has time to remind us that "we're all gonna die". Electrelane are like a born-again band, full of confidence in their big new sound. It's almost all stuff off the new Axis album, and it's mesmerising wall-of-noise stuff.

22-24/04: All Tomorrow's Parties @ Camber Sands. Fri: Blues Explosion / Afrirampo / Peaches / Merzbow. Sat: Autolux / Olivia Tremor Control / John Foxx / PJ Harvey (solo) / Suicide / Women and Children / Money Mark / Kid Koala. Sun: Leslie Winer / Ted Curson / Gang Gang Dance / Magik Markers / The Tints / Jayne County / Trapist / James Chance / The Zombies / Yoko Ono. My highlights: Afrirampo, Peaches, The Tints, Jayne County, Ted Curson, Yoko Ono.

13/04: Bloc Party + Pretty Girls Make Graves @ Astoria. Pretty Girls do a pretty good job warming up the crowd with their earnest rock ("do you remember what the music meant?) Bloc Party are amazing, bringing the Silent Alarm album alive. Just extend those My Bloody Valentine-esque droney bits out a bit and you'll be my perfect live band.

03/04: The Superimposers @ Notting Hill Arts Club. Playing as part of an Oxfam club night (also featuring DJ Andy Smith), this two man band write undoubtably great songs, but they are perhaps too gentle and intricate to be enjoyed in a club where most people have come to dance.

01/04: The XR5 @ Dublin Castle. After watching one of the most dull support bands in the history of rock, The XR5 can't help but sound fresh. They're a cool little band with at least two good songs, and the female singer is a most engaging frontwoman.

24/03: Be Your Own Pet @ Infinity. Just catch the last few songs, including the single Damn Damn Leash. Their singer's gonna be a star.

18/03: Shane McGowan and the Popes @ Corn Exchange, Cambridge. If the pre-Christmas Pogues gigs were a triumph of sorts, then this is the flipside - slightly half-arsed and shambolic, even though Shane seems less pissed than usual tonight, and it's a thrill to see him up close and personal. The fans show their appreciation by chucking bear in his face, which he bears gracefuly.

10/03: Camden Crawl: Chalets @ Dublin Castle, Tom Vek / Secret Machines @ Underworld, Two Lone Swordsmen @ Electric Ballroom. Although the whole point of the Camden Crawl is that you can move effortlessly between venues and take your pick, the reality is that they are spread out over a wide area and by 9pm most have massive queues. So instead, the best thing to do is find a venue with a couple of good bands and stay there. Tom Vek is my highlight. So funky for one so young. Moshing to Andrew Weatherall singing Sex Beat is the oddest moment. The Chalets are sexy if a bit studied, and Secret Machines are very loud and psychedelic, but a bit noodly.

24/02: Kimya Dawson @ Marquee Club. Kimya is the most genuine, in it for all the right reasons singer-songwriter around right now. There's no bullshit here. She does what she loves, sings about what she knows and how she feels, and it's a pleasure to be a part of it tonight.

19/02: The Scha La La's @ Water Rats. Quite enjoyed this all singin', all dancin' all girl troupe, especially the first one they did and the last couple. Great tunes from the DJ after as well...

14/02: Milky Wimpshake @ Water Rats. Classic indie-loser band, they do a perfect rendition of Daniel Johnston's True Love Will Find You in the End especially for Valentine's Days. Cheers guys, you made my night.

05/02: S*M*A*S*H @ Water Rats. Started off a bit weird, but this got really good towards the end. The band of my teenage years, on stage ten years later. Real Surreal indeed.

29/01: The Real Losers + Black Time @ Pleasure Unit. Black Time just keep getting better, with more new songs and covering up well when first the bass went then the guitar. Real Losers, playing their last London gig apparently, are great fun. Respect to "Hotdog", the pregnant drummer.

10/01: Plush + Azita @ 12 Bar Club. Azita is a kooky singer-songwriter who sings along to a plinky-plonky electric piano, pulling faces like you've never seen before. Plush is genius songs, an amazing voice, style and grace personified.


2004

22/12: The Pogues + The Flaming Stars @ Brixton Academy. An amazing gig experience. The Flaming Stars get things going with a typically cool set of bar-room blues, then the show really begins with a staggering Shane McGowan, slurred lyrics but just amazing music. They play all the hits and the show ends with fake snow, Fairytale of New York, Shane and Caite ballroom dancing, and a rousing Fiesta.

14/12: Bloc Party @ Heaven. Was quite far gone by the time they got on stage but remember thinking what an amazing voice Kele has, and yet their sound is all in the basslines. Sad to miss Kano's grime, not bothered about Neil's Children.

04/12: The Madeleines @ ROTA / Notting Hill Arts Club. Actually went down to see Jawbone, but caught this band instead. Walls of pounding guitar noise (good), annoyingly straight vocalist (bad).

30/11: Black Time + The Fever @ Artrocker / Buffalo Bar. Black Time are great, playing some killer new material that's not on the debut album. The Fever disappoint, with a yelpy, annoying frontman.

30/11: Magic Numbers @ Mean Fiddler. In-between seeing bands at Artrocker, catch the last 15 minutes of the Magic Numbers show, and damn, I wish I'd seen more, but you can't be in two places at once. Really lovely folky-pop stuff.

07/11: The Snakes @ Come Down and Meet the Folks / Fiddler's Elbow. Rather uninspired country-tinged pub rock.

02/11: Wooden Ghost @ CB2, Cambridge. Nice little acoustic alt.country goings-on in this cosy basement venue. This kind of music really is best appreciated sat on a comfy beanbag with a bottle of red wine.

30/10: The Motherfuckers + The Ulcers @ Ryan's Bar, Stoke Newington. Not quite as in-yer-face punk rawwk as you'd expect with names like that. Ended with a rousing version of Teenage Kicks. Unfortunately missed Black Time and The Mor Paranoids.

28/10: The MauMaus(?) @ New Marquee. Not sure if that was there name, but they were a truly terrible funk-rock band, wearing Pringle sweaters and golf visors. Upstairs a fat 'DJ' was playing Vanilla Ice CDs. Awful.

26/10: The Two Tears @ Buffalo Bar. Going out to see a new band seemed like the only thing to do on the day John Peel died. The show was a bit quiet to start with but got better. Like Fiery Furnaces without the keyboard bits.

16/10: Primal Scream + Spiritualized + Nick Cave @ Brixton Academy. One of the line-ups of the year, all three acts turning in impressive performances at this one-off gig in support of Hope and Optimisim for Palestinians in the Next Generation.

28/09: New Rhodes @ New Marquee, Leicester Sq. Playing for free as part of the launch week for this terrible 'new' venue (where the draft beer is always off tap and the toilets are the worst designed ever) this band fail to impress. We don't need another Razorlight.

25/09: Kill Kill Kill @ Ryan's Bar. I don't think I've ever seen a front man (in this case a singing drummer) so pissed. He did actually look like he was about to kill someone.

24/09: Headshoppe @ St Aloyuis Social Club. Well, I think it was Headshoppe, but I can't be sure. Quite drunk. Er, good stuff.

20/09: The Nicotines @ The Monarch. Sparse crowd for the first band of the evening, which is a shame because these Swedish / French kids are great. Endearing lo-fi indie pop plagued by loads of technical problems tonight, bless, but great potential and two cute singers, one gal one guy.

15/09: I-Monster @ The Cobden Club. Industry gig at this opulent members' club. The first number, performed in Frank Sidebottom-style masks, is cool but they can't keep the standard up. Daydream in Blue is still very pretty though.

28/08: ??? doing bad cover versions of all the Auters singles, in chronological order @ Filthy McNasty's, Angel. If you think this sounds like a pretty shit concept you'd be right (but I still went along, intrigued), especially when there are one-armed buskers who play guitar better.

25/08: Pharoahe Monch @ Deal Real, Carnaby St. Unfortunately he was just signing stuff when I was there.

23/08: Bloc Party @ Trash / The End. The best of the New Cross / Libertines' coattails scene by a long long way. They are amazing tonight.

20/08: Discordinated @ Skrew / Infinity. Another rockin live electro set, complete with crashing cymbals and crashing laptops.

17/08: Comanechi @ Artrocker / Buffalo Bar. This band rock. I saw them at the Garage a few weeks back, and close-up at the Buf Bar they're even better. Kind of like The Rogers Sisters (only with shorter songs) crossed with The Kills (only better looking). And they have songs about making tea and favourite shoes. Get the CD now!

13/08: Tokyo Dragons @ The Legion, Old St. Well, I was there, but not really listening to the band, who aren't very good any way. Why does this bar/sauna bother putting bands on?

01/08: James Yorkston and the Athletes + M-Craft + The Zillions @ Return of the Rural / The Griffin. Two pleasant warm-up acts followed by the masterful, jovial, London-baiting Mr Yorkston. The perfect Sunday afternoon; anyone for Pimms?

31/07: Clinic @ Return of the Rural / The Griffin. Ace free outdoor event headlined by this distinctly cool, medically-attired band.

29/07: Discordinated + Cursor Minor @ Electrogogo / Madame JoJo's. Discordinated are a 3-piece electro-rock band, and they rock. Cursor Minor is one-man singing behind his laptop and it's surprisingly funky.

25/07: Nuada + local story-tellers @ Milton Country Park, Cambridge. Not exactly a gig, but the Celtic folk was nice enough and the story-tellers... well, it was something different (and I didn't leave with ringing ears).

24/07: High White Honkies + Red Light + 10 Second Window @ Milton Country Park. 3 not very good local bands, but the vibe was nice.

23/07: kaitO + Thomas Truax + Bouvier @ APU SU Bar, Cambridge. Fun local band, followed by eccentric one-man-band (complete with home made 'sister spinster' rhythm device) followed by the yelpy artrock headliners.

16/07: The Bisons @ Club Skrew! / Infinity. Totally cool band playing electropop with guitars, sounding a little bit Le Tigre. We like.

11/07: KaitO + Gin Palace + Selfish Cunt + Comanechi @ The Garage. Free gig under the banner 'Vortex of Now' featuring 4 bands on the cusp (unfortunately Black Wire didn't play). Comanechi are a rocking boy/girl guitar/drum duo, the crazee Japanese girl doing most of the singing. SC are entertaining if essentially rubbish, Gin Palace don't do much for me (but then I am very sleepy); Kaito take the honours with some amazing vocals, twisted guitars (a la YeahYeahYeahs) and cool look.

10/07: Blofeld + Dennis Hopper Chopper @ Pleasure Unit. Blofeld are nice boys with strummy guitars and chirpy melodies, while Dennis Hopper Chopper is a one man band with a mean line in the blues.

09/07: Willy Mason @ Rough Trade, Covent Garden. Stunning 30 minute unamplified acoustic set from this boy wonder, complete with between-song commentary and a rousing version of Oxygen.

29/06: The Seconds + Help She Can't Swim @ Artrocker / Buffalo Bar. The Seconds are Shellac/Albini style art-rock with the YeahYeahYeah's drummer on drums. HSCS are half fun, half annoying, with a Manda Rin style yelper on vocals.

12/06: Los Raw Gospels, The Real Losers, Sludgefeast @ Ryan's Bar. Punk rock all-dayer. Oh yes, bring the noise.

08/06: Mint Chicks + The Fleshies @ Artrocker / Buffalo Bar. Fleshies a bit like what I'd expect Fugazi to sound like, with the singer charging into the crowd, singing from on top of the bar etc etc. Mint Chicks sharp as a razor.

04/06: 5678's + The Prescillas @ Dirty Water Club / Boston Arms. Girls rocking out, beautiful bass players, Kill Bill chic - tres cool.

02/06: Golden Virgins @ The Legion, Old St. Showcase gig for their album launch. Not bad, but a bit dull I thought.

29/05: The Others @ Kill All Hippies / Canvas, Kings Cross. Enthusiastic performance at this depressing indie disco. They are overtly sincere kids, and tonight's performance ends with an invited mass stage invasion during For The Poor cos, like, there shouldn't be a barrier between the band and the people, man.

27/05: The Duke Spirit @ Buffalo Bar. Pretty cool gig, with frontwoman doing her best Debby Harry impression. My Bloody Valentine-esque So Soon steals the show.

18/05: Gravenhurst @ Arts Cafe. Sensitive singer/songwriter who also does the psyche-out thing with his band. Showcase gig to celebrate signing to Warp.

02/05: 10 Minutes with My Dad @ Spreadeagle, Kingsland Rd. Only in Shoreditch...

01/05: Los Raw Gospels / Wonkey Monkey / Thee Magnetix @ Ryan's Bar, Stoke Newington. Great triple bill - can you say Wonkey Monkey three times real fast??

18/04: Peaches + Pink Grease @ Astoria. This show kinda left me cold I have to say.

2-4/04: Tindersticks / Sonic Youth / ESG / James Yorkston / LCD Soundsystem / Vincent Gallo / Le Tigre / Fursaxa / Enon @ All Tomorrow's Parties, Camber Sands. ESG are just peerless, while LCD make me jump up and down, even though they clearly don't enjoy being away from London/New York/Paris.

09/03: Mr Airplane Man @ Artrocker / The Buffalo Bar. Awesome rhythm and blues and slide guitar. Gig of the year so far.

03/03: Los Raw Gospels @ The Swan. Cold night, loud band.

19/02: Action Plan @ Betsey Trotwood. Mate's band do their Radiohead meets Busted thang.

14/02: XR5 @ The Eye, Stoke Newington. Valentine's day special; good gig followed by indietastic disco after.

06/02: Spiritualized @ Kentish Town Forum. Fucked up inside.

29/01: Kimya Dawson @ Bethnal Green Social Club. Softly softly acoustic set from the multi-talented Kimya. Great rock n roll disco after too.

25/01: Redlands Palomino Co @ Come Down and Meet the Folks / Fiddler's Elbow, Kentish Town. Lovely afternoon gig from these ridiculously talented, attractive 20 somethings.

23/01: Billy Childish + The A-Lines @ Dirty Water Club / Boston Arms. About the fourth time I've seen BC at the DWC, and probably the last for a while. It's good, but I think I've had enough for now. A-Lines rock!

2003

21/01: The Mighty Fraff @ Bufalo Bar. Lots of hair.

27/01: Dot Allison @ Heavenly Social. Acoustic loveliness, but lots of talking at the back.

03/02: The Warlocks @ The Monarch. Packed out as these stoner-rockers capture our imagination.

11/02: The Quickies @ The Verge. The way punk-rock was supposed to be. A unique gig (Tam Sin on keys was smokin)

14/02: The Quickies break-up party @ a pub in Clerkenwell. Such a shame they had to split up...

3/03: Ten Benson @ Water Rates. String vests are back!

3/03: Rogers Sisters @ Trash. I just love this band.

11/03: The Kills + Futureheads @ 100 Club. Bit of an industry gig, but still enjoyable.

12/03: James Yorkston and the Athletes @ Dingwalls. Damn near made me cry. Entire Moving Up Country album played in full, plus excellent encore.

28/03: The Hotwires + The Drones @ Dirty Water Club / Boston Arms. Both bands rock.

05/04: The Darkness + Ten Benson @ Astoria. Just about the time when The Darkness broke into the mainstream. Awesome outfits, and the coolest bass player on the planet.

?/05: The Sailors @ a pub in Melbourne, Australia. Hosting a night of 'Slidemania' - surreal in the extreme.

?/05: J Mascis @ a venue in Melbourne, Australia. Still touring the planet, that cracked ol' voice still going, just.

08/06: Nick Cave @ Hammersmith Apollo. A solid show, but this venue is just too damn big.

12/06: !!! + Part Chimp + Martini Henri Rifles + Chrome Hoof @ Egg, Kings Cross. Wow, future rock n roll that actually sounds great. Part Chimp are so heavy, while !!! blow the competition away with their dub-funk acid house.

20/06: Young Heart Attack @ Dirty Water Club / Boston Arms. The dual-singer thing works brilliantly. Good show.

21/06: Joy Zipper @ Rough Trade. Tabitha is such a babe, and they play Transformation Fantasy just for me. Plus free beer!!

03/07: Polyphonic Spree + Hope of the States @ Cambridge Corn Exchange. Hope of the States didn't do much for me, but the Polyphonic Spree, I must admit, were pretty uplifting.

06/07: Big Steve (The Arlenes) @ Come Down and Meet the Folks. Big Steve is such a charmer, and when he plays Arlenes songs solo it's always special.

15/07: Gorky's + The Keys @ ICA. I don't think I'll ever tire of seeing Euros and Megan Childs on stage together. Cute support too. Very hot though.

23/07: Chief Sharkey @ Portland Arms, Cambridge. Mate's band, unusual singer, top bass player; one of those legendary "I was there" gigs....

13/08: Tindersticks @ a venue in Oslo. Hushed reverence from the Norwegians for the reliably melancholy Tindersticks.

16/08: Spiritualized + Soledad Brothers @ Electric Ballroom. An enjoyable gig, new songs sounding great, although not loud enough. Soledad Brothers pretty anonymous.

15/09: Libertines + Adam Green + Hidden Cameras + Fiery Furnaces @ Subterania / Neighbourhood. Awesome line-up to celebrate 25 years of Rough Trade, all 4 acts are great. Includes Pete Libertine and Adam Green doing What a Waster.

16/09: Aisler Set @ LSE. Enjoyable indie-schmindie, and yup, they play Hey Lover, surely the finest 60s girl group song not actually written in the 60s.

28/10: Fiery Furnaces @ Artrocker / Buffalo Bar. I like this band, even though their sets are about 3 songs too long. Tropical Iceland is my fave and Eleanor is cool.

10/11: Dexy's Midnight Runners @ Royal Festival Hall. Living legend Kevin Rowland returns for a glorious, rapturously received gig. So much dignity, so much love for the music. Much respect to Kevin.

02/12: Ikara Colt @ ICA. Almost great, they just paused for too long between each song.

03/12: !!! @ Mean Fiddler. Another amazing gig from these crazy American dudes. Dance, you miserable fuckers in the audience!!!

2002

16/01: The Hotwires @ Metro. The Hotwires are on fire tonight, not much response from the audience though.

02/02: Meanwhile Back in Communist Russia Rota @ Notting Hill Arts Club. Can't remember much about this one.

08/02: Ozomatli @ Royal Festival Hall. Amazing stuff, virtually a moshpit down the front by the end.

09/02: Bubba Sparxx + Dilated People + Princess Superstar @ Astoria. Mixed bag really, PS booed, DP rock the joint, Bubba dissed for playing such a short set. Although a good venue, the people who run the Astoria are a bunch of fuckwits.

22/02: Fatboy Slim (DJ set) @ Medicine Bar, Shoreditch. Queued for an hour and, er, not really worth it.

26/02: Black Rebel Motorcycle Club @ Astoria. Very good gig from these Jesus and Mary Chain wannabees.

08/03: Peaches @ 93 Feet East. Fucking amazing.

09/03: Milky Wimpshake @ Upstairs, The Garage. Genuine indie heroes, a wonderful gig.

14/03: Dot Allison @ 100 Club. Industry showcase for her new 'electroclash' direction, kinda ok.

20/03: Kinobe @ Paradiso, Amsterdam. A bit dull.

20/03: Bis @ Paradiso, Amsterdam. Brilliant, the kids here totally dig Bis and their Europop sound suddenly makes sense.

23/03: Bertrand Burgalat @ Metro. Excellent stuff from the French maestro, joined on the night by a v foxy singer.

29/03: A Certain Ratio 1977 @ Electrowerkz. Mind-blowing in all sorts of ways.

04/04: The Bellrays + Beach Buggy @ Garage. Beach Buggy's 2 drummers thing is certainly unusual, and Lisa K has a great voice.

10/04: The Vines @ ULU. Just as they were breaking onto the 'scene', an intense and pretty enjoyable experience. Including the obligatory cover of Outkast's Mrs Jackson.

13/04: Saloon @ Arts Café. All I remember is that they were dressed very smartly.

18/04: Yeah Yeah Yeahs @ The Monarch. Oh yes, Karen O's amazing tonight.

26-28/04: Melt Banana / Breeders / Shellac / Oxes / Low / Smog / Dead Moon / Plush / Wire etc etc @ All Tomorrow's Parties, Camber Sands. Too much booze, The Breeders almost make me cry.

03/05: The Hotwires + Black Madonnas + Mooney Suzuki @ Metro. Fine Artrocker triple bill.

14/05: Miss Black America @ Club Fandango / Dublin Castle. Er, a bit crap.

23/05: Dot Allison @ ULU. A bit too much of a step-up the gig ladder, me thinks.

27/05: My mate Dom @ Poetry Cafe. The boy sure can play.

30/05: Fischerspooner @ The Bridge. Ridiculously OTT gig attended mainly by twats, but they do play Emerge, twice.

31/05: Le Tigre @ Astoria. Geniunely uplifting, girl power etc, ending with half the women in the audience up onstage.

04/06: Liars @ Sonic Mook All Dayer / ICA. Drank too much, but still remember how amazing Liars were.

20/06: Moldy Peaches @ ULU. A gig of the year contender, Moldy Peaches at their best, bunny rabbit and robin hood costumes, mass singalongs about downloading porn and thundercats.

26/06: Bird @ Bug Bar. Friend's bands, all girls (geddit?), pleasantly good.

03/07: Fatboy Slim @ Big Beach Boutique, Brighton. That thing on the beach when half of London decided to go for a day trip. Insanely busy, at times quite scary, but a good event all the same.

04/07: Bellrays @ Metro. Xfm gig from the ever-rocking Bellrays.

05/07: The Rapture @ Sonic Mook / 93 Ft East. Their first ever UK gig, I think. House of Jealous Lovers apart, a bit shambolic...

06/07: The Rapture @ Rough Trade (DJ set) They've got some good records though...

04/08: The Arlenes @ The Golden Lion, Camden. Surely one of London's best bands, shame they relocated to LA.

20/08: The Pattern @ The Garage. Hoary old garage-rockers. Not great.

27/08: Athlete + James Yorkston @ The Monarch. Xfm gig, James Yorkston battles with crap sound system, while Athlete are just plain crap.

28/08: DJ Shadow @ ICA. Cool little gig with Shadow spinning on 4 decks, plus talking about the new album.

31/08: Gorkys + Cornershop + Goldrush + Miss Black America @ 100 Acres Festival, Cambridge. Fun one-day festival in a field near Cambridge, that sadly failed to break even. Gorkys and Cornershop both brilliant.

10/09: Blue States @ Bloomsbury Theatre. Dull as ditchwater...

10/09: Artrocker bands @ Buffalo Bar ...so went to seek out the rock at Artrocker instead (dunno who played that night)

21/09: The Stuck Ups @ Notting Hill Arts Club. Very catchy garage pop tykes.

22/09: Lee Hazlewood + Relaxed Muscle @ Royal Festival Hall. Living legend doesn't disappoint, while Jarvis Cocker's strange new project makes the tabloids the next day.

07/10: Jeans Team @ Trash / The End. Proving that live electropop can work.

22/10: Death in Vegas @ ULU. A slight disappointment I'm afraid.

23/10: Electric Six @ Monarch. Early UK gig, with Danger! High Voltage going down especially well.

12/11: Vermont @ Dublin Castle. Friend plays bass in this band, but they're actually very good.

20/11: Radio4 + The Faint + Beachbuggy @ The Garage. The Faint's gothic electro impresses me a great deal, and Radio4 are pretty good too, especially Dance to the Underground.

25/11: LCD Soundsystem @ Trash. When they kick into Losing My Edge, it's just brilliant.

31/12: Hotwires @ Buffalo Bar. Another day, another dollar. Seeing out 2002 in style.

2001

02/03: Beth Orton @ Islington Union Chapel. Semi- (or should that be quasi?) religious experience, and in a chapel. Neat.

16/03: Jeru da Damaja @ Dekefex / Mass. Keepin it real in Brixton town. Very blunted.

24/04: Sigur Ros @ Shepherd's Bush Empire. Spectacular and unusual, especially the traditional interlude.

25/04: Air @ Shepherd's Bush Empire. Showcase for new stuff, a bit dull really. What's the point of Air live?

05/05: Nick Cave @ Brixton Academy. A man who can do no wrong. Except not play Into My Arms.

09/05: Animals that Swin @ The Monarch. Enjoyable, but also kind of sad - a band with nowhere left to go.

21/05: Tindersticks @ Blackheath Halls. The 'sticks at the height of their melodic powers. ACGE is the perfect set closer.

07/05: Moldy Peaches @ The Monarch. Good clean fun. A blast!

09/06: Radiohead on Later with Jools Holland @ BBC, Shepherd's Bush. Recorded 'as live' this was a pretty unique experience to see Thom and Co up close.

22/06: Royksopp @ 93 Feet East. Way before they become coffee-table, one of their first UK gigs.

28/06: Strokes + Moldy Peaches + Mull Historical Society @ Heaven, Charing Cross. MHS a bit dull, then MP were hilarious, and the Strokes mighty mighty impressive. Gig of the summer!

29/06: Belle & Sebastian @ Royal Albert Hall. They were as lovely as pie, but the Albert Hall just isn't cut out for gigs.

26/07: White Stripes @ 100 Club. Just about the time when Stripes fever hit the UK, this really was an amazing gig. And I'm not just saying that!

06/08: Gorkys Zygotic Mynci @ Scala. Just after they'd signed to Mantra, hopes were high, and they were great, especially Patio Song, of course.

26/09: Bird @ Bull & Gate. Mate's band play fun gig.

11/10: Spiritualized @ Hammersmith Apollo. This was just a bit too much - amazing light show, but musically overblown.

12/10: Roots Manuva @ Forum. Well well well, Roots Manuva were awesome.

18/10: Lo-Fidelity Allstars @ Cargo. They still got it, despite going out of fashion in a major way.

14/11: Ladytron @ Scala. Bowel-churning low-end frequencies made this hard to stomach. They sure looked good though.

17/11: Action Directe @ The Underworld. Friend's band the highlight of a truly terrible nu-metal night.

21/11: White Stripes + The Von Bondies @ Astoria. Can't remember much about the Von Bondies, but Jack n Meg def didn't
disappoint.

30/11: Pulp @ Brixton Academy. Going out with a bang, this was pretty much a greatest hits set and was amazing.

2000

30/01: Shack, Les Rhythm Digitales, Campag Velocet, Coldplay. NME-sponsored gig @ Astoria. Remember thinking at the time that Coldplay were quite like Radiohead, Campag Velocet wore cycling helmets and were amusing, LRD were camp and banging, and Shack were melodic but a weeny bit dull.

03/04: Black Box Recorder + Sing Sing @ Camden Underworld. Luke Haines on good form.

18/04: Elastica @ Cambridge Junction. The final tour for a band who promised much but took too long to deliver the goods.

06/05: Primal Scream + Death in Vegas @ Shepherd's Bush Empire. Awesome double bill, both bands on fire.

25/05: Smog + A Touch of Glass + Fuckhead @ Royal Festival Hall. A bit highbrow for its own good until Smog come along.

26/05: ESG @ 1977 / Electrowerkz. A sweaty, funky revelation. Probably gig of the year.

02/10: Common @ Shepherds Bush Empire. Hip-hop deluxe.

26/10: I Am Kloot, Shawn Lee, Kings of Convenience @ We Love UK / Dingwalls. All rather earnest.

2/12@ Regular Fries @ LA2. Free afternoon gig, can't remember why.

Pre-2000

These are just the gigs I can remember, or have ticket stubs for - a very small selection.

07.12.1999 Quannum Projects - Blackalicious & Latryx @ Subterania. Wicked live hip-hop.
07.11.1999 Death In Vegas @ Shepherds Bush Empire. A band at the height of their powers.
20.06.1999 Pavement + Royal Trux @ Brixton Academy. Pavement's swansong, but not as special as I'd hoped.
17.04.1999 Echo and the Bunnymen @ Cambridge Corn Exchange. Zzzzzzzzzz.
06.06.1999 Travis @ The Junction (Cambridge). Zzzzzzzzzzzz. Actually, not that bad.
11.11.1998 Average White Band Brannigans (Leeds). Less than average.
28.06.1998 Kenickie. Breeze @ Temple Newsam Park (Leeds)
30.05.1998 Freestylers. Backbeat @ ThinkTank (Leeds)
26.05.1998 Lo-Fidelity Allstars @ The Cockpit (Leeds)
16.05.1998 Bentley Rhythm Ace. Backbeat @ ThinkTank (Leeds)
12.05.1998 Jurassic 5 @ Fruit Cupboard (Leeds)
16.03.1998 Warm Jets; Idlewild @ The Duchess (Leeds)
22.04.1998 Propellerheads @ Leeds Metropolitan University (Leeds)
26.03.1998 Bluetones @ Town & Country Club (Leeds)
21.03.1998 David Holmes (DJ set) BackBeat @ ThinkTank (Leeds)
20.03.1998 Delgados @ Joseph's Well (Leeds)
28.03.2003 Rauschen @ The Fenton (Leeds)
21.02.1998 Runston Parva @ Joseph's Well (Leeds) ...went on to become kaiser chiefs.
14.02.1998 Mogwai / Aerial M @ The Duchess (Leeds)
12.02.1998 Primal Scream @ Sheffield Octagon
19.01.1998 Supergrass @ Town and Country Club (Leeds)
8.12.1998 Embrace @ Town and Country Club (Leeds)
? 1997 David Devant & his Spirit Wife Brighton Beach @ The Cockpit / Rocket (Leeds) twice!
17.11.1997 Radiohead + DJ Shadow @ Nynex Arena, Manchester
29.11.1997 Charlatans @ Nynex Arena, Manchester
06.1997 Beck, Supergrass, Chemical Bros, Primal Scream, Beth Orton, Super Furry Animals, Pavement @ Glastonbury Festival
17.09.1997 Prolapse @ The Boatrace, Cambridge
10.08.1996 Oasis + Prodigy + Chemical Brothers @ Knebworth Park
1.12.1995 The Stone Roses @ Cambridge Corn Exchange