News of the new season at ROTA, the free Saturday afternoon showcase at the Notting Hill Arts Club. Fog (on Jan 26th) and Meanwhile Back in Communist Russia (on Feb 2) look like they could be worth checking out.

Jan 12th Reverend Pike, The Blue Minkies
Jan 19th Good Time Pony (+ more TBC)
Jan 26th Ninja Tune presents: Fog
Feb 2nd Shifty Disco birthday celebrations: Theremin, Meanwhile Back In Communist Russia, Eeblee
Feb 9th Teleran Records (Japan) present: 2 Bybukowski, Yellow 6 (+ 1 more TBC)

Although the news seems to have gone unreported for nearly a week, Esquivel (the octagenarian Mexican much beloved of Stereolab and Cornelius) died in early January. I've posted a full report on the discussion board.

The new index will have to wait, but I've uploaded a review of the Feline Dream's Kill a Spyde show at last.

I seem to have overlooked it, but the Track and Field Organisation have been having their annual Winter Sprinter in London this week. I didn't even know about the Amazing Pilots on Monday night, I still haven't seen them! Anyway, arguably the best show of the week is on tonight (Thurs 10th) - when Electrelane and Saloon play the Toynbee Hall Arts Cafe in Commercial St (E1). £5 in and it kicks off at 8pm.

I've added a review of Belle and Sebastian's Christmas show in Belfast to the gig pages. I'm not deliberately ignoring the Frames I just didn't get there in time to see them!

So the tube fare has gone up? Thankyouverymuch London Underground.
Today I ventured into central London and i couldn't believe how quiet it was around Leicester Square and Piccadilly Circus. Tourists are so thin on the ground that a couple of the 'souvenir shops' (where you buy the tacky union jacks and big ben replicas) have actually bitten the dust.
Anyway, my main purpose was to see the movie Ghost World, which I was kicking myself for missing as loads of people have put it in their end of year lists. I have to say that I think it deserves the praise. It's basically the story of two recent high school graduates Enid and Rebecca (played by Thora Birch and Scarlett Johansen) who are pretty disillusioned about what to do next. Reebecca takes a job in a coffee shop while Enid takes "a remedial art class for retards and fuck-ups" and ends up making friends with Seymour (Steve Buscemi) a middle-aged loner who prides himself on his collection of 78rpm records. It isn't just a movie about adolescent rebellion, and it's clear that while Rebecca may just be going 'through a phase', Enid's constant striving for individuality and rejection of the mainstream is more than likely going to be a permanent part of her life.
It will also strike a chord with anyone who has read 'No Logo' as it makes a lot of points about mall-life, McJobs and corporate culture (the Masterpiece video store is one memorable scene). The decline of American culture and traditions is one of the main concerns of cartoonist Daniel Clowes, author of Ghost World, the comic book on which the movie was based. This story could be taking place in Anytown, USA where the malls are filled with Starbucks and Gap.
This is a very original and thought provoking film, it's funny too, and the characters are very well portrayed, particularly by Thora Birch.

Finally putting last year to bed.
Our albums of the year, gigs of the year and review of the year are all on-line now.
Some other sites year-end round-ups are listed below....

John Peel's Festive Fifty
Pitchfork top 20 albums of 2001
Rough Trade shops top 100 albums
the Onion's Best albums of 2001
the Onion's Least Essential albums of 2001
NME top 50 albums
NME top 50 singles

One New Year's Resolution I completely forgot about - get a job which doesn't involve nightshifts, or try everything in my power to get out of them! Yep, the last ten hours have been very tedious, only saved by watching Raging Bull on the telly and making up some CDRs. And of course, having my own free desktop theremin. It rocks.