I attended a mere 34 gigs this year, which is down on the past few years. Links are to reviews on my journo-blog.
1. Oumou Sangare, T.P. Orchestre Poly-Rythmo de Cotonou
2. Candi Staton
3. Crystal Castles, HEALTH
4. These New Puritans
5. Noisettes
6. Scissor Sisters, Hurts
7. The Stranglers
8. Hot Chip, Casiokids
9. Whitney Houston (no, really, I mean it – sounds like we caught her on her one good night?)
10. Rod Stewart
11. I Am Kloot
12. The Gentle Isolation, The Camerawalls, Your Imaginary Friends, Kate Torralba (two gigs, same line-up)
13. Tom Robinson (60th birthday), Chew Lips, Toumani Diabate, TV Smith, Nitin Sawhney, Eugene McGuinness etc
14. Avi Buffalo
15. Hadouken!, Unicorn Kid
16. Jackie Leven
17. The Invisible
18. Plan B
19. Rihanna, Pixie Lott, Tinie Tempah
20. Bella Hardy Trio
21. Sugarhill Gang
22. Chris Wood
23. Belleruche
24. Squeeze, Lightning Seeds
25. Miike Snow
26. Owl City, Lights
27. Beverley Knight
28. The Low Anthem
29. Ellie Goulding
30. Bridget St. John, Michael Chapman
31. JLS
32. Rufus Wainwright
33. Kele
34. Joy Formidable, Chapel Club
Note (1) – Any one of the top four deserves to be my gig of the year.
Note (2) – There were no out and out stinkers this year, just a few comparatively lacklustre evenings.
troubled diva 