The Wheatsheaf has the worst lights in Oxford (I don't include the Port Mahon in this comparison as they have no lights at all). They have other lights that point from the front, but either they don't work, or the Wheatsheaf don't want to look like a proper rock venue. As far as I can see the lights they do use are set up for acoustic acts - who sit down. By using a number of misdirected lights they actually make the place incredibly hot (and presumably have a big electricity bill). A slightly odd bill tonight.

Lots of people at the Bull & Gate tonight and the lights are back to normal, which are just about the best lights for a small venue in London. The Bull & Gate have nominated Little Fish for the Indy Awards, so are fast becoming a very good venue. The strange thing about London venues is that even though I'm out at gigs at least 3 times a week, still many of the venurs have changed significantly between visits. You will have read about the Good Ship getting a light between my last 2 visits. Last time I was at the Bull & Gate the lights were rubbish, and at the Barfly it's a complete lottery whether you get someone doing the lights who has the faintest idea of what they are doing. So whilst I have voted for Little Fish in the Indy awards it is difficult to vote for a venue; just because a venue was good (or bad) last time I was there, doesn't really imply too much about the next time. Tonight the Bull & Gate is probably the best small venue in London, except that they have stopped offering real beer.

Little Fish sound powerful and are all the better for being properly lit.As I said at the beginning, there is a very good crowd and lots of friends, so its a very good evening, even though I had to make do with the Guiness.

Little Fish are in the recording studios in the land of the pointed shoes. On my way out for the evening I dropped in to say hi and snap a couple of pictures. The whole experience is so pleasant I end up staying all evening (if you were unkind you could think that I was just too inert to leave). They are working with Pedro who recorded the darkness (and probably lots of other bands that you would have heard of... but I probably haven't). Whilst I not particularly familiar with recording studios and all the jiggery pokery that goes with producing a great record - "producing a great mp3" doesn't have the same ring to it does it? The sound coming out of the monitors sounds great, it really seems to be capturing the power of their live performances (on which I think I have more claim to specialist knowlege). I even get to sit in on some of the 'comping' which is interesting. I can tell you now that the results are going to be very exciting. So I never made it to the intended gig.

This is a very last minute gig, only confirmed on Saturday. I can't remember who I saw at Goldsmiths college previously, but it was a long time ago. The travel situation is not great as the East London Line is closed for the forseeable future. The tfl journey planner tells me to catch a train from London Bridge, but even with the tube closure I can't use my oyster card. It is quite efficient (5 minutes from London Bridge) but expensive. I'm also quite worried that I'll have to leave early to get back. Fortunately John has driven down from Oxford so I can get a lift back (the fish only have a small van full of gear, so no room for even a small-ish photographer).

Little Fish are the only band on the bill and are due to play at 10pm, then 10.30 and are finally called to the stage around 11.00. It's quite a big hall, fairly typical Students' Union venue. I guess the crowd are fairly typical students too, not so different from my own time as a student, many years ago.The Guiness is only £2.20 a pint (when I was at college it was 18p). The place begins to get busy from about 10pm and there's a fairly decent crowd when the fishes take to the stage. Apart (presumably) the person who booked them and me and John, I don't suppose any of the crowd have seen them before (New Cross being a long way from Oxford or Camden), so its interesting to see how the students respond. They seem to take to the Fishes like a student to beer (obviously I can't say 'like a fish to water'). The lights are a little red and not really used to their full potential, but it's an enjoyable evening anyway; and thanks to the lift from John, I get home by 2am without resorting to nightbuses.

I knew  three of the bands playing at this all day festival (14 bands for £8, no wonder it was sold out.) I'd heard good things about a few more; but I expected there to be some fillers - provided so the audience could slope off for a bite to eat without missing anything important, In this respect I was wrong. Although  I missed the last 3 bands because I had to get back to London and missed one because we were starving, all the 10 bands I saw were worth seeing; I expect those I missed were also good. It was quite nice to travel up on the Oxford Tube so I didn't have to worry about parking and could enjoy an excellent pint of Deuchers. With seeing ten bands in a day it is difficult to remember much apart from general impressions, but with the wonders of myspace I have have checked all the bands since and enjoyed listening to them again.

Little Fish have played the Cobden Club a couple of times before. The venue is more school play than sweaty rock 'n'  roll.  Expensive Finnish bottled lager is vitually all that's offered at the bar, which might be reasonable if it was in any way different to any other aenemic lagers available for a pitance at your nearest supermarket. Traditionally the Finns are known more for the quantity of their drinking than the quality of their drink. The lights are somewhat odd, and there is a look of experimentation to them. Little Fish perform at their best when there is the sweat of rock and roll legends ingrained in the walls. For their first performance of 2008 Little Fish overcome the lack of atmosphere (which seems to overwealm and envelope the other bands) to produce a fine performance.

How to spot a real rock venue:

1) The walls are not light coloured, normally they will be black, but dark red is acceptable. Any other colour is a bar, or a living room .....

(to be continued)

A New Year's Eve gig. Little Fish play around 10.45 and play a good length set including Dead Man's Shoes as a much saught encore. Many of the crowd are, of course, regulars at Fish gigs  and there is the usual good reaction from those seeing the band for the first time. This is the first time I have used the all night (free) NYE tube service and its an easy journey home, in bed by 4am.

Good to see quite a few people have struggled from their festive sofas to catch The Fish in this prestigious but ultimately disappointing venue. The lighting is an expensive joke; best lit drummers in London, but you can't see anyone else because the lights seem to have been arranged by some sort of committee of monkeys taking a break from typing the complete works of Shakespeare. In fact when there are more band members cramped on to the tiny stage you can't see the well lit drummer for the mass of bodies. With just the two fish this is not a problem. As always a lively set, roll on New Year's Eve at the Cross Kings.

Back to Oxford again. The M40 is becoming very familiar even in fog like tonight.

It turns out that yesterday was just a practice. Tonight everything is better. JuJu's cold has receeded, the lights are better, the sound is better. Obviously all these plus points makes the performances better and the crowd reaction better. Supergrass are also better (for the same reasons I think), tonight I enjoy the Supergrass show too.

I have seen Little Fish a few times this year (gross understatement you shout) but I can not think of a bigger performance, and it is wonderful to see so many people enjoying them. The final icing on the cake is that they perform Perfect Stranger, which I named as song of the year in my Wildblanket annual awards.

You must be getting a bit bored of all these pictures of JuJu jumping, but I'm really proud of them as they show the power that is unleashed at a little fish gig. They would be phenomenal even if they didn't also have songs you go home humming.