Snow, ice and indie pop - it's a depressing start to 2010

Snowed into my suburban retreat and I'm worried I'm getting cabin fever. I've only an iPod for company and even that seems to be turning against me. It desperately crys out for fresh fodder but I'm at a loss to know what to feed it. I was hoping for some inspiration from the BBC Sound of 2010 list, but from the 15 bands on offer I'm struggling to find any I like.

Jump back 12 months and we were in a very different position. The sun was shining and the list from the Beeb positively sparkled with electro pop joy from Little Boots, Dan Black and Empire of the Sun. The year held such promise and it delivered with brilliant albums from Passion Pit and Mumford and Sons. Others, such as Florence and the Machine and Lady Gaga amazed with live shows .

Back in 2010 and I feel like I'm watching a sparkler fizzle out. From this year's BBC list only Gold Panda and Delphic stand out to me. The rest just sound like a rehash. From tedious indie folks like Two Door Cinema Club, to the 'ok but haven't we heard it before' types like Ellie Golding. It's a classic case of record labels thinking: 'Well this sold well last year so let's do a bit more of it.'

Am I alone in thinking 2010 looks like being a stinker? I'm hoping that the BBC list this year just missed the mark and there are some gems out there waiting to be discovered as soon as this damn ice thaws.


This week I was thinking how utterly ridiculous it is to be considering buying gig tickets for shows that aren't taking place until September