Happy new year/Bonne année! Editorial: January 2012

Another year arrives, after the first full year of the Vive le Roq French music blog.

It's been a busy year, and although most of the plans I outlined at roughly this time last year have gone out the window, it's been a successful one as well.

My idea of rigid categories seemed a bit too restrictive very quickly, and the thought of one editorial a week would probably bore more readers that it would ever possibly interest.

Blogging about blogging hardly makes for interesting reading and blowing my own trumpet doesn't make much of a tune in comparison to some of the tracks that came out in 2011.

I wrote in January 2011: "When I got the blog up and running, (March 2010) my intention was to have an update every day, Mon - Fri, but things got in the way, time was against me, etc"

Well, needless to say I'm still some way off that mark, but much closer than we were. In 2010 there were 24 posts, in comparison 2011 saw just under 200.

I'm sure I'm not the first blogger to have faced the challenge of lack of time, but somehow - always distracted and always in too much of a hurry, I've managed to keep things going.

I'm not going to beat myself up over self-imposed targets, rather be quite pleased that the blog is going from strength to strength.

The blog has encouraged me to listen to more new material than I might have done, and I've thoroughly enjoyed hearing new material from some tremendous artists during the course of 2011, from the champions of contemporary French music like Justice, breakthrough acts like M83 and Cascadeur, established acts like Mylene Farmer and Johnny Hallyday or new acts like Ashka or Mr President.

So for 2012? More French music to discover, hopefully some more gigs, whether Justice or M83 or Johnny Hallyday in London we'll hopefully be keeping an eye on them.

And of course, some great acts to listen to and already there are some exciting releases due out in the forthcoming months.

This is an exciting time for music, and France is more than ever playing a part on the world stage.

As always, I can be contacted by email at the address johnkilbride AT hotmail DOT com, with the spaces and the appropriate @ and . in the address.

Merci et à bientôt

jk