Mick Davidson

Far be it for me to be a lone voice in the democratic wilderness, but just what are the Russian and Chinese governments up to vetoing sanctions against Zimbabwe? Of course these two countries are leading practitioners of double-think democracy, so we shouldn't be too surprised. And China's always going to support Zimbabwe -  at least until they've been paid for all those lovely guns and bombs they sold them.

Getting back to nearly normal,  I've managed to get this month's installment of Project 2008 on the website almost before the month has started - that's how good I am! :)  This time it's my friend Rutger's fabulous Gypsy jazz band. Not sure I'll be so hot off the mark in August, assuming I find someone to work with, as volunteers are still remarkably thin on the ground. So let's hope that France pulls out all the stops and supplies me with a whole street-full of performers (though I'll settle for one...).

This month's fotos are a mix of both the old EOS 300D and the new EOS 40D. The 40D works well in shitty light conditions, running it at 1250 asa it produces fairly sharp fotos that have a nice grain to them. I'm looking forward to using it at a gig where I'll be able to see how it copes with coloured lights and extremes of light and shade.

On the music front, I'm strongly toying with the idea of getting a new eclectic guitar, almost certainly a Telecaster of some sort: London City's looking favourite at the moment. I played one yesterday and they're remarkably good for the price.  Great sound, great feel and they look the part - what more could someone hell bent on forming Oosterhout's premier Latin funk freakout band want?

Remember chaps, play it LOUD!