This is what's been going on in the last month, please check out the archives for more stories from 2001. The 2000 archive will reappear at some point soon.

Remember when Lil was a brunette?

19th August 2001

Shepherds Bush Empire (17/08/2001) Review - A weird night to find yourself in Shepherds Bush. On one side of the Empire queuing for tickets are yesterday's men, the Britpop Oasis fans of the 90's. On the other, trying to get in, are the Britpop kids of 2001, The Kitten fans. AK have suddenly found themselves top of the UK pop pile and the place is packed with a mixture of teens, mums, twenty-something couples (plus slightly bashful partners of both sexes) and blokes who fancy the Kittens. After the Village People/Spice Girls predictability of Girls @Play, the covers come off (literally) and the anticipation builds until it is unleashed, with the swooping string intro to Right Now. The band hit the groove, the male dancers seem a bit surplus (but a nice touch anyway) and the girls bound on whooping and a hollering like school kids. Tash, all glamour puss curls, Lil, in rather school ma'am plaits, Jen, city sass as ever.

The set unfolds pretty much as expected, with the singles liberally sprinkled. Follow Me, punchier than usual, with more groove, ditto Hippy and Get Real. Turn Me On is looser than on record and suffers a little, as do the new songs such as You Are and Tomorrow & Tonight, where the girls' voices end up carrying the band some of the way. It's left to See Ya and I Want Your Love to unlock their spiky, playground taunt hearts and western lust to really catch the essence of the Kittens. Throw them in with a thoroughly bizarre choice of cover, in Kim Wilde's Kids In America (cue much bafflement from all fans, younger ones have never heard it, older ones remember it/fancied Kim Wilde), and its almost school disco time all over again.

But then there are the moments that crystallise the evening: Lil's aching beautiful rendition of Strangers that sends shivers down the spine; the deafening roar that greets Whole Again and Eternal Flame; and everyone singing along, word perfect to the two number one singles, lighters aloft and loving every slightly daft minute of it. Oh, did I mention Brian Dowling turned up, as did several others from BB (Bubble, Penny)? But we were only ever there for one thing that amounts to no more than two simple words in juxtaposition: Atomic Kitten.

13th August 2001

Another week, another number 1 - Yes indeed Kitten fans, having been knocked off the top of the singles chart by So Solid Crew's "21 Seconds", Our comely, vixen-super-pop-adorable-girls-with-added-sass (and take a breath) stormed into the number 1 slot in the album chart with the repackaged version of Right Now.
The girls are now, undoubtedly, the top act of the year 2001. Two number one singles and an album, all proving what I have been saying since the outset: The Kittens have everything they need to break the big time. They'll be jetting to America this autumn to test the waters and launch themselves on the unsuspecting Yank public.
I'll be posting my full review of the album shortly (or as soon as I have some time).

Ginger Kitten kills Big Bird

1st August 2001

Oops! They've done it again! - Eternal Flame stormed into the UK charts last Sunday selling over 140,000 copies in its first week, giving it the best first week sales of any record this year. It also meant a resounding success for the Kittens over Destiny's Child. Will they hold of Geri Halliwell this week? The midweeks suggest they will as she's not even on target for the top 5, leaving very little real competition.

Put it in your Diaries - Just a reminder to all to add the following information to their diaries:
Monday 6th August 2001, Buy at least one CD copy of Atomic Kitten album, Right Now, to ensure chart success for it.
That's all, carry on as you were.

Kitten recipes - I'm thinking of putting together a small selection of Kitten related fun recipes to liven up the nations kitchens (as they say). So far I've come up with Natasha's Strawberry Blonde Shortcake, but I'm a bit stuck for some others. Any suggestions to my address at the top of this page.