Day 1 - Let's Get Started

When was the last time we had a classic Christmas number one?

Those particularly astute individuals wil note that it is not 365 days until 25 December 2009. This is not terribly important. I did conceive my idea over a week ago so it was about 365 days then! The important point is that I have set a year to partake in an experiment which relies entirely on people joining in for a bit of fun, otherwise it will die on its arse which is the most likely outcome.

This isn't a rant at X Factor per se, that's a whole other discussion. What struck me this year was the inevitability of the Christmas number one. I remember when the number one spot at Christmas was an exciting annual event. This year the books were pretty much closed. This has been the same for the last two years. The thing that really struck me, looking at the charts on Christmas day, was the position of the Wombats song, 'Is This Christmas'. It only just broke top 40 but it was a great track. It had the sleigh bells and everything!

So even if you write a great song there is no guarantee of success without the promotion behind it. So really, this is an attempt to break the cycle of money dictating what music is successful. People keep telling me how powerful a tool the internet is, so let's see if it actually works. Can the internet strike a winning blow for music and prove that the industry can function as we would all hope?

So what's the plan? The plan is to write and record a great Christmas song. That I can do, well I can write and record it, whether it's great or not we will have to wait and see. Then it's down to how many people I can amuse enough to join this group and fork out 79p just so we can fight a winning blow for the independents!

So the single will be available via iTunes and possibly as a physical release if I can find someone silly enough to distribute it. If I am feeling really adventurous then there will be a video. It's not for charity or anything. Hell, if I am going to sell some music then my band is going to benefit from it!

Oh yes, I was obviously assuming that you realised I am in a band. Well, I am in a band. An indie rock band called FIRSTOFTHEGIANTS. I also run a very small indie record label called LittleThink on which the single will be released. I intend to update this group regularly (depending on whether people are actually interested enough), leading up to the big release date.

So there it is. It's all a bit silly really but, you never know, it might just work and, as they say oop north, you don't get owt for nowt.