Week 1 – #OneSongaWeek —> #OneBlogaWeek

by Frank Hamilton

Another year, another silly idea.  Here we go again…

As some of you may already know, I spent my 2012 writing, recording and releasing #OneSongaWeek.

After 52 weeks of hard graft I woke up to find my name on a single (which apparently did well), an album (which apparently did really well) and a sold out show in London (which was apparently one of the best nights of my life to date).

Truth be told, the last year of my life has been nothing short of insane and it would take me weeks to find the right words (by which time we’d be well into 2013), so for now we’ll leave the past where it is and move on to the two most important tenses in life – the present and the future.

 

The Present:

As you might expect my head is a bit all over the place at the moment (nothing new there, then).  Life after #OneSongaWeek only began a few days ago and much like the project itself has been very confusing…

On one hand I’m gutted that it’s all over (OSAW has been my life for the last 52 weeks) and I can’t help but worry about the future.

On the other, I’m delighted that it’s finished (no weekly deadline = focus on an album/touring) and I’m beyond excited about the future.

Whatever the current state of my mental affairs, there’s not a lot of time to mope around and mourn the death of #OneSongaWeek.  Both 2013 and #OneBlogaWeek have arrived and there’s an awful lot of work to be done, so it’s best I just get on with it…

 

The Future:

…is bright.  Orange, in fact.

Actually it’s not Orange anymore, is it?  The future is now ‘EE’, who (judging by my intermittent signal) appear to be a bit shit.  Crikey, maybe things don’t look so good after all?!

Mobile phone’s aside, I’ve spent much of the last few weeks worrying about how this years project could ever live up to it’s predecessor, but the truth is it doesn’t have to…

In case you haven’t already twigged, #OneBlogaWeek isn’t the be all and end all for 2013.  It’s a small part of a much bigger plan to keep me making music and keep you knowing about it.

Q: So why not #OneSongaWeek again?!

A: Really?!
A: Because I care SO much about the songs. It’s tiring.
A: Because I want to focus on bigger and better things (an album/touring).

Q: But why #OneBlogaWeek?!

A: Because I enjoy writing and I’d like to get better at it.
A: Because having some form of routine is a good thing.
A: Because I can still give you songs, videos and other bits and bobs.

The bottom line is, we can still talk every week but this way I’ll have time to leave the house and do important things like tour, release proper singles and (slowly but surely) take over the world.

The last sentence is silly, but I’m smiling because I still feel like I did 10 years ago…

I’m not ashamed to admit that Blink 182’s ‘Enema of the State’ is the first album that made me want to write songs and take over the world, so this next bit feels like a good route in to 2013 and #OneBlogaWeek.

Here’s a free download of an (old) cover of one of my favourite songs from that album – ‘Going Away To College’.

 

Before we finish the first ever #OneBlogaWeek with the ‘This Time Last Year’ section (which may or may not turn out to be a regular feature) I’d like to tell you about two things you might be interested in.

• Firstly, ‘Weeks 1-52 of #OneSongaWeek’ (the full length album) will be released in the next week or two and comes with the lyrics and chords to all 52 songs.
• Secondly, I’ll be going on tour in April/May and you can already get your tickets for the London show here. More dates TBA.

 

This Time Last Year:

I had just finished demoing the first ever #OneSongaWeek and Jose Vanders was on her way round to record some vocals.  I remember being sat on the couch making a list when the doorbell rang –  a list of rather ambitious names I might try and speak to about a #OneSongaWeek collaboration.

That evening I called my friend Rich (a radio plugger) to tell him about my plans and to ask about a few people on my list, only to have him chuckle and urge me to have a serious re-think!  It turned out Rich wasn’t the only one with reservations, so I spent the majority of week 1 sat on the couch drinking mulled wine and wondering if it was all just a stupid idea…

Obviously quite a lot has changed since then (I’ve got a beard, a lot more songs and I’m happier in my heart) but some things remain the same: