‘The Eighth Note’ is 8 quick Questions with Wellington Musicians.
A chance for us to catch up with people & see what they’re up to, or introduce you to a new musician/band and their music.
Up next is Hutt musician Simon Buxton, who records under the moniker Lemon Anlime.
Who are you? Tell us a bit about your music:
My name is Simon Buxton, and I’m fresh out of Hutt Valley High School in Lower Hutt where I’ve lived my whole life. I’ve been drumming for as long as I can remember, and more recently I’ve become a big fan of electronic music, particularly in the ambient, psychill and jazztronica sectors. Lemon Anlime is sort of a hybrid of these two loves: Drumming and Electronica. It’s also where I can challenge myself compositionally to fuse these two together in as many creative ways as possible.
What have you been working on lately? Any new tracks or albums on the way?
My first album Lime was released in September last year. I’ve just released my latest album ‘Watermelon’ on the 25th, which you should definitely listen to if you have the spare time. It’s got a few of my favourite cuts on there that I’ve been working on since before ‘Lime’ was released – such as Space Jam, which is basically me playing with time signatures – it’s a very fun song to perform on the kit – and it’s all up my favourite of my work to date. Other than that, I’ve got several new tunes for several new projects that I’m slowly but surely chipping away at – rest assured I’m always creating exciting things.
Where is the best place people can follow you & find your music?
Spotify is definitely the best place for streaming, though I also have profiles on most other
streaming platforms (like Tidal, if you’re into that). Bandcamp is another awesome place, as it’s one of the only vendors which supports its artists (me included) directly. As for keeping up with Lemon Anlime, the classic Facebook page is the way to go. In all of those websites you can search “lemon anlime” and you’ll get there pretty fast.
What were the 3 most influential albums to you growing up?
When I was a kid, I was exposed to many different types of music by my parents – particularly my father, who was more of the “listener” of my musical parents (mum was the “player”). One such album I loved was Mlah by Les Negresses Vertes – an awesomely unashamedly fun album. As I got a bit older I started branching into ambient music, and one of my favourite releases comes from Solar Fields, the album in question being Leaving Home, which has had a massive influence on my musical style. And finally, only very recently I discovered Brad Mehldau and Mark Guiliana’s Taming The Dragon; if I could manage an album even half as good as that I would be so happy. Granted, I didn’t grow up with it per se, but it’s had a huge impact on what direction I want Lemon Anlime to go in.
Which other Wellington musician (s) would you most like to work with?
I’ve been fortunate to meet a lot of musicians already through Hutt Valley High, but one of my favourite was Zane Green, who now goes under the moniker Allswither – there was no one that had such a sense of breaking rules and exploring sonic boundaries within music like he did, and though our music is very different I’d still be honoured to collaborate with such a unique musician.
What’s your favourite Wellington venue to play in?
My favourite venue was Zeal Wellington before the Ghuznee Street building got shut down for earthquake reasons – I’ve played many munters of gigs at that place when I was a bit younger and still gigging with bands in early high school. One of my favourite places nowadays is actually the streets of Wellington – busking brings to life some of the best parts of Wellington City, especially at night, and for me it’s what makes this city such a cultural hub, as well as being a very accessible place for music to be discovered.
In your songwriting or composing (or the band’s songwriting) how do the compositions and songs take shape?
Usually they stem from one idea, like a bass riff or a melody, and I try and come up with as many different ways to explore and expand said idea. Sometimes I’ll have several ideas in a similar key or tempo, and put them all together. Other tricks I use is finding rhythmic alterations I can make for interest’s sake – for example, odd groups of bars in a phrase (3 bar phrases are very cool) or adding/subtracting a beat from a time signature. Once the idea’s grown enough, it’s a matter of building the other parts of the song around it, like with pads or other synths to add texture where it needs it.
Where/when is your next gig?
Funnily enough, the next few gigs I have planned are busking – here I think is one of the best places to test new material, and I think it grows best live when you can perform it and see what stands and what doesn’t. Hopefully I’ll see a few people down the waterfront or on late night Courtney Place soon – definitely check out Lemon Anlime facebook for the latest busking spots.