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Lemon Demon

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Lemon Demon
Lemon Demon performing in July 2006 at Lemonic Demonade
Lemon Demon performing in July 2006 at Lemonic Demonade
Background information
Also known as
  • Trapezoid
  • Deporitaz
OriginBoston, Massachusetts, U.S.
Genres
Years active2003–present
Labels
Members
Websitelemondemon.com

Lemon Demon is a musical project and band created by American comedian and musician Neil Cicierega in 2003 in Boston, Massachusetts. Most Lemon Demon music is performed solely by Cicierega, who is the project's sole official member, but a full band is usually assembled for live performances. Cicierega previously released instrumental music and several remixes of video game music under the monikers "Trapezoid" and "Deporitaz" in the late 90s and early 2000s, whilst frequently active on Adventure Game Studio.

History

Neil Cicierega released three instrumental albums under the name "Trapezoid," which was changed retroactively to "Deporitaz" as an existing band called Trapezoid demanded that he change it.[2] On the change to Lemon Demon, he said: "Eventually I started experimenting with singing, and once I felt ready to do that full time, I christened myself Lemon Demon and went into it head on."[3]

Since 2003, Cicierega has released seven full-length albums as Lemon Demon.[3] In 2005, he and animator Shawn Vulliez released a Flash animated music video called "The Ultimate Showdown of Ultimate Destiny" on Newgrounds. This had over 12 million views on Newgrounds as well as topping the "Funny Five" on The Dr. Demento Show for several weeks and becoming the No. 1 Request for 2006.[4] The song was later included in the 2006 album Dinosaurchestra. In April 2009, Cicierega released his first four albums as free downloads on his website.[5] An updated recording of "The Ultimate Showdown of Ultimate Destiny" was released to the Rock Band Network in 2010.[6]

On January 2016, Cicierega announced Spirit Phone, a full-length Lemon Demon album which was released on February 29, 2016.[7] The album was the No. 1 best-selling album on Bandcamp for the first week of its release.[8][9] On July 10, 2018, it was announced that copies of the album on CD, cassette, and vinyl would be sold through Needlejuice Records, who would later distribute remastered versions of Lemon Demon's EPs I Am Become Christmas[10] and Nature Tapes[11], along with his albums View-Monster,[12] Dinosaurchestra,[13] Damn Skippy, and Hip to the Javabean.[14] "Touch-Tone Telephone" became Lemon Demon's most-played song, the first to surpass "The Ultimate Showdown of Ultimate Destiny" and, as of July 2023, has garnered over 60 million plays on Spotify.[15]

On June 19, 2020, Needlejuice Records released Needlejustice, a charity compilation album featuring 22 songs from artists they represent (including Lemon Demon) for the benefit of the NAACP Legal Defense Fund. Cicierega contributed a song to the album titled "Funkytown", which had originally been uploaded to his Patreon page in 2017. It features homages to popular songs from the 1970s and 1980s, including the titular "Funkytown" by Lipps Inc.[16]

Viral successes

"The Ultimate Showdown of Ultimate Destiny"

Main article: The Ultimate Showdown of Ultimate Destiny

On December 22, 2005, Lemon Demon and animator Shawn Vulliez released the Flash music video "The Ultimate Showdown of Ultimate Destiny" on Newgrounds. The video features cartoon versions of dozens of real-life celebrities and fictional characters, largely from 1980s and 1990s pop culture, in a large century-long brawl where "...only one will survive."[17] It gained a cult following among web enthusiasts.[17] and became the "user's choice" on December 28, 2005, on Newgrounds where it has been viewed over 13.1 million times.[18] It appeared on several other websites including Albino Blacksheep.[19]

"Brodyquest"

On June 1, 2010, Cicierega released a video titled "Brodyquest" onto his main YouTube channel which pictured famous actor Adrien Brody going about his daily life in a comedic manner.[20] The video became a famous meme and was released as a single and placed on the Nature Tapes EP. The video would be brought up by Stephen Colbert during his interview with Adrien Brody in a 2016 episode of The Late Show with Stephen Colbert.[21] The video was also featured on Polygon's list of the greatest achievements in dumb internet video.[22] It has since been viewed on YouTube over 12.1 million times.

Discography

Studio albums

  • Clown Circus (2003)
  • Live from the Haunted Candle Shop (2003)
  • Hip to the Javabean (2004)
  • Damn Skippy (2005)
  • Dinosaurchestra (2006)
  • View-Monster (2008)
  • Spirit Phone (2016)

Compilation albums

  • Almanac 2009 (2009)[23]

Extended plays

  • Live (Only Not) (2011)[8]
  • I Am Become Christmas (2012)
  • Nature Tapes (2014)[8]
  • Something Glowing (2020)
  • Acrobat Unstable Record (2022)

(Something Glowing and Acrobat Unstable Record being compilations of songs previously released on other albums on 7 inch vinyl, mainly bonus tracks)

Members

Official members

  • Neil Cicierega – vocals, keyboards, guitar, programming, percussion, songwriting, production (2003–present)

Live members

  • Alora Lanzillotta – bass guitar, vocals (2004–2012)
  • Charles "Chooch" Sergio – guitar (2006–2012)
  • Anthony Wry – drums (2007–2008), guitar, vocals (2012)
  • Dave Kitsberg – guitar, vocals (2008–2012)
  • Greg Lanzillotta – drums (2009–2012)

Timeline

References

  1. ^ a b c d e "Lemon Demon". Retrieved February 13, 2021 – via AllMusic.
  2. ^ Cicierega, Neil. "Circa 2000".
  3. ^ a b Sweeney, Emily (June 22, 2006). "He's a hit with Internet set". Boston.com. Boston Globe. Archived from the original on March 4, 2016. Retrieved April 3, 2020.
  4. ^ "Dr. Demento - Streaming". Retrieved December 24, 2020.
  5. ^ "Index of /Lemon Demon – First four albums". www.lemondemon.com. Retrieved August 24, 2020.
  6. ^ "Lemon Demon on Rock Band Network". Archived from the original on July 15, 2011. Retrieved May 12, 2011.
  7. ^ Cicierega, Neil (January 20, 2016). "Neil Cicierega Tumblr. | NEW LEMON DEMON ALBUM "SPIRIT PHONE" CALLING..." neilblr.com. Archived from the original on June 14, 2019. Retrieved January 21, 2016.
  8. ^ a b c "Lemon Demon". Lemon Demon. Retrieved August 24, 2020.
  9. ^ "Bandcamp". March 6, 2016. Archived from the original on March 6, 2016. Retrieved March 11, 2016.
  10. ^ "BLACK FRIDAY SALES! Lemon Demon's I Am Become Christmas OUT NOW!". Retrieved June 20, 2023.
  11. ^ "Preorder Lemon Demon's Nature Tapes". Retrieved June 20, 2023.
  12. ^ "Lemon Demon – View-Monster". Retrieved June 20, 2023.
  13. ^ "Dinosaurchestra and Spirit Phone Pre-Orders". Retrieved June 20, 2023.
  14. ^ weirdojace (January 24, 2023). "LEMON DEMON's 20th ANNIVERSARY!". Needlejuice Records. Retrieved February 26, 2023.
  15. ^ "Lemon Demon's Spotify page". Spotify.
  16. ^ "Needlejustice, by Various Artists". Needlejuice Records. Retrieved August 24, 2020.
  17. ^ a b "Copy, paste, animate". The Toronto Star. Archived from the original on May 7, 2009. Retrieved April 8, 2009.
  18. ^ Emily Sweeney (June 22, 2006), He's a hit with Internet set, Boston Globe
  19. ^ Bob Batz (April 11, 2006), Seen & Overheard, Dayton Daily News
  20. ^ "BRODYQUEST". YouTube. Archived from the original on December 21, 2021. Retrieved October 11, 2020.
  21. ^ "Adrien Brody Appreciates "Brodyquest", Among Other Fine Art". YouTube. Archived from the original on December 21, 2021. Retrieved October 11, 2020.
  22. ^ "The Greatest Achievements In Dumb Internet Video". Polygon. June 2021.
  23. ^ Lemon Demon (2009), Almanac 2009, retrieved December 24, 2020
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