Lemon
Pop Culture with a Twist
A publication that stakes its claim at the intersection of 60s/70s Pop and 21st century hyper-culture.
Concord, USA
37 Fox Lane, MA 01742
Email: kevin@lemonland.net
- Category: Culture, Music, People
- Periodicity: Annual
- Language: English
- Web: http://www.lemonland.net
Lavishly illustrated with specially-commissioned work from vaunted artists and fresh talents alike, each edition presents readers with a richly detailed and thematically-focused experience. Editorially, LEMON is vintage LIFE re-imagined for a sophisticated contemporary audience, with intricacies and lavish production values conspiring to create a print experience rare in the world of magazines.
Each release contains uncommon coverage of intriguing personalities rarely featured in more conventional publications. Surprises are the stock-in-trade at LEMON: elaborate spot varnishes grace covers, and specially-formatted inserts exude the scent of citrus. Music coverage is served up in a richly-textured graphic novel format, rendering musicians as comic book heroes who recount personal experiences in-line with the issue's theme. INTERVIEW Magazine was never this much fun!
Today's publishing landscape is dominated by mega-corporate titles that trade increasingly on uninspired fashion spreads, celebrity culture, and the cross-marketing of Hollywood properties. While valid entertainment fodder, that spectrum offers shrinking opportunities for a growing audience that craves a more authentic and engaging experience. Independently owned, published and exquisitely crafted, LEMON speaks to and for a culturally curious and creative consumer. A true grassroots enterprise, LEMON's design and content are driven by gut divination and a singular innovative impulse. LEMON aims to upend category expectations by creating commercially viable products of immediate appeal and lasting value. At its core, LEMON is socially and culturally aware, positive and inclusive. Humor and beauty, commerce and craftsmanship all find a home between our pages.
Exclusive Interview
We learned a lot of things the hard way (which is the best way to do it, actually).
What is your magazine about?
Lemon is a pop-culture magazine that is as much about the execution as the content. We think of it as a self-contained piece of art, kind of like a short movie. Each issue has a theme, complete with its own visual language, color palette, typography and style. We feature art, design, music, cultural and social topics, and really craft each issue into a highly detailed and stylized experience.
Who’s behind the project? Tell us about the founders, their backgrounds and their motivations!
GUM (Kevin Grady and Colin Metcalf - the creators of the pop art collectible of the same name). Lemon is an attempt to take the same crafted ethic that defined GUM Magazine, and continue it in a more commercially viable way. Grady has been a Creative Director at major advertising agencies and the principal at two design firms. Metcalf is the co-founder of RES Magazine and RESFEST (the world’s first digital entertainment and film festival).
How do you produce one issue? How much time do you spend on it? How big is your team?
We spend too, much time, probably. But it’s the only way to get the super-crafted finished product. It’s mostly Grady and Metcalf putting the magazine together, but we collaborate with lots of gifted artists (Guido Vitti - photographer, Adam Larson - designer, Robert Bundy – writer, JT Leroy – writer, to name just a few). We kick around ideas for themes, choose one, and then get to work!
What have been the important steps in the life of your magazine?
Learning from the experience of GUM Magazine. We learned a lot of things the hard way (which is the best way to do it, actually).
What are the key ingredients for the success of your magazine?
I think the sheer time and effort that goes into creating so much detail and crafted continuity. It’s prohibitive, but it shows in the end…
What are the difficulties you are confronted with? What would be “the” thing to help the magazine to improve?
MONEY! Lemon does not follow the conventional wisdom of the magazine trade. Most publications follow a formula that makes absolute sense for the majority of the industry. Since we’re trying to publish an artpiece as much as a magazine, we can’t cut costs on paper, printing techniques and production time. So currently, we publish just twice a year. Additional capital would allow us to hire a couple more key people, and produce this on a quarterly basis. It wouldn’t necessarily improve the magazine, but it would improve its commercial presence.
Where do you want the magazine to be in five years?
In broad international distribution, comfortably covering its costs and supporting a lean staff a decent level. We want to be the icon brand for a new kind of publishing.
Tell us about your audience! Who are the readers of your magazine?
Culturally aware and creatively curious people of all ages. We have college students writing us as well as professionals in their fifties and older. The nice thing about Lemon is that it’s accessible to lot of people. I think we appeal to people in art, design, film, broadcast and advertising specifically.
Is remaining independent important to you? Is it part of the strategy?
Maintaining the creative vision and the quality of the product is the most important thing. If we need to partner with someone with greater resources down the line, we’re totally fine with that. But the fundamental elements that make Lemon special (choice of content and level of finish) can’t be sacrificed, otherwise, we’re better off staying independent.
What’s your relationship with advertisement? Does it influence your content? Do you care about advertising-driven-editorials?
We currently have a sponsorship model. The companies that sponsor Lemon are truly visionary (we’re not ass-kissing here!). They part with more money than the average magazine advertiser because they see the value in being part of something different and special. We haven’t modified our content on account of our sponsors so far, and haven’t given it much thought.
Do you think that magazine readers still need to watch TV?
Sure. It’s a whole different medium and you relate to television in a whole different way. There are a million shitty channels on TV, but a few really great ones. Same with magazines. But there’s something for everyone out there. It’s kind of nice to watch something passively sometimes – other times, it’s nice to be engaged with a book or a magazine.
What is your relationship with your printer? Does he play a main role in your development?
Our printer is very much involved with us in solving our problems and attaining our vision. They work with us to achieve the final product we describe and still keep our print expenses sane.
Which magazines influence you most? What are you looking for in other magazines?
Ralph Ginzberg’s Avant Garde (1968-1971) is the inspiration for our format. We like our friends at Swindle. Flaunt has beautiful covers too. Magazines that carry an amazing cover design all the way through an issue are rare and special!
What do you think of your issue 01, when you look back at it?
Well, that’s not so long ago for us ;) We only have two so far! I think our first issue looks like a solid first step, but our second looks like a more fully evolved concept. That’s usually the way it works…
What question did you never ask in your magazine but would have liked to?
We interviewed James Woolsey (former director of Clinton’s CIA). We’re a pop-culture magazine, so we played it towards the lighter side. But there’s a ton of deep, dark secrets that we would love to know about!
How many magazines do you buy / get / read each month? Do you qualify yourself as a maniac?
You know, we don’t buy a lot of magazines. When we do, it’s usually for informational purposes rather than the craft. I.e. – Scientific American’s Etreme Engineering, Psychology Today, that sort of thing.
E-mail interview from “06/10/2006”. © Colophon2007.com – Mike Koedinger Editions SA (Luxembourg)
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