Lemoned Plant (stylized as LEMONed plant) is a Japanese

independent record label An independent record label (or indie label) is a record label that operates without the funding or distribution of major record labels; they are a type of small- to medium-sized enterprise, or SME. The labels and artists are often represented ...

. It was founded as LEMONed in 1996 by popular rock musician Hideto "hide" Matsumoto. The retail store Lemoned Shop was later created, and seems to have become the main focus.

History

The label began as Lemoned and was part of a wider range of businesses under the same name; such as the Lemoned Shop. Its title comes from the

slang Slang is vocabulary (words, phrases, and usage (language), linguistic usages) of an informal register, common in spoken conversation but avoided in formal writing. It also sometimes refers to the language generally exclusive to the members of p ...

use of the English word "lemon" to describe a defective product. Lemoned was created as a venue for unsigned musicians that Matsumoto watched perform in local clubs in Japan. The first band signed to this label was Zeppet Store. A compilation album simply titled ''Lemoned'' was released on May 22, 1996, by

MCA Victor MCA Records was an American record label owned by MCA Inc., which later became part of Universal Music Group. Pre-history MCA Inc., a powerful talent agency and a television production company, entered the recorded music business in 1962 wi ...

, it includes songs by hide, Zeppet Store, Trees of Life, and Vinyl (band of former

D'erlanger D'erlanger (stylized as D'ERLANGER) is a Japanese Rock music, rock band from Kyoto Prefecture, formed in 1983 by guitarist Cipher and bassist Seela. While they originally played speed metal, speed and power metal, after recruiting drummer Tetsu ...

vocalist Dizzy). The album ''Cafe Le Psyence -hide LEMONed Compilation-'' was released on May 16, 2002, and besides featuring songs by hide and Zeppet Store, includes work by shame,

Transtic Nerve The Underneath, formerly known as Transtic Nerve, was a Japanese visual kei rock band formed in 1995. The band released four full-length records as Transtic Nerve and two full-length records as The Underneath. As Transtic Nerve, the band played ...

, Yukito, Dope HEADz and

zilch Zilch means " nothing" or " zero". Zilch may also refer to: * Zilch (software), a compiler used by Infocom to create Z-machine games * Zilch (electromagnetism), a group of conserved quantities of the electromagnetic field * Zilch (game), an altern ...

. An actual operating cafe of that name, which doubled as a concert venue, and a Lemoned Shop were later created as part of the hide museum in hide's hometown of

Yokosuka is a city in Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan. , the city has a population of 409,478, and a population density of . The total area is . Yokosuka is the 11th most populous city in the Greater Tokyo Area, and the 12th in the Kantō region. The ...

, which was opened on July 20, 2000, and closed on September 25, 2005. After a period of inactivity following the 1998 death of its founder, Lemoned returned in 2005 with Yukito's debut album. The label was relaunched as Headwax Corporation subsidiary Lemoned Plant in 2007, opening a website and creating a MySpace profile. Acts signed to the label included Hurdy Gurdy, the solo project of former Zeppet Store member Seizi Kimura, 0 Limited Execution, Trees Asylum and Plastic. Lemoned has two retail stores, the original being in

Shinjuku is a special ward in Tokyo, Japan. It is a major commercial and administrative centre, housing the northern half of the busiest railway station in the world ( Shinjuku Station) and the Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building, the administrati ...

, the other in

Harajuku is a district in Shibuya, Tokyo, Japan. Harajuku is the common name given to a geographic area spreading from Harajuku Station to Omotesando, corresponding on official maps of Shibuya ward as Jingūmae 1 chōme to 4 chōme. In popular ref ...

References

External links

Official website

Official MySpace
Japanese record labels Retail companies of Japan Record labels established in 1996 Rock record labels Hide (musician) Labels distributed by Universal Music Group {{Japan-record-label-stub