Alum speaks about his life as a musician after graduation

When Chris Lianne left the Hill he had the same question as many undergraduates: What am I going to do with my life? For the 26 year old Massachusetts native, the answer was music.

"My family's pretty musically active." said Lianne "My dad's in a band, my brother is in one, and naturally it followed to start my own band." His current musical venture is Boxborough, which is named after Lianne's hometown. The group is less of a band and more of a solo project with outside participation. "It's pretty collaborative." Lianne said, "I'll write the songs and then have family and friends join in."

Boxborough's sound has a dual nature, according to Lianne. "Basically it's two styles of music, kind of old-style George Jones and Brit-pop like Belle and Sebastian." He cites major influences from British band Stone Roses and folk/country legend Willie Nelson.

Although this project is fairly new, Lianne used to play in what he called a "spiritualized British symphonic band," he has certainly has been flourishing in his new circumstances. When asked for his favorite performing experience, Lianne describes the pleasant turmoil since forming Boxborough. "Everything's been changing since I've got this set up. The most recent shows, the ones in New York, have been best," he said.

Lianne had his first performance at the age of 19 at Boston's haven for local music, the Middle East, bypassing legendary Tufts venues such as Hotung, although he said he once played at a friend's party on College Ave.

Another difference between Lianne and the typical campus band is that he doesn't play tired covers. The exception is "There's a Light That Never Goes Out," by The Smiths, on his EP. Also, he has been known to play the occasional New Order song every now and then. "People know them but they don't know how they know them - it's not doing a bad job of singing other people's songs."

As for his own songs he enjoys playing "Be You Arthur" a catchy tune which he says has garnered some positive feedback.

At Tufts, Lianne was a dual degree student who studied studio art at the Museum School. Academically Lianne says his Tufts experience was "really good - for both the art education and the solid academic education." However, Lianne didn't really involve himself in Tufts socially. "I didn't get too involved in the Tufts community," he said, "Though I think I went to about four salsa dances at Dewick."

Every budding artist has a day job, and despite his undergraduate studies, Lianne's current job doesn't involve the arts. Lianne currently works at Harvard at the John Kennedy School of Foreign Relations; his department is sponsored by the United Nations. In reference to his job, Lianne said that he "really didn't want it, but I fell into it."