Spotlight on... with Janne GuitarGirl

English-born Simon Fenlon considers himself a Kiwi, as his family moved to New Zealand when he was just four. Although his father was an accomplished pianist, Simon remembers the day he saw a Scottish pipe band perform, and he was impressed by the drummers.

From that day on, every time someone asked what he wanted for his birthday, he would reply 'a drum kit'.

But his wish was never granted, so Simon got a job packing groceries when he was 13 and saved.

He bought his first kit, and basically became self-taught. He played in various bands between the ages of 16 and 21, then took a hiatus from the scene due to work commitments.

About 14 years ago Simon bought another kit.

He practised at home for about 18 months and had a few drum lessons from Matt Baxter before joining the band Chill Factor, to whom he is grateful for their nurturing and patience.

He remembers being at a function once where three different bands were performing. Each band's drummer preferred to use their own kit, and one of the bands started to play a bluesy number.

A blues harmonica player had the drummer join in, then the guitarist. As the song built, Simon and the other drummer looked at each other and joined in too.

The result was an inspired 'drum solo' that lasted around 15 minutes, before the rest of the band resumed and finished the song.

Nowadays, Simon is involved in three different bands, one of which is Agent 99 & Kaos - a five-piece cover band who will be performing at the Mount RSA on March 3.