Please To Meet Me: Rob Nicholls / Provincial Parcs
Introduce yourself…
I’m originally from British Columbia, I grew up on Vancouver Island in the small town of Sidney. It was a beautiful place, my family had a small boat and we adventured around the gorgeous islands, fishing and crabbing and camping out. Back then I got into the local Victoria punk scene—which had a super DIY culture—it was a magical time with house shows and cassettes put out by an amazing local label called Incentive Records. Now, I live in Toronto, Ontario and have studio right downtown that I adore. Toronto has such an amazing music and art scene. I also work as a visual artist focussing on painting in oil. My visual art website is robnicholls.ca
Secret Mystic, 2019
Oil on canvas 62" x 52"
Why do you play music?
I have always played music as long as I can remember, I was not formally trained. I play and write music as a way to escape and make up my own creations. I never got much out of playing cover songs or other artists music. Similar to drawing and painting, music, for me, is an activity to do alone that allows me to bring to life the ideas in my head. I play from memory and try to learn chords and ways of playing that are sometimes above my level, however, I’m stubborn and persistent and I’ll play something a million times until it locks in!
What was a major influence on you as an Artist/Band?
Back in the day when punk music and DIY culture surrounded me I was particularly taken by Fugazi and their improvisational tangents and jazzy interludes. It just felt like a pure kind of energy that came across on album and even more so live! Nowadays I am super fascinated by avant grade jazz and jazz fusion. Artists like Herbie Hancock (70s eras) Miles Davis (On the Corner era) Ornette Coleman who can play beautiful and serene music that descends into discord and chaos is also notable. I love artists who know how to let sound unravel, as such making for a well rounded sonic palette.
What’s a favourite book or film?
I love this book Hunger by Knut Hamsun. A story of an impoverished creative individual who faces many moral dilemmas and despite his struggles he is completely selfless
Do you prefer the recording process or performing live?
I really lean toward the recording process and creating more than anything. At this stage in my musical career I am committed to only playing live shows that are unconventional and both visual and audio based. In 2022 I am putting on a show in Toronto with filmmakers, noise bands and myself. I will be screening—on VHS on a big screen—my videos from my album and playing the Rhodes piano alongside in exact syncopation with the album.
What would be a dream collaboration?
A dream collaboration for me would be working with a group of ballet dancers and a live ensemble to in turn put on a psychedelic Jazz-opera ballet. I am working on a grant at the moment to turn my album Scenic Equilibrium into a ballet!
Describe a favourite album.
Fave album for me is definitely Herbie Hancock Mwandishi (musically life-changing for me)
What's your favourite local haunt?
Fave local haunt in Toronto is Little Jerry’s, a bar with a gorgeous sound system and vinyl DJ set-up. Lots of great record collections come through with DJ’s playing everything from Jazz to Funk to World Music and Electronic and Experimental music.
What's your strangest experience while performing live?
Strangest live experience would be playing out front my old studio building downtown Toronto in 2016 with my previous Folk Soul band called The Shuvs. The studio building was a massive four story heritage building called the Coffin Factory. While we put on this small show on the street level in front of the Coffin Factory the Canadian filmmaker Atom Egoyan documented a full song on his phone camera and then disappeared. It was strange and kind of touching.
What are some of your favourite aspects of being a musician in Toronto?
My fave part about being a musician in Toronto is the wonderful and diverse community of peeps playing music in so many different genres such as Electronic music, Hip-Hop, Psyche Rock to Punk/Skate Rock (I am an avid skateboarder so…) and Jazz and world music and the list goes on! It’s just so big and diverse here that you get to meet so many great people and talk music!
Has the current COVID-19 pandemic and quarantine influenced your creative process?
Covid really made me look inward and be self-sufficient. My album Scenic Equilibrium was therapeutic to make while being so alone in what felt like a hibernation during the pandemic!
If you weren’t playing music in Toronto, where would you be ?
If I wasn’t playing music in Toronto I would love to be in Europe and playing in places like Rome, Italy. My mother is from a small town called Cicala in Southern Italy so I am kind of fascinated by Italy. I had a blast the last time I visited Italy and was particularly taken by the music scene in Rome and I am also super curious about the scene in Naples as we spent a short time there, but not long enough!