DRUMMER: Blown, Twiggy, Erik Voeks Sandbox, Prisonshake, Finn's Motel, and the Love Experts
I was 15 years old the first time I saw Nick play. Until then, I’d only heard of him and seen photos. Of course, I had the Turning Curious album. He was performing at Mabels with his band, The Big Maybe. Balty knew somebody that worked there who would open the back door so we could get in to see shows. So we walked in and there he was on the stage. All I remember is standing there looking up at him on that tall stage. He was on a pedestal on every level and I’m standing there completely in awe.
There were so many layers to his songs. His ability to sing lyrics that didn’t rhyme and the pure confidence he would present them with was incredible. He’s the first guy I played with who focused almost exclusively on the meaning of the words and not because “steam” rhymes with “beam.” He was the most prolific writer I’ve ever played with. He brought in so many high quality songs. A TON of stuff, always new songs coming in. They literally would float out of him. To experience it from the inside was a whole other level. Like the sun rising and setting multiple times in each song.
Nick was a very complicated person to play with. We both had strong reactions to things and we’d let them build until they exploded.
The flip side to his creativity could be frustrating; the wholesale change he would make in his life on a journey trying to find something—peace probably. One day, he would say, ‘I’m gonna sell my amps and electric guitars and I’m gonna just play my 12 string,’ or vise versa. It was all or nothing. And I completely get that. His genius was multifaceted and I think that can be hard. He was focused on so many disparate paths. That may have been part of his, ‘flip the table, fuck it,’ attitude. He wanted to focus on one thing, but had so many creative paths that he was dedicated to. It’s difficult to balance that many interests with the intensity and focus that Nick brought to bear on all things that mattered deeply to him.