HUMANS (Robbie Slade and Peter Ricq) describe their music as always changing. The songs from their releases end up seeming a little more minimal compared to the tweaked and edited versions they perform live. Altered to maximize impact, the music grows and task on lives of its own. HUMANS are fun guys, and the crowd picks up on it right away.
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Robbie:
Tell us a little bit about yourself and what you do. I’m Robbie and I’m a musician. I sing, play guitar and produce. I make ends meet from both music as well as freelance marketing. I only work with companies that I can get behind — that is to say, I couldn’t sell anything to anyone, but I do get inspired by certain people and projects and I feel the need to work in that capacity just as fervently as I feel the need to make music.
What are some recent, upcoming or current projects you are working on? Pete and I have finished producing and recording a new HUMANS album together over the last couple of years. We’re super excited to get that out into people’s ears. I also put out a 12″ with MAx Ulis last year called SABOTA. Check it out here.
Most embarrassing moment on stage? For me, it was when our mixer started malfunctioning in Calgary. Packed house and huge fluctuations in volume. All I could do was keep singing and hope. Our friend the promoter (Sarmad) was freaking out so badly that he had to walk around the block and take a breather. We ended up forgoing the mixer and using DI’s for every piece of gear! The staff at HIFI in Calgary are therefore amazing…
What were you like in high school? Nerdy and kind of funny.
How long have you lived in Vancouver and what brought you there? Ten years! I moved here for university (but secretly to make it big as a musician).
How has living in Vancouver affected your music? I have a great relationship with writing hooks and lyrics whilst biking, and Vancouver is definitely a bicycling city. So I can say without hesitation that it’s made me more productive. (Except on days like today — torrential downpour.)
Peter:
Top 3 favorite or most visited websites and why? Bandcamp.com I go there so that I can listen to the “radio show” bandcamp weekly. It’s so easy to spend lots of money on great new music every week. Nerdist.com I just started listening to his podcast; it’s really intuitive to things I wanna do like music and movies. His guests are people like Chvrches, Guillermo del Toro, Danny McBride, Matthew Modine (who talks in depth about working with Stanley Kubrick), Arnold, Paul Reubens, Rose McGowen (who is amazing BTW). It’s just great. IMDb.com I go there all the time because of movies.
What are some recent, upcoming or current projects you are working on? The HUMANS’ new release takes up quite some time. I’m working on the album art, graphic design, videos and logo. I’m really happy with how it’s turning out and looking forward to seeing the reaction when it all comes out.
Doing an art show the week prior to the album release that will be showcasing the paintings and illustrations that are used for the new album.
Besides HUMANS, I keep busy doing a lot of different things, getting my hands dirty as opposed to just thinking “what if I tried”. In music, I started two side projects a couple years back, Gang Signs and Ladyfrnd; both have new releases set for 2015.
My new animated television series “Freak Out” is in production right now, this time for Teletoon Canada. I’m a creative producer, designer and creator on the series. I think it’ll start airing in 2015. I’d like to be more involved but that would mean quitting music which I’m not ready to let go yet.
I’m trying to finish a 60-page graphic novel about a post-apocaclyptic 1830’s Germany over run by monsters. I think I’ll be done in a couple months or so and hoping to release it in 2016.
I’m also pitching a dark horror comedy feature script which I co-wrote, I’m aiming to have HUMANS produce the soundtrack to it as well.
What do you want a viewer to walk away with after hearing your music? This is probably not the answer you were looking for but… a phone number, a phone number of someone that will change that persons life for the best. It would happen more so in a concert but I can also see that happening in an office “hey, what are you listening too?”.
Can you share one of the best or worst reactions you have gotten as a result of your music? This hasn’t happened yet but the best/worst reaction would be: “Wow, you have inspired me to produce music” and it turns out that it’s just the worst, annoying and kitschiest music you’ve ever heard. You’d be held responsible for the rest of your life.
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How did your interest in music begin? I think like most 80’s kids, Michael Jackson.
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