Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Nick Restivo. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.
Nick, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today What’s been the most meaningful project you’ve worked on?
This question is difficult to answer because I have been involved in so many different bands, but if I have to choose one, I am going with my first “serious” band, Ourselves Alone. This project started out in a bit of a disjointed way. Originally, I had worked on some compositions with an old college friend of mine who was a very melodic bass player. He and I had bonded over a mutual love of post-rock and progressive music. We had jammed together throughout college, and after I graduated, we kept playing together with regularity. We had spent the better part of a year creating about an hour’s worth of music that flowed from one song into the next, and despite being a duo consisting of just bass guitar and drums, we had created a pretty engaging and melodic piece (I thought so, anyways). I think, due to the fact that we had created something that was so busy and self-sufficient, we found a challenge in getting a third member to touch the songs in the right way.
Eventually, I started a job at a special education program, and on my first day, I met my now longtime friend Mike Cueto. He commented on my Don Caballero shirt, which caught me by surprise as they are a pretty niche band, and then we discovered that we each played an instrument. When he revealed that he had played guitar for a band that I used to rather enjoy back in high school, I was very enthused to invite him to try jamming with my project. He came by for a session, and there was definitely an immediate chemistry. Unfortunately, some life events stood in the way for him to make the commitment, and the project just continued as a duo.
Fast forward one year, and my position at the school I worked at landed me in the same component as Mike. Once again, fate had brought us together, and he was in a more available place in his life to start making music together. Our coworker, Steve Perez, had started a studio and offered to track a song for us for free, so we started preparing to do so. The day before we were going to enter the studio, the bassist objected, feeling that the songs were not ready to track. Mike and I decided to proceed with tracking SOMETHING, as it was free studio time, and seemed like a fun challenge. The song we wound up creating was “Pepper and Paprika” (named after Steve’s hamsters), and it became our first single as Ourselves Alone.
From there, we began to rehearse and write OFTEN. We eventually tracked a 4-song EP, recruiting Steve to play bass for us, and we started playing shows. We played out as often as we could, continued to refine our sound, and progressed our compositions in a way that felt more and more like something to call our own. After about a year, Steve was replaced by Mike’s old bandmate Joe Rousseau, and we wrote and recorded our LP “Elusive Firsts.” This particular release was special to me, as I prepared tirelessly to ensure that I was well-versed on the intricate metronome click-mapping that was involved in our style of songwriting and also wrote lyrics for the first time. I decided to sing for us, in addition to my drum duties, and despite being daunted at first, I grew to love it. We continued to write more and play out, but as our lives got busier and we all relocated to different parts of the world, we dissolved before being able to record the last four songs that we wrote.
Despite an ending that lacks full closure, I am still very proud of this project, and the people who I met through it remember our performances and energy fondly. The connections I made through that project are what enabled me to be involved in probably somewhere around a dozen different bands, many of which I still pursue. This project is what taught me how to work creatively and collaboratively in an artistic pursuit. It challenged me to be a better drummer, and to unlock techniques I didn’t previously have. It taught me about responding to what others are playing with sensitivity and a tasteful approach. It taught me how to express my ideas, and to not get too attached to those ideas, as they CAN and SHOULD change. That’s what being a musician should be about: sharing ideas and giving the opportunity for others to touch them.
Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.
I am a drummer, singer, and guitarist. I also am not afraid to stumble through an attempt to play an instrument that I probably have no business touching (e.g. harmonium). Drums have been my primary instrument since I was 8 years old, when my parents enrolled me in a week-long summer camp where I learned about some different instruments that comprise your typical rock band. I loved that (to me) drums were something you could do anywhere. Obviously, you need a drum set, and that is arguably the most cumbersome instrument to transport (besides a baby grand or a harp), but each limb is essentially responsible for its own thing. That made me feel like I could occupy my mind regardless of where I was, and I could always enjoy the ability to write and create in that way.
Unfortunately for my classmates, I was correct, and throughout my days in school I was known as someone who would drum OFTEN on their desk/lap/whatever surface was available. I found myself jamming with friends, and even drummed in a band, but I was never very consistent with practicing. It was not until my senior year in high school that I really became serious about drumming and started wanting to understand more about rhythmic theory and improving my technique. I discovered some musical styles (post-rock and math-rock) that really changed the way I thought about music, and it has motivated me ever since.
Throughout college I continued to learn about more bands within these niche genres and met new people to play with. This allowed me to push my playing far outside of my comfort zone and try to elevate my approach. After college, I played in a band for many years called Ourselves Alone, and I learned a great deal about playing with others. It taught me so much about collaboration and creative approach. As my other bandmates shifted their focus to other things (family, school, moving), I found myself still yearning to participate in more projects. I became involved in more and more bands. To this day, I find myself arranging my schedule very meticulously to accommodate all of the projects that I am involved in, but I would not have it any other way. My participation in these bands are my baseline of normality and routine. It is the language I speak, and the air that I breathe. Of course, life has evolved, and other things are also quite important to me (my wife, my cat, my job, my family), but I am regulated by my creative endeavors.
In college, I started playing guitar. I needed a melodic output for myself. Over the past 10 years, I have taught myself how to play and write songs on guitar. As a kid who grew up singing in choirs in school, I needed a method of writing my own songs to sing along to. In 2017, I began really writing my own songs on guitar and decided to start a songwriting project called Snowpiler. My approach to guitar writing is unique, in that my technique comes from a technical and rhythmic perspective. I like to challenge myself and come up with progressions that are based on the shapes that I find on the fretboard, their corresponding sound, and playing with the sequences of those shapes until I find an order and pattern that I am happy with. I’m not claiming to be the first person to write this way, but I have blindly led myself to where I am now, and I am pretty proud of the songs I have written as a result. This project has been something that really comforts me, as I am writing to please my own ears, and I can go at whatever pace I like. I have recruited different friends to drum and play bass over the years, but I get to call every song my own, which feels really cool.
In an effort to ensure that I provide a full list of the bands I am/was in, and/or have filled in for (in chronological-ish order): The Sound and the Fury, Father Ocean, Ourselves Alone, Carlos Danger, Circadian Rhythm, LGTHVS, Snowpiler, The Refectory, Sundots, Pulsr (fill-in), Destination Dimension (fill-in), Cheem (fill-in), Was & When (fill-in), Hush Melee, Jimmy Mazz, Black Bourbon (fill-in), Waxd, Spite Store (fill-in), and some yet to be released projects…
How can we best help foster a strong, supportive environment for artists and creatives?
Go to shows. Buy the LP/CD/Tape/shirt/hat, whatever it is. Repost the flyers. Help people promote their art. Above all, give a sh*t. People are hugely motivated by that. Of course everyone does their art partially for themselves, but it is undeniably motivating to know that people are showing up because they care about your output. Support people who make art, whether it’s physical or experiential. This world would be a whole lot colder without those people and we need to reinforce those efforts. ENCOURAGE ART at ALL costs.
What do you think is the goal or mission that drives your creative journey?
Several things motivate me as a musician. Number one is probably the inspiration I get from other musicians. Sometimes a band will put something out or do something live that just amazes me. I become excited to try to incorporate what I am seeing/hearing into my own playing. I think it is this notion of expanding my own vocabulary that is very exciting to me. Music connects us all, whether from player-to-player, player-to-listener, or two fellow enjoyers of the same artist. Being able to play with different people has helped me to establish friendships with so many people. I have become the drummer for a tribute band led by a man twice my age and through that endeavor, I have learned about so much music that I probably never would have paid attention to.
The other thing motivating me is capturing my songwriting pursuits. As I have written music, I have also become eager to document it. I think this comes down to a desire to realize the song from idea to tangible item. It becomes a legacy of sorts. This motivates me above all; I want to be able to crystallize my ideas as quickly and as accurately as possible. I want to ensure that my art has integrity to the initial notion that inspired it in my head, and I want to be authentic through it. I think, more than my desire for others to hear it, I want to listen back and confirm that I have captured my idea in a way that was true to myself.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://snowpiler.bandcamp.com
- Instagram: @nicky_rez, @snowpiler
Image Credits
Stephen Diamond, Jonathan DeCarlo, Mihaela Bodlovic