Facing fear

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 21/03/2002 (8781 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

AS a member of one of Canada’s most critically acclaimed rock bands, Martin Tielli shouldn’t be the poster boy for stage fright.

But even after 14 years with The Rheostatics, the soft-spoken singer-guitarist still finds it scary to bare his soul before an audience.

“It’s an extremely unnatural situation. You are always on trial as soon as you get up in front of people. You might think they’re loving you but there’s an equal amount hating you,” says 35-year-old Tielli, who faces his demons head on tomorrow night by playing the West End Cultural Centre as a solo artist.

“Just performing is kind of difficult for me, so to do it in a different context is kind of hard. But I got used to it by touring around Ontario in November.”

With The Rheos on hiatus while fellow guitarist Dave Bidini is off researching his third book, Tielli is touring Canada to show off some of the multitude of songs he’s written since he vowed to record a solo guitar-and-voice record at age 14.

He figures he’s written more than 100 that have not been recorded by The Rheostatics. Eleven show up on We Didn’t Even Suspect He Was The Poppy Salesman, a solo record which came out in the fall.

In a live setting, Tielli beefs up the sound with a freakishly talented band that includes former Winnipegger Barry Mirochnik on drums and ex-DOA guitarist Ford Pier, both pilfered from Vancouver pianist Veda Hille after she and The Rheos toured Europe together two winters ago as part of an art-rock project.

As a child, Tielli started painting before he played music. He still considers himself to be a visual artist, rather than a musician (you can check out his work at www.martintielli.com).

Lately, Tielli’s favourite art medium is electronic: He takes sketches and translates them into computer images. His work has been featured in Rheos album art and shown in galleries, but that doesn’t stop him from feeling estranged from the elitist world of modern art.

“It’s entered a realm populated by know-it-alls. It’s like the fashion world: Who makes the clothes that no one wears? Well, who makes the pictures nobody likes? It’s too intellectual for its own good, at this point.

“I barely see anything I can relate to. I prefer a Norman Rockwell to most of what I see these days. But then I’m ignorant about art, for Pete’s sake.”

Tielli’s fans would beg to differ. Admission for tomorrow’s show, which starts with Winnipeg’s Nathan at 8 p.m., is $18.

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