Rob Benvie

Rob Benvie (born in Halifax, Nova Scotia) is a Canadian musician and writer who has performed with alternative rock acts Thrush Hermit, Bankruptcy,^[1] Camouflage Nights, and The Dears. He also records and occasionally performs live as Tigre Benvie.

Rob Benvie
Background information
Origin	Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada
Genres	Indie rock alternative rock
Instrument(s)	Guitar, vocals
Years active	1990s–present
Labels	Murderecords Sonic Unyon Records Elektra Records

Musical career

Benvie first gained notoriety as the guitarist, singer and songwriter in Halifax rock band Thrush Hermit. Thrush Hermit also included Joel Plaskett, Ian McGettigan and Cliff Gibb. Touring extensively throughout North America, Thrush Hermit released two EPs on Murderecords: Smart Bomb and The Great Pacific Ocean. Their first full-length Sweet Homewrecker was released on the American label Elektra Records. In 1999, Thrush Hermit released Clayton Park on Sonic Unyon Records.^[2] In 2010, Thrush Hermit briefly reunited for a successful reunion tour, followed by another in 2020 with the reissue of Clayton Park.^[3]

Prior to the Thrush Hermit era, Benvie distributed numerous home recordings under such names as The Tennis Injury, Yammer, Drug Dog, and Day Pass. Since Thrush Hermit's 1999 break-up, Benvie has produced several solo albums under his own name and as Tigre Benvie.^[4]

In 2001, he joined The Dears as bass/guitar player, and in years following continued to perform and record with the band in various faculties, most actively for 2008's Missiles and 2011's Degeneration Street.^[5]

Benvie and McGettigan have recorded and performed as Camouflage Nights. After a string of tour dates and limited edition audio and video releases, the band's long-delayed debut LP was released in April 2012 by Sonic Unyon Records.^[6] Camouflage Nights has remixed artists such as Stars,^[7] Every Move a Picture, Pony Da Look, along with scoring numerous film and television projects.

In 2015, Benvie founded the rock band Bankruptcy. Their debut LP For The Future was released in April 2016.^[8] Bankruptcy's follow-up album, Computers Make the Drinks, was released in 2019.^[9]

Writing

In May 2001 literature and humour website McSweeney's Internet Tendency featured an essay by Benvie titled "The Porn I Like". Benvie's first novel, Safety of War, was published by Coach House Books.^[10] In 2011, Benvie published a second novel, titled Maintenance,^[11] along with a full-length instrumental 'audio companion' available via download through Coach House.^[12] His third novel, Bleeding Light, was published in 2021.^[13]

Benvie also co-wrote the screenplay, with frequent collaborator Maxwell McCabe-Lokos, for McCabe-Lokos' 2021 film Stanleyville.^[14]

Discography

• 2000 - Year of the Mutt
• 2002 - Bankruptcy
• 2010 - 2003 (EP)
• 2011 - Maintenance: The Original Soundtrack
• 2012 - Mistiness
• 2013 - Stuplimity, or The Nova Scotia Book of The Dead
• 2015 - How To Write a Romance Novel
• 2016 - For The Future (w/Bankruptcy)
• 2017 - You Will Not Enter The Valley
• 2019 - Computers Make the Drinks (w/Bankruptcy)
• 2020 - Want To Be Freed

Bibliography

• 2004 - Safety of War (Coach House Books)
• 2011 - Maintenance (Coach House Books)
• 2021 - Bleeding Light (Invisible Publishing)

References

1. Lindsay, Cam (Dec 20, 2015). "Tuns / Bankruptcy Dakota Tavern, Toronto ON, December 19". Archived from the original on 10 June 2016. Retrieved 21 April 2017.
2. "Halifax's Thrush Hermit included among 2020 Polaris Heritage Prize contenders". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 30 October 2020. Retrieved 2 January 2021.
3. "Thrush Hermit reunites, sets Marquee Ballroom date | The Chronicle Herald". The Chronicle Herald. Retrieved 2 January 2021.
4. "Tigre Benvie Bankruptcy". exclaim.ca. Archived from the original on 13 December 2020. Retrieved 2 January 2021.
5. "The Dears performing new album in full on select dates". BrooklynVegan. 22 July 2010. Archived from the original on 2 April 2022. Retrieved 2 January 2021.
6. "Camouflage Nights - Camouflage Nights | Songs, Reviews, Credits | AllMusic". Allmusic.com. Archived from the original on 23 August 2021. Retrieved 2 January 2021.
7. "Stars: Do You Trust Your Friends?". Pitchfork. Archived from the original on 5 August 2020. Retrieved 2 January 2021.
8. "Bankruptcy Announce 'For the Future' LP, Premiere Title Track". exclaim.ca. Archived from the original on 7 August 2020. Retrieved 2 January 2021.
9. "Bankruptcy Computers Make the Drinks". exclaim.ca. Archived from the original on 2 April 2022. Retrieved 2 January 2021.
10. "On Rob Benvie's Maintenance". The Toronto Review of Books. 18 April 2012. Archived from the original on 21 January 2021. Retrieved 2 January 2021.
11. "Book Review: Maintenance, by Rob Benvie". nationalpost. Retrieved 2 January 2021.
12. "Rob Benvie soundtrack in tune with his new novel". Quill and Quire. 24 November 2011. Archived from the original on 30 November 2020. Retrieved 2 January 2021.
13. "21 Canadian books we can't wait to read in July". CBC Books. Archived from the original on 2021-10-01. Retrieved 2021-10-01.
14. "Oscilloscope Picks Up Maxwell McCabe-Lokos' Dark Comedy 'Stanleyville'". Variety. 2 August 2021. Archived from the original on 2021-10-01. Retrieved 2021-10-01.