Merrill Nisker

Country of origin:

Canada

Type of music generally:

Experimental rock

Status:

Only release as Merrill Nisker, fancypants hoodlum, 1995. Apparently is now recording as Peaches and has a cd called The Teaches of Peaches out in the U.K. now

See also:

Canoe Jam's page for Merrill Nisker

The Ectophiles' Guide's eventual entry for Peaches

Comparisons:

A more artsy, less melodic Sara Craig

Covers/own material:

Mostly own, some cowriting, some covers

General comments:

Merrill Nisker is a female vocalist based in or around Toronto. The vocals are strong and diverse with high clear melodic parts, some hard rock parts, and a bit of screaming. She has a fairly wide range--in both pitch and tone quality.
     The music is rockish, a bit experimental (start/stop, quick tempo and mood changes, some seemingly atonal bits), and generally interesting. It's been growing on me over a few listenings--a good sign. It's not for easy listening, though.
     I hear some similarities to Sara Craig, although I find Sara's music to be generally more tuneful and Merrill's more 'artsy'.
     The cd contains 10 original tunes, plus covers of "High School Confidential" and "Kung Fu Fighting".
     I first heard of Merrill about 6 months ago when a single tune (which is not on this album) by the BAND Fancypants Hoodlum appeared on a sampler cd that comes with Impact magazine. I liked the tune and set about trying to find out more.
     Apparently, the band split up--after recording the album--when two of the members moved away. Exactly how the band's album became Merrill's debut album is not entirely clear. 5 of the songs are by Merrill Nisker, 5 more are by Merrill Nisker and Ian Sinclair. The other 2 are covers. (art@cs.sfu.ca)

Chaotic art-rock. Nice cover of "Kung Fu Fighting". She was better than she is now as Peaches trying to be the indie Li'l Kim. (stjarnell@yahoo.com)

Recommended first album:

fancypants hoodlum

Recordings:

fancypants hoodlum

fancypants hoodlum

Release info:

1995--self-released

Availability:

May be hard to find--check Canadian sources, particularly those in Toronto

Ecto priority:

Recommended for fans of experimental rock

Group members:

Merrill Nisker--vocals

Guest artists:

John Gzowski--guitars
harvey Danger--drums
Ian Sinclair--bass, and backing vocals on 1 track

Produced by:

Jim English, John Gzowski, Merrill Nisker

Comments:

See general comments above.

Further info:

Contact: Fancy Bob, 263 Adelaide St. W., #208, Toronto, ON Canada M5H 1Y2