Todd : or Fox in old English

Pronovost : A Quebec formed name that comes from Pres-Nouveau ( new fields) originally from les Rouillard dit De Pres Nouveau. French bourgoiesie who were notaries by trade and probably exiled or fled to New France. The family line  became from then on agriculturers in the pioneer days of Québec around St-Narcisse (close to Trois Rivieres) right up until my great grandfather. But that shouldn't matter all that much....I was adopted.

    Now put this in your peace pipe.  I am of Algonquin / Ojibway, Polish, French, and Irish  decendance. 

     On my 4th Christmas all I wanted were musical instruments and records. At That age Elvis Presley and Paul Anka were everywhere. at the age of 8 years old KISS came into my life. I remember sitting next to the LLOYD's Stereo in the basement pumping my ears through the headphones with Elvis, Kiss, Pink Floyd, Billy Joel. I'd carve their names in the styrofoam wall of the unfinished basement of our house. Then I go to my big Cousin Pete's (PEE-TAY) house in Sorel and I'd listen to Alice Cooper, Todd Rundgren, Styx, Supertramp, and more.

     At 13, and on through my teenage years, British New Wave invaded the airwaves. Duran Duran, Simple Minds,Def Leppard, The Psychedelic Furs, David Bowie and from Canada, (chuckle,chuckle) Aldo Nova, Loverboy, Platinum Blonde, and (I thought at that time)Chilliwack. I also liked Shawn Philips and Andreas Vollenweider (the Harp player).
But whoops something strange and pleasing to My teenage attitude came around...Alternative Music. Bauhaus, The Cure, The Smiths, New Model Army, Sisters of Mercy, Skinny Puppy, Alien Sex Fiends, Nina Hagen (more or less) etc. Also Punk/Hardcore/Metal: Sex Pistols, Suicidal Tendancies, Anthrax, Merciful fate, S.O.D, Crumbsuckers, Half Man Half Biscuit.

     At seventeen I was a mess and I did something drastic... and mostly stupid....

     I joined the Army. A dog on a bowling alley. What was I doing there. Curiously...It's in the army that my music really started to develop. While posted at the National Defence Headquarters as a Military Policeman, I would at every occasion stop by Zaphod Beeblebrox in Ottawa. There I was introduced to the Ottawa local music scene. I met up with Joel Carlson of the band The Whirleygigs and side project Dr. Shiny Forehead. He was a good teacher. I'd also like to salute Al Mortimer (singer/guitarist of the Whirleygigs). The Ottawa band Furnaceface were just starting out. I have to admit they influenced me a lot also.  So did my roommate at the time singer/songwriter Stephane Poirier (who when I last heard of him was frontman for the band Poor Starving Artists back in '98.) 

     After I was kicked out of the military for being an administrative burden with an honorable release (I did everything to get kicked out!), I left Ottawa at 19 years of age never looking back.

In 91, I studied creative arts at Dawson college in Montréal. Jammed for a while in a band called ANEMONE 12 (douze). Saw Jane's Addiction and later Fugazi at the Rialto. The best and most intimate concerts I have ever seen.

In 92, I took a plane and left for Lake Louise, Alberta. There I met up with Yan Juteau. Honestly the best and most original guitarist I have ever come across. Thanks Yan for your time and patience, and for making my songs sound so cool. We would write and play together at Stable's Pub and down in the village at Charlie's pub. I learned to play guitar and went camping and Mountain Climbing a lot. Thanks Rick from R&B for the guitar you sold me for $50.00.

     In March 94, I left Lake Louise in my $150.00 82 Dodge Challenger with only three cylinders on four that were working and no heating and crossed Canada. In Montreal, I started busking in the subways. I went solo for three years.

     In May 95, I busked my way across Canada from Montréal to Victoria, hitchhiking with my Girlfriend (at the time). I...alone...acousticly opened up for bands in an afterhours club. I also wrote a lot of songs in that period. I also sold jewelry and clothing in downtown Vancouver and on Wreck Beach

     In Februrary 96, the Vancouver rain got to me. I love you Vancouver. Flew back to Montréal. I played at Le Quai des Brumes and Le Zinc on the "Plateau Mont-Royal". I got to play for a while with an amazing guitarist from Marseille, France, Jean-Francois Mathieu who would often play blues at Le Bistro a Jojo. Salut J.F!

     In September 97, I answered an ad in the local paper and joined a bunch of guys... J.F, Macé (guitar/back vocals), Danny Figueredo (drums), Francis Roy (Bass), and Gaetan Briceault (vocals, guitar) and we formed SAMSARA. Thats were I really discovered myself as a singer. I didn't have to touch the guitar in SAMSARA. We practice a La Cité De L'Image next to the Molson Brewery in Montréal. Oh was it loud in there. no insolation at all in the walls and the poignant smell of hops seething through the windows of the steaming hot jam space. The SAMSARA experience lasted two years. We had an opening Party on Halloween night in which my's costume was ,I must confess, everything but holy,... sorry. There is an embarrasing Video of that night in circulation. Any one who brings back any copies will be compensated. No...It was a seriously good time. Through those years, we played at the JailHouse, Café Chaos, Pegase, Le Cirque, and le Felix.

     Through SAMSARA I met potion 7. We had double billed with them a couple times. That's were Todd's association with the Goose man started. (It's also where he met Mee-shka. (You Should have seen him with his long red beard and dreads).

    Goose and Todd started to form A band with our Amp wizard Dave Galea, and Jerry Lecker, whose name was going to be either Tony Virtue or Virtue 101. lol. We wrote songs that may appear in the AGENDA The Rock Band's lineup.

... more to come...

Artists I appreciate the most are: System of a Down's Serge Tankian, Jane's Addiction's Perry Farrell, Bob Wiseman, Fugazi, Renaud, Daniel Ash from Bauhaus,Tones on Tail, and Love and Rockets, Incubus, Jedi Mind Tricks, The Dorian Three, Canibus, The Shapeshifters, Malachi5, FunkSpace, and when I was a kid...Kiss and Elvis Presley.

Listen to Todd alone with his guitar by clicking on this link.