Joel Gibb (born 28 January 1977) is a

Berlin Berlin ( , ) is the capital and largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's most populous city, according to population within city limits. One of Germany's sixteen constitu ...

-based

Canadian Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...

artist and singer-songwriter who leads the "

gay ''Gay'' is a term that primarily refers to a homosexual person or the trait of being homosexual. The term originally meant 'carefree', 'cheerful', or 'bright and showy'. While scant usage referring to male homosexuality dates to the late 1 ...

church Church may refer to: Religion * Church (building), a building for Christian religious activities * Church (congregation), a local congregation of a Christian denomination * Church service, a formalized period of Christian communal worship * Chri ...

folk" group

The Hidden Cameras The Hidden Cameras are a Canadian indie pop band. Fronted by singer-songwriter Joel Gibb, the band consists of a varying roster of musicians who play what Gibb once described as " gay church folk music". Their live performances have been elabora ...

. He was born in

Kincardine, Ontario Kincardine ( ) is a municipality located on the shores of Lake Huron in Bruce County in the province of Ontario, Canada. The current municipality was created in 1999 by the amalgamation of the Town of Kincardine, the Township of Kincardine, a ...

Career

His first involvement with the music scene was as editor of a

fanzine A fanzine (blend of '' fan'' and ''magazine'' or ''-zine'') is a non-professional and non-official publication produced by enthusiasts of a particular cultural phenomenon (such as a literary or musical genre) for the pleasure of others who share ...

devoted to independent bands, ''Glamour Guide for Trash''. He also hosted a college radio show at

CFRE-FM CKC455, branded on-air as CFRE, is a radio station broadcasting at 91.9 FM in Mississauga, Ontario, Canada. Established in 1970, it is the campus radio station of the University of Toronto Mississauga (UTM). The station's initials are derived f ...

Mississauga Mississauga ( ), historically known as Toronto Township, is a city in the Canadian province of Ontario. It is situated on the shores of Lake Ontario in the Regional Municipality of Peel, adjoining the western border of Toronto. With a popu ...

, Ontario. At the same time, he was writing his own songs and, in 2001, he released some of his recordings under the name The Hidden Cameras on his own

independent record label An independent record label (or indie label) is a record label that operates without the funding or distribution of major record labels; they are a type of small- to medium-sized enterprise, or SME. The labels and artists are often represented ...

EvilEvil, a CD entitled '' Ecce Homo''. He then gathered together a group of musicians to perform his work, playing everywhere from art galleries to churches to porn theatres to parks. Along the way, the band grew to include up to thirteen members, including a string section, choir and go-go dancers, its audience growing at the same time. In 2003 the Hidden Cameras were signed to

Rough Trade Rough Trade may refer to: * Rough Trade Records, a record label *Rough Trade (shops) Rough Trade is a group of independent record shops in the United Kingdom and the United States with headquarters in London. The first Rough Trade shop was o ...

, a well-known British record label who released the band's next album, ''

The Smell of Our Own ''The Smell of Our Own'' is a 2003 album by The Hidden Cameras. Track listing # "Golden Streams" – 4:28 # "Ban Marriage" – 4:15 # "A Miracle" – 2:50 # "The Animals of Prey" – 4:04 # "Smells Like Happiness" – 3:08 # "Day Is Dawnin ...

'' the same year. They began to tour North America and Europe extensively. In 2004, the album ''

Mississauga Goddam ''Mississauga Goddam'' is a 2004 album by The Hidden Cameras. The title is an allusion to Nina Simone's civil rights anthem " Mississippi Goddam" (from the album '' Nina Simone in Concert''), suggesting suburbia (Mississauga is a suburb of Toro ...

'' was released, followed by ''

The arms of his 'ill' ''The arms of his "ill"'' is the title of a 10-inch EP by the band The Hidden Cameras. The EP was released in 2004 on the Berkeley, California-based label, Absolutely Kosher. It was later re-released as a CD also. All songs were written, p ...

'' on the California label

Absolutely Kosher Records Absolutely Kosher Records is an independent California-based record label founded in 1998 in San Francisco by Cory Brown. The label moved to Berkeley in 2002 and then to Emeryville in October 2006 when it partnered with Misra Records. The two ...

. The album ''

Awoo ''AWOO'' is the fourth studio album by The Hidden Cameras, released in 2006. The album was released on EvilEvil in Canada in August. It was released on September 4 on Rough Trade in the UK and was also released on Arts & Crafts in the Un ...

'' came out in 2006 on

Rough Trade Records Rough Trade Records is an independent record label based in London, England. It was formed in 1976 by Geoff Travis who had opened a record store off Ladbroke Grove. Having successfully promoted and sold records by punk rock and early post-pu ...

, EvilEvil and Arts & Crafts, and the fifth studio album, '' Origin:Orphan'', was released 22 September 2009 on the Arts & Crafts label. All The Hidden Cameras releases to date have been produced by Joel Gibb. In 2007, solo recordings by Gibb were released on the tribute to Arthur Russell compilation EP, ''

Four Songs by Arthur Russell ''Four Songs by Arthur Russell'' is a tribute EP of songs written by Arthur Russell, featuring Vera November, Jens Lekman, Taken By Trees, and Joel Gibb Joel Gibb (born 28 January 1977) is a Berlin-based Canadian artist and singer-songwri ...

''. On 21 January 2014, '' Age'', the sixth studio album by The Hidden Cameras, was released. Gibb exhibits his artwork in various galleries and has been included in group shows in the past at the

Tate Modern Tate Modern is an art gallery located in London. It houses the United Kingdom's national collection of international modern and contemporary art, and forms part of the Tate group together with Tate Britain, Tate Liverpool and Tate St Ives. It ...

, among others. His work comprises drawings and banners, both of which are featured on The Hidden Cameras CDs and records. He also shows the videos he has directed for The Hidden Cameras. In 2007, Joel Gibb made his New York gallery debut at Sunday L.E.S. (now Horton Gallery). In 2008, Joel Gibb made his acting debut, alongside Jena von Brücker, Mark Ewert,

Calvin Johnson Calvin Johnson Jr., (born September 29, 1985) is an American former football wide receiver who played in the National Football League (NFL) for nine seasons with the Detroit Lions. He played college football at Georgia Tech, where he twice ...

Jen Smith Jen Smith is an artist, musician, zine editor, and activist from the United States. Smith is credited with being the inspiration behind the term riot grrrl and being one of the architects of the movement. Biography In early 1991, Jen Smith and W ...

, and

Vaginal Davis Vaginal Davis (born in Los Angeles, California) is an American performing artist, painter, independent curator, composer, filmmaker and writer. Born intersex and raised in South Central, Los Angeles, Davis gained notoriety in New York during the ...

, as one of the stars of the film ''

The Lollipop Generation ''The Lollipop Generation'' is a 2008 Canadian underground experimental film written, produced, and directed by G. B. Jones, whose previous films include ''The Troublemakers'' and ''The Yo-Yo Gang''. It premiered as the Gala Feature presentation ...

'', directed by

G.B. Jones G. B. Jones (born 1965) is a Canadian artist, filmmaker, musician, and publisher of zines born in Bowmanville, Canada. She is known for producing J.D.s with her acclaimed''Tom Girls'' drawings before going on to create more musically, cinematica ...

. The film also features music by The Hidden Cameras. Two of his song lyrics, "He Is the Boss of Me" and "A Miracle", appear in John Barton and

Billeh Nickerson Billeh Nickerson (born February 14, 1972) is a Canadian writer, editor, performer, producer and arts advocate. Personal life Nickerson was born in Halifax, Nova Scotia, grew up in Langley, British Columbia, lived in Toronto, Ontario, and currently ...

's 2007 anthology ''Seminal: The Anthology of Canada's Gay Male Poets''. John Barton and

, eds. ''Seminal: The Anthology of Canada's Gay Male Poets''.

Arsenal Pulp Press Arsenal Pulp Press is a Canadian independent book publishing company, based in Vancouver, British Columbia. The company publishes a broad range of titles in both fiction and non-fiction, focusing primarily on underrepresented genres such as und ...

, 2007. . Gibb contributed to R.E.M.'s album ''

Collapse into Now ''Collapse into Now'' is the fifteenth and final studio album by the American alternative rock band R.E.M., released on March 7, 2011, on Warner Bros. Produced by Jacknife Lee, who previously worked with the band on ''Accelerate'' (2008), the alb ...

'', with backing vocals on the track "It Happened Today". In 2012, Gibb provided guitar and harmony vocals on the

Pet Shop Boys The Pet Shop Boys are an English synth-pop duo formed in London in 1981. Consisting of primary vocalist Neil Tennant and keyboardist Chris Lowe, they have sold more than 50 million records worldwide, and were listed as the most successful duo i ...

song "In His Imagination". Gibb currently lives in

. At one point, Gibb lived in

Mississauga, Ontario Mississauga ( ), historically known as Toronto Township, is a city in the Canadian province of Ontario. It is situated on the shores of Lake Ontario in the Regional Municipality of Peel, adjoining the western border of Toronto. With a popul ...

References

External links

Official Site of Joel Gibb's label, EvilEvilInterview with Joel Gibb on Torontoist.com
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Gibb, Joel 1977 births Living people People from Bruce County Canadian illustrators Queercore musicians LGBT singers from Canada LGBT songwriters Canadian folk singer-songwriters Canadian male singer-songwriters Canadian folk guitarists Canadian male guitarists Canadian indie rock musicians Canadian indie pop musicians Canadian folk rock musicians Musicians from Ontario Artists from Ontario Writers from Ontario Canadian gay musicians 21st-century Canadian guitarists The Hidden Cameras members 21st-century Canadian male singers 20th-century LGBT people 21st-century LGBT people