Interview: Nicole Barille (mr. Gnome)

For nearly two decades, Cleveland-based couple Nicole Barille and Sam Meister have been producing otherworldly rock epics under the moniker mr. Gnome. From the very beginning, the duo’s swelling psychedelia has resonated with a grandeur typically associated with larger bands, while Barille's ethereal vocals add a layer of intimacy that sets their sound apart. They’ve grown more ambitious and expansive with each album, culminating with the dazzling double album The Day You Flew Away in 2020. 

After a period of relative silence, mr. Gnome is back with a new record, A Sliver of Space, set to drop on Sept. 27. The duo will also be embarking on its first tour in years — accompanied by Jonah Meister on bass/guitar, who also contributed to A Sliver of Space — stopping in Asheville on Wednesday, Oct. 2, at Sly Grog Lounge. Early singles “Nothing and Everything,” “Fader,” and “Mind’s Gone” showcase their continued evolution, featuring an increased use of synthesizers alongside Barille’s soaring guitars and Meister’s powerhouse percussion, which remain as hypnotizing as ever. 

Asheville Stages had the pleasure of speaking with Barille about the creative journey behind A Sliver of Space and what fans can look forward to when mr. Gnome hits the stage in Asheville.

Jonny Leather: I couldn’t find any record of previous shows here. Will this be your first time performing in Asheville?

Nicole Barille: We played in Asheville earlier in our career, but it was so long ago I couldn’t even tell you what year or where we played! We’re super excited to come back. We’ve gotten a bunch of requests over the last year or so from Asheville fans, so [we] wanted to make it happen on this tour.

JL: New singles “Nothing and Everything” and “Mind’s Gone” indicate a slight shift in your sonic palette, placing greater emphasis on synths and piano, while “Fader” is a ripping rocker. Are fans in store for a more synth-heavy edition of mr. Gnome?

NB: When we were writing this album, we really had no rules regarding where we could go. So it covers a lot of ground — a lot of genre shifting going on. It wasn’t intentional, rather just a complete self-discovery process without any limits. 

The entire album is not necessarily synth heavy, but we did dabble with synths more than ever on this one. I think we were always searching for sounds and melodies that excited us, and we weren’t too concerned about what style we were leaning into during the writing process. “Fader” was an exciting moment because we were really leaning into our roots, into the influences that made us excited about music in the first place. But throughout the album, there’s also dance rock, punky rock, electronic pop, doo-woppy ballads…lots of other styles.

JL: Can you talk a little about how your approach to making A Sliver of Space differed from your earlier work?

NB: It’s hard to talk about A Sliver of Space and not talk about what we were going through mentally at the time. We started writing this album during [the] COVID[-19 pandemic] — we had just lost two of our closest family members, and we were dealing with a mountain of grief, all in complete isolation. It was a very difficult moment to work through, and there was a lot of pain and confusion that we began pouring into the songs we were creating. 

On the flip side, our son was only 2 years old when we started writing, and so this time was also one of the most beautiful, happiest moments we had ever experienced. It was a real study in contrasting emotions. Writing this album was 100% our therapy sessions during this time, and we were forced to write in a different way because of our son being in the house with us. 

There were more lone sessions — us creating sonic beds by ourselves and then presenting them to one another. We gravitated towards the songs that we felt had the most potential; the songs that were evoking the best melodies and overall feel. I think this might explain the longer songs we ended up choosing as the main singles. 

When we would latch onto a song or an idea, we would really throw ourselves into the journey of that song, allowing it to go every which way we could push it, and really losing ourselves in the sonic experience. As long as it evoked the emotion we were after, we felt like it was the right way to go. 

I’m not sure we’ll ever write in this way again now that our son is in school. We’ve been rediscovering our rock ’n’ roll side over the last year, and it’s been so wonderful. 

JL: From your music to your album covers to your videos, you’ve always had a distinct artistic vision. How important has it been for you both to maintain control over the entire process?

NB: We’ve both always been obsessed with all things art, and really bonded over our love for art and music from the first day we met. So when we started mr. Gnome, it was so exciting to not only create music together, but then get to create album covers, press shots, and music videos as well. 

We’ve always felt like our album covers are just as important as our music, and it would be hard to have someone else create the visual representation of that for us. We are control freaks in that way, wanting to pick the colors and mood and feel when creating art for our music. We have such an intimate relationship with our music — we want the visual side to perfectly capture everything we’re feeling when writing it as well.

JL: Cleveland has always been a bit of an underrated rock city, producing such incomparable artists as DEVO, Pere Ubu, and NIN. How has the city influenced your own journey as artists?

NB: Cleveland has completely shaped who we are as people. I’m Cleveland born and raised; Sam was born in Canton, and then moved around a bunch as a kid, but came back to the Cleveland area for high school, which is where we met. The midwest vibe is so wonderful and the hardworking ethos that emanates from this city has definitely shaped who we are as musicians as well. 

When we first started playing out a lot, we played our hometown way too much, and quickly understood that we needed to leave in order to grow. So we started touring non-stop, building up our stage presence and a following around the country, and when we would come back home, our audience would grow and grow every year. Our Cleveland fans have been very loyal to us and so supportive and it’s meant so much to us.

JL: I’m a longtime fan who’s never had the opportunity to watch you perform live. Although I’m very excited to hear the new songs, there are a handful of older favorites I’d love to see you play, including “Bit of Tongue,” “Vampires,” and “Odyssey.” Not to spoil any surprises, but are there any older songs of yours that you’re excited to be playing on this tour?

NB: That’s so awesome you’ll be seeing us for the first time! 

When we started jumping back into practicing, we started doing two-and-a-half to three hour rehearsals, because at this point we have so much material: Six albums (one of those albums being a double album), so technically seven albums worth of songs. It’s been a blast diving into the older songs, rediscovering who we are as a live band, pretty much working through each album and choosing the songs that we feel like are the most fun to play. 

We’re super excited to play everything, specifically songs off of Madness in Miniature (some of the most challenging ones — “House of Circles,” “Outsiders,” “Bit of Tongue”), and very excited to play songs off of our last album, The Day You Flew Away, that we’ve never played live before. “Be Here Now,” “Gold Edges,” “Wild Child,” and “Midnight Sun” are some current live favorites of ours.

IF YOU GO

Who: mr. Gnome / Mellowfield / Powder Horns
When: Wednesday, Oct. 2, 8 p.m.
Where: Sly Grog Lounge, 271 Haywood St., facebook.com/slygroglounge
Tickets: $18 adv / $25 day of show

(Photos by mr. Gnome)