There’s a new game in Orillia, with an old name: Simcoe Mechanical. But it’s not what you think. Instead of a repair shop, think ... recording studio.
Business partners Nixon Boyd and Taylor Knox came together over a love of music and a lot of shared experiences, including moving to the Sunshine City through family ties with each of their wives.
Boyd arrived first, in 2019, drawn by the beauty of the area, affordability of homes, and family. Knox and his wife moved up at the beginning of the pandemic, for similar reasons.
Boyd has been a musician for 15 years, primarily with the rock band Hollerado, and got into production about five years ago.
“I had studios in the city, and when we moved up here, I was continuing to commute to the city to produce artists there, but what I felt would be even better, would be to have a studio here and get them to come up to Orillia,” he said.
Knox, a professional musician, has a similar story.
“My wife grew up here, so in the pandemic we figured, let’s go to Orillia for a bit, and then we went, 'hey this is kind of amazing here.' Then we connected with Nixon and his partner and we were all feeling the same thing: we never thought we would move here but we love it,” said Knox.
While chatting one day, the two realized they had the same goal: to eventually build a recording studio in Orillia. The pair figured that was a two- to five-year plan, but the very next week, Knox found out his studio in Toronto was being torn down to build condos, giving him 60 days to find a new space for all his gear.
Luckily, Knox’s father-in-law owns a building at 64 Western Ave. in Orillia and offered a small space in there to tide Knox over. While Knox was talking to Boyd about that room, a larger space opened up in the same building.
“We were already talking about it, so we said, do you want to just do it? And we went for it,” said Knox.
“In its previous life, the space was a small engine repair shop. So that’s what we walked into when we first saw it," said Boyd. "The guys were working here with engines up on blocks, oil on the ground, gas fumes. You couldn’t imagine the grime we had to scour. The first month after we took the place over was just scouring and cleaning.”
After lots of scouring and cleaning, removal of many engine repair shop leftovers, lots of white paint, sound baffles, and multiple trips to the Restore, the studio is open for business and looking professional, cozy, and very musician-friendly.
There are loads of musical instruments and a great thrifted vibe, with high ceilings and large windows letting in lots of natural light.
Both Boyd and Knox are working on their own albums in the space, and Boyd recently recorded an Ottawa musician there, who was very pleased with the experience.
Both partners are very happy with the sound in the space.
“I mean, there’s always that thing about sound," explained Knox. "A physicist who studies sound and vibration and stuff could maybe know if a room is going
to sound good, but we don’t know. So, as we were power washing the floors for the fourth time we were like, I hope it sounds good in here. So we were really excited to do the first recording and compare notes. It sounds amazing.”
The pair said they are leaning into the natural features of the space, and recently found out drums sound great on a concrete floor.
“It was an auto shop, it looks it and feels it, and the name we are giving the studio is Simcoe Mechanical, which was the original name of the auto shop when it was first built,” explained Boyd.
“I am eager to connect with local musicians, with the local scene,” said Boyd.
Knox added, “Nixon is a very amazing producer. He’s got the attitude and the skill set, it will be awesome for musicians to get to work with him.”
Boyd jumped in, “Taylor can basically play anything, and has a massive vocabulary of musical ideas. We had an artist come in, just a singer/guitar player, and I was able to record their stuff and with Taylor on drums and he and I communicating, we were able to build full arrangements for this guy, which we were
all really happy with.
“Most musicians can do a little recording of themselves in their bedroom with voice and guitar, but at a certain point, most musicians are ready to come to a place like this and take it further. That’s the kind of role that I love playing,” explained Boyd.
The studio is now open for business, with Boyd and Knox available and eager to work with musicians both near and far. The studio is located at 64 Western Ave. and they can be reached at [email protected].
