Denis Rodier
Comics
Denis Rodier has worked on several of the most popular and iconic American comic book series of all time. This impressive list includes Batman, Captain America, Star Wars and most notably, Superman. In fact, the storyline of The Death of Superman is considered a milestone in the character’s history.
Since 2008 much of his work has been published in the European market. He created l’Ordre des Dragons followed closely by l’Apogée des Dragons for Soleil Éditions. Arale, for Dargaud, garnered a great deal of attention by the critics.
In 2017 Glénat published Lenin, his first historical piece, which was followed in 2020 by the best seller La Bombe which became a phenomenal international success with both readers and critics. This 450 pages graphic novel depicting the creation of the atom bomb and culminating in the tragic devastation of Hiroshima has received eleven literary awards including The Critics Award 2020 and the Bookstore Award of Quebec 2021. The book is being translated in 16 different languages.
Rodier’s work can be found in numerous private collections and has been exhibited in the Musée du Québec, the Musée de Culture Populaire de Trois-Rivières, New York, Rome and Durbuy in Belgium.
In 2021, Rodier has been inducted into the Joe Schuster Awards Hall of Fame.
Music
For many years, Denis has constantly been a part of musical projects as a percussionist. Around the year 2000, he starts the Specimen13 band which sees some of the best of Quebec’s musicians within its ranks, namely: Donald Fleurent and Martin Vanier (Talisma), Michel Blanchet (Mystick, Eila) and Gaston Gagnon (Garolou).
For their first CD, Echosystem (created as a duet with guitarist Martin Vanier), Specimen13 have joined forces with some of rock’s most prolific and notable living legends…..Tony Levin (Peter Gabriel, King Crimson, Pink Floyd, John Lennon) on the Chapman Stick…Pat Mastelotto (King Crimson, Mr.Mister, XTC, Rembrandts) on drums… Trey Gunn (King Crimson, John Paul Jones, David Sylvian/Robert Fripp) on Warr guitar and Markus Reuter (The Crimson Project, Stick Men, Tuner) on the U8 Touch guitar.
Martin Vanier
Music
After studying at the Vincent D’Indy music school, Martin Vanier joins the band Talisma around 2000. With his creativity and his textural licks emerging from his guitar synthesizer, Talisma is soon labeled as a “pure progressive rock band”. It releases two albums with Vanier, the most recent being Chromium in 2005.
Soon, Vanier joins forces with Rodier in Specimen13 and some concerts are aligned with Michel Blanchet on the Chapman Stick, most notably, a memorable night with laureat rock poet Lucien Francoeur, frontman of the legendary canadian rock band Aut’Chose.
His greatest show of creative virtuosity however, takes shape in the songs he co-wrote and performed in Specimen13.
Discography:
Talisma (Unicorn Records)
Corpus (2003)
Chromium (2005)
Specimen13
Echosystem (EP) (2012)