Ben Nichols - In The Heart of The Mountain Northeast Tour
by Jessica Malouin | August 7th, 2026
All images are from Ben Nichols’ - In The Heart of The Mountain Northeast Tour in Toronto, CAN on 8/7/26.
Stepping away from the backing of his band, Lucero, Ben Nichols took the stage at Longboat Hall to support his sophomore solo album, ‘In The Heart Of The Mountain.’ Walking on stage with the setlist in hand, he quickly abandoned his plan, leading straight into the album’s title track, then continuing to play it in its entirety.
Ben has a seamless way of ending a song and flowing straight into a brief story about it or a little crowd interaction, all with such ease and comfort. There was never any rush to get to the next song. He simply let the night unfold naturally, making the intimate room feel more like a conversation between Ben and the crowd.
Despite the slow, sad, honest nature of his songs, Ben had such a joyful demeanour on stage. At one point, while Ben and the crowd were sharing a laugh, a fan yelled, “Play more depressing shit.” Ben smiled and waited for the request to follow.
“Slow Dancing!” someone yelled, met by laughter on and off the stage.
Even though the 24-year-old Lucero song wasn’t found on the rejected nights song list, Ben gave that warm smile we were greeted with often throughout the set and began playing. Almost immediately, the crowd joined in, belting out every lyric. It was one of those moments that couldn’t have been planned any better.
The night went on, the playlist forgotten, Ben continued to share stories and antidotes while obliging song requests, and the crowd stayed for every moment of it.
There was something special about watching Ben step away from the familiar world of Lucero and simply share his songs, stories and sense of humour with a room full of people who clearly wanted to be there. Quiet, melancholic songs, unexpected requests and a crowd singing every word made for an incredibly intimate night — and when that final note faded, my night came to an end, grateful, after 20 years of singing along to Ben’s albums, I was finally able to do it along side him.