Jean-Yves Thériault

Jean-Yves Thériault (born December 15, 1962), also known as Blacky, is a Canadian musician, composer, producer, and sound engineer best known as the co-founding bassist of the progressive metal band Voivod.

Born in Jonquière, Quebec, Thériault began his professional music career in 1982 at age 20, co-founding Voivod with guitarist Denis "Piggy" d'Amour, vocalist Denis "Snake" Bélanger, and drummer Michel "Away" Langevin. He played bass on the band's early albums, including War and Pain (1984) and Nothingface (1989), contributing to their unique blend of thrash, progressive, and sci-fi-themed metal until his departure in 1991. Thériault rejoined Voivod in 2008, participating in tours and recordings like Target Earth (2013), before leaving again in 2014.

Beyond Voivod, Thériault has composed scores for contemporary dance companies such as The Holy Body Tattoo and films, and founded the electronic music project Cœur Atomique with Monica Emond, releasing albums like Lost in the 80s ( 2020 ). He owns Minemine Records and BYW Audio, focusing on production and custom gear. His work has influenced the progressive metal genre and Canadian independent music scene.

Jean-Yves Thériault was born on December 15, 1962, in Jonquière , Quebec , Canada , a town now integrated into the larger city of Saguenay.

Thériault grew up in a predominantly working-class community in the Saguenay–Lac-Saint-Jean region, where the economy revolved around heavy industry, particularly the massive aluminum production facilities of the Arvida complex, which was the largest in the Western world during that era. This industrial environment shaped daily life for many families in Jonquière during the 1960s and 1970s, a period marked by economic reliance on resource extraction and manufacturing amid broader provincial changes.

The cultural milieu of his upbringing was deeply rooted in French-Canadian heritage, with Quebec's Quiet Revolution fostering a surge in secularism, nationalism, and cultural expression that influenced regional identity and community life. In the Saguenay–Lac-Saint-Jean area, an emerging local music scene began to take shape in the 1970s, supported by new vocational training programs in music at institutions like the Lac-Saint-Jean College starting in 1970. These elements provided a formative backdrop before Thériault's interests turned toward music in his adolescence.

During his teenage years in the industrial town of Jonquière , Quebec , Jean-Yves Thériault developed a strong interest in rock and metal music, drawing significant influences from pioneering acts such as Rush , Pink Floyd , and Motörhead . This environment in Quebec fostered his initial musical explorations, allowing him to immerse himself in the sounds of progressive and heavy genres that would shape his future style.

Prior to his involvement in professional music, Thériault worked as a DJ at a local pub in Jonquière , where he spun records and honed his ear for diverse sounds. It was during this period, around 1981 when he was about 18 years old, that guitarist Denis D'Amour discovered him and encouraged him to take up the bass guitar to form a band.

Thériault's bass playing was largely self-taught, with initial guidance from D'Amour providing the foundation for his skills, though he had no formal training . He acquired his first bass instrument through this early collaboration and dedicated time to practice, emphasizing consistent improvement in his musicianship and technical abilities, including basic fingerstyle techniques and exploratory approaches to sound. These pre-professional experiences in Jonquière laid the groundwork for his development as a bassist , blending self-directed learning with the local music scene's informal influences.

Jean-Yves Thériault (the kickboxer, born January 15, 1955) has no association with the progressive metal band Voivod.