Peter Nicholls is the lead singer of the progressive rock

Progressive rock

Progressive rock is a subgenre of rock music that developed in the late 1960s and early 1970s as part of a "mostly British attempt to elevate rock music to new levels of artistic credibility." John Covach, in Contemporary Music Review, says that many thought it would not just "succeed the pop of...

 band IQ

IQ (band)

IQ are a British neo-progressive rock band founded by Mike Holmes and Martin Orford in 1981 following the dissolution of their original band The Lens...

. Nicholls left the band briefly in the late 1980s to form the alternative rock band Niadem's Ghost but returned in 1991. He is known for his entertaining if somewhat reticent and eccentric stage presence.

Another interest of Nicholls is painting; he painted the album cover

Album cover

An album cover is the front of the packaging of a commercially released audio recording product, or album. The term can refer to either the printed cardboard covers typically used to package sets of 10" and 12" 78 rpm records, single and sets of 12" LPs, sets of 45 rpm records , or the front-facing...

s for IQ's second, third and sixth album

Album

An album is a collection of recordings, released as a single package on gramophone record, cassette, compact disc, or via digital distribution. The word derives from the Latin word for list .Vinyl LP records have two sides, each comprising one half of the album...

s, respectively Tales from the Lush Attic

Tales from the Lush Attic

Tales From The Lush Attic, released in 1983, was the second studio album by neo-progressive rock group IQ, following the cassette-only Seven Stories into Eight...

, The Wake and Ever

Ever (IQ album)

Ever is the sixth studio album by neo-progressive rock band IQ. It features the return of Peter Nicholls to the lineup of the band, and a return of a more progressive sound.- Track listing :# "The Darkest Hour" – 10:52# "Fading Senses" – 6:36...

, among others.