Quitting Dentistry & An Extra Thumb: Cub Sport's Tim Nelson Plays 'Two Truths & A Lie'

The music industry needs its positive heroes and Tim Nelson and husband Sam Netterfield of Cub Sport ooze so much positivity from their pores, it’s a genuinely refreshing thing to witness. Instead of dwelling on less than ideal moments and tough situations, the duo seem to focus instead on the love, acceptance and resilience they’ve learnt through life together and they spread this like rabies (in a good way!) to their fans, Instagram followers and now, internationally, with critical recognition from the likes of Billboard and PAPER magazine. 

It’s not my first time chatting to the angelic voice behind Cub Sport and Nelson is gracious as usual, speaking deliberately and thoughtfully. His blonde ringlets are looking very Botticelli painting-like these days, and it doesn’t hurt that he's super comfortable showing off the many backyard tattoos on his torso like some sort of modern-day marble statue. The band’s music videos are always body positive, artful, freeing celebrations of sexuality – and as Nelson explains, after years of hiding who they were, it’s what now comes naturally to he and Sam.  

The quartet have just dropped their latest self-titled record to much acclaim and Nelson describes it as “a true arrival of Cub Sport”, tying in two of his stories to how they’ve ended up where they are musically today. 

Truth  

Tim: One of the truths that I thought could be interesting, is that I was born with two thumbs on my right hand. 

Uppy: Oh wow, yeah, that’s a good one! Two thumbs on your right hand?

T: Yeah, so my right thumb had an extra thumb growing out of the side of it. It had like a nail, and it’s own knuckle and stuff. 

U: Wow! Could you move it? 

T: Yeah, it was removed but the surgeon wasn’t really happy with the job he did and he wanted to have another crack at it, but mum and dad were like, ‘No it’s fine. It doesn’t need to look perfect.’ So yeah, my right hand still has the extra knuckle that was there from the other thumb, but the tip of it has been cut off. 

U: Oh wow, that’s kinda scary. How old were you when you had the surgery? 

T: I think I was like one, or less than one. I have no recollection of it! 

U: So there aren’t even photos of it? 

T: There are a couple of old film photos that have been getting around, but yeah it hasn’t been documented that much. 

U: Pre-social media and all. Do you kinda wish now that you still had it? 

T: I’m pretty good with not having an extra thumb tip! The big knuckle used to get in the way of playing piano, and I feel like if I had any more of an extra thumb on there, it would’ve started to interrupt me.  

U: You might’ve had a bigger range on the piano with your sixth finger! 

T: [Laughs] yeah, who knows what I would’ve been capable of. 

U: It’s funny, because animals get this kind of thing too and it’s called being polydactyl. I’m on Cool Cat Group and Cool Dog Group on Facebook and there are so many cats and dogs with like, extra little fingers. It’s so cute, they have the biggest paws. 

T: There you go, I’m not alone! 

U: No you’re not! How are your dogs by the way? 

T: They’re so good, they get cuter and sweeter every day. 

U: I bet they do. Little Evie and Missy. 

Truth 

T: So one that’s sort of interesting or unexpected, is that I was studying to be a dentist before starting to pursue music full time. 

U: I remember you telling me that actually in our first interview ever! Wasn’t Sam a dentist too, or worked in a dentist’s clinic? 

T: Yeah, so Sam is a qualified dentist hygienist plus therapist, although he hasn’t updated his registration so he actually isn’t anymore, as of a couple of months ago. So I quit dentistry in my third year and we worked together at an orthodontic practice, and I worked there up until last year. So yeah, we’ve been in the dental game together for a little while. 

U: You both have such great teeth, it makes sense! 

T: Oh, thank you. 

U: So how long is a dental degree, is it three years out of five? 

T: Five years in total, yeah. It’s like three years to get a Bachelor of Dental Science, and then another two years to actually be able to practice. And yeah I dropped out right at the start of my third year because I wasn’t gonna be able to go on tour or play any shows. I didn’t really vibe dentistry – I think I always knew that music was what I needed to do with my life.  

U: That’s sick. Do you think you’d ever go back and finish? 

T: I’m like CERTAIN that it isn’t for me [laughs].

U: Does Sam still vibe dentistry? Would he go back and do it again when he’s like 50?  

T: No, I think we’re both gonna stay as far away from the dental game as we can [laughs].

U: I vaguely remember you telling me a story about you guys being recognised while they were in the dentist’s chair!  

T: Yeahh, it kind of happened more and more since our last tour as well. There are times when people have their phones out snapchatting Sam taking their braces off and stuff. 

U: [Laughs] that’s pretty funny.  

T: It’s a very interesting situation for it to happen in. 

U: Exactly. When did Sam quit? 

T: A couple of months ago – he needed to update the registration and we decided it would be good for him to just not update it and put it out into the universe that that isn’t gonna be a part of his life going into this next era. And it’s kind of what is unfolding! 

U: Amazing. Full time musos now!  

Lie 

T: So this is a lie that went on for a really long time, that I was pretending that I was straight for a good chunk of my life.  

U: So when did you kind of first question it and think that you might be gay?  

T: When I was 15, I started to develop a crush on Sam ‘cause we went to school together. I had a crush on him for probably a couple of years before anything happened. I think my fears of what would happen to me if I acknowledged that and told people and lived it out publicly kind of trumped everything. We went to a Christian school and it felt like everywhere we went, we were in the same bubble. And in that bubble, being gay was the worst thing ever, so it was like, ‘Do I want to completely ruin my life to have this? Or do I do what’s gonna be easy?’ and I chose what I thought was the easy path, which resulted in years of eternal anguish and battles, but I feel like it all happened for a reason to bring us to where we are now.  

U: That’s so tough. Do you remember any instances where you almost got found out? Did someone ever suspect and you had to be like, ‘No, no what are you talking about?’ 

T: I feel like a lot of people suspected, but it was a situation where it was easier for everyone to just not acknowledge what was happening because I feel like the environment we were in at that time of our lives was just… so… challenging, that no one knew how to deal with it, so it was just swept under the rug. I feel like I got better at pretending to be someone I wasn’t. Eventually, after I guess years of battling with it internally, it was when the Pulse Nightclub attack happened in Orlando in 2016, I remember Ed Droste from Grizzly Bear put a post on his Insta basically saying that he wanted to include his sexuality in Grizzly Bear’s first bio and be open about that from the start, just because there’s so much worth in representation. It’s still something that I feel like there can’t be enough. That whole time – we were over in the States and it was Pride Month, so we were seeing all these Pride festivals happening. We went along to one in Denver when we had a day off and there was such a sense of love and community at those things, especially in the wake of the Orlando attack. That was kind of the final push for Sam to tell me that he wanted to be with me, and that it was time to acknowledge that and start living that out. And I was like, ‘Yup, I’m the same,’ and we got back from tour a couple of days later and we both came out to our families and friends, and it kind of feels like once we stopped letting fears get in the way of our happiness, everything just started opening up around us and it felt like a new start at life. 

U: Yeah, that’s so awesome. It just goes to show – when it feels like you’re in a safe space and see the community around you, it drives you to want to feel that as well.  

T: Exactly. And it’s been so inspiring for us as well developing a culture around Cub Sport. And it feels like us and our fans feel like an extension of that, a safe place of acceptance. That connection is the driving force behind us and continuing to follow our creativeness fearlessly and open up and be our whole selves. There are so many people who are ready to accept and celebrate that, and I think when you see someone embracing your whole self, it gives you permission to do the same. 

U: 100%.  

T: So yeah, it’s an amazing thing to have experienced that and to now pass that on and have it be such a big part of our lives. 

U: It’s QUITE literally spreading the love to other people and your fans. 

Cub Sport’s new self-titled album, Cub Sport, is out now. The band are currently on tour in the UK, before returning to Australia for headline shows from 6 April.  

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If you’re a musician and have some stories to share and some secrets to tell – be it hilarious or heartbreaking, humiliating or honourable – send us an email at twotruthscolumn[at]gmail[dot]com. 

We might be telling the whole world about the time you accidentally killed your brother’s pet snake and replaced it without anyone knowing in no time.