Robertson Bruce Holt

We mournfully announce the passing of Robertson Bruce Holt, 47, of Caledon.
Rob passed away on Sunday October 8, 2023 after a hard fought battle with lymphoma.

Born on January 16, 1976, in Toronto, Rob attended Martingrove Collegiate Institute in Etobicoke and went on to attend Brock University, completing a degree in Psychology. He pursued a career in video game design and sound. Later, Rob attended Osteopathy school and had plans to work as an Osteopath. 

A self-described polymath with a wide range of knowledge, passions and hobbies, Rob made friends in many circles and was loved by all. For those who aren’t familiar with the term polymath, Rob would love you to google it!

Those who knew him were never surprised when he would share a new hobby, project or artistic venture that he was part of including: creating expansive Warhammer battle landscapes, having a late night show on the university radio, running the local anime club which at that time was “deeply uncool” and required trips to Suspect Video and Silver Snail, being in a Superbowl commercial with Jackie Chan and Michael Jordan, a skilled Dungeon Master running D&D campaigns, getting to present a talk at Roy Thompson Hall, designing and printing three complete Tarot decks and even publishing a comedic book, Aphids and Aphorisms 101 Musings for Perusing under the pen name Algernon Bysshe Alterdoom. Robertson was also an avid computer and electronics collector; a large portion of his collection was donated to the York University Computer Museum to be part of their curated exhibits as one of Canada’s leading centers for documentation for computer history.

Amongst all his varied interests, his greatest passion was music. An avid drummer who also loved composing electronic and ambient music, he spent countless hours writing, performing and evolving through different styles and bands including: Billy's Masonic Tavern, Lobster Rock Tokyo, Coyote On Peyote, Space Farm, Pokkettronikks, G Group, Mikrosleep and Adjala. Rob had the opportunity to perform at many indie music venues in Toronto, DJ’d events, as well as performed on Twitch streaming events. 

Rob felt his greatest work was his most recent album “Live from the 15^th Floor”. The work was completely composed and edited while undergoing stem cell transplant and needing to be in reverse isolation on the 15^th floor at Princess Margaret Hospital in Toronto. This album is available to stream at: https://adjala.bandcamp.com/album/live-from-the-15th-floor

Rob will be remembered as a humanitarian who helped so many with his empathetic, kind nature, and always making those around him laugh through his gifted sense of humour. He will be deeply missed by all, as he was one of a kind.