Benjamin Clapp
Encyclopedia
Benjamin Clapp is an American musician from Boise, Idaho
. He has performed, composed, and recorded music with numerous artists, most notably Jim Breuer
, Jesse Blaze Snider
and Baptized By Fire
, Tom Marshall
and Amfibian
, Kronos Quartet
, Erik Sanko
and Skeleton Key, Dee Snider
(Twisted Sister
), David Peel (The Lower East Side
), and White Trash
.
in Idaho public schools. He studied privately under bass trombonist Mark Sellman for a number of years, and was awarded the Louis Armstrong Award
in 1995, as well as performance awards at Boise State University
and the Lionel Hampton International Jazz Festival
. Meanwhile he was self-learning to play drums; influenced early on by drummers Stewart Copeland
, Lars Ulrich
, and Dale Crover
.
drummer Paul Birnbaum
's departure from the band. The band went on to tour the West Coast, and release a number of singles and compilation tracks internationally, including the vinyl only 1995 release Step Into It, on German record label, Bilharziose. Through the next several years, Clapp was involved with a number of independent music projects in Boise, and went on to collaborate again with members of Haggis - this time with inclusion of Birnbaum
. Clapp was a founding member of the Adversives and the Mosquitones, and performed on all of their recorded releases and national tours.
Clapp formed independent record label
Spudtown Records in 1995, and released the vinyl only compilation 12 Songs You Won't Like By 12 Bands You've Never Heard of From Boise, Idaho. The label continued working with regional bands to release their EPs and albums under the moniker STMC (Spudtown Music Collective) until Clapp relocated to the East Coast.
, and within months was hired on as drummer for a Warsaw Poland Brothers US tour, performing for the first time with the band in New Orleans with no audition or rehearsal. Later the same year he moved to New Jersey
and became active in the music scene fostered by legendary promoter/performer Jack Monahan, at the Brighton Bar
. He was invited to join the Do Dads, who would then go on to 3 Asbury Park Music Award
nominations.
By recommendation from rock photographer Mark Weiss
to Twisted Sister
frontman Dee Snider
, Clapp was introduced to Snider's eldest son Jesse Blaze Snider
in 2004, and they went on to perform together as Blazed, and from 2006 to 2008 as Baptized By Fire
. Clapp also joined Erik Sanko
's band Skeleton Key in 2004 as their "junk percussionist", and became further recognized for his use of non-traditional percussion: "...the real dirty work's done by brutish showman Benjamin Clapp. He chucks broken cymbals up into the air and slugs them on their way down. He has the worlds most dangerous tambourine: A rectangular frame, I'm guessing 36" x 24", with CIRCULAR SAW BLADES strung on it." Skeleton Key continued to tour the United States and Canada with Clapp in the band, and recorded songs which would eventually go on to limited release as The Lyons Quintette EP.
Among a number of studio projects and touring artists that hire Clapp to perform on stage and in the studio, Phish
lyricist Tom Marshall
and his band Amfibian
feature Clapp's trombone playing on their studio albums From the Ether
and Skip the Goodbyes
. Clapp's trombone playing is also a fixture in the current line-up for Elektra Records
recording artists: White Trash
, and is heard on their 2009 release 3-D Monkeys In Space.
Boise, Idaho
Boise is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Idaho, as well as the county seat of Ada County. Located on the Boise River, it anchors the Boise City-Nampa metropolitan area and is the largest city between Salt Lake City, Utah and Portland, Oregon.As of the 2010 Census Bureau,...
. He has performed, composed, and recorded music with numerous artists, most notably Jim Breuer
Jim Breuer
Jim Breuer is an American stand-up comedian, actor and radio host. He is most noted for his time as a cast member on Saturday Night Live and starring in the 1998 cult "stoner comedy" Half Baked, alongside Dave Chappelle....
, Jesse Blaze Snider
Jesse Blaze Snider
Jesse Blaze Snider is a comic book writer, voice over actor, TV/radio host, semi-pro football player, and rock musician. He is the eldest son of Twisted Sister frontman and vocalist Dee Snider, with whom he appeared on the MTV reality show Rock the Cradle. He performs in the band Baptized By Fire...
and Baptized By Fire
Baptized By Fire
Baptized By Fire is an American rock band from the greater New York area, formed in 2006. The band consists of Jesse Blaze Snider, Danny Wacker, Dan Carlisle, and Benjamin Clapp.-Band history:...
, Tom Marshall
Tom Marshall (singer)
Tom Marshall is a lyricist, keyboardist and singer/songwriter best known for his association with Trey Anastasio and the rock band Phish...
and Amfibian
Amfibian
Amfibian is an American musical project led by Phish lyricist Tom Marshall.-History:Future members of the band appeared on Marshall's 2000 solo album Amfibian Tales, after which Marshall officially formed Amfibian as a proper band...
, Kronos Quartet
Kronos Quartet
Kronos Quartet is a string quartet founded by violinist David Harrington in 1973 in Seattle, Washington. Since 1978, the quartet has been based in San Francisco, California. The longest-running combination of performers had Harrington and John Sherba on violin, Hank Dutt on viola, and Joan...
, Erik Sanko
Erik Sanko
Erik Sanko is a bass player from New York who has played in The Lounge Lizards and currently active in Skeleton Key.-Biography:In the past he also worked with notable musicians like Marc Ribot, John Cale, Yoko Ono, Jim Carroll, Gavin Friday, They Might Be Giants, The Melvins, James Chance and the...
and Skeleton Key, Dee Snider
Dee Snider
Daniel "Dee" Snider is an American singer-songwriter, screenwriter, radio personality, and actor. Snider is most famous for his role as the frontman of the heavy metal band Twisted Sister...
(Twisted Sister
Twisted Sister
Twisted Sister is an American heavy metal band from Long Island. Musically, the band implements elements of traditional heavy metal bands such as Iron Maiden and Judas Priest, along with a style that is similar to early glam metal bands...
), David Peel (The Lower East Side
The Lower East Side Band
The Lower East Side Band is an American rock band from Manhattan, New York.-History:In the late 1960s the band recorded on Elektra Records and was a popular local Manhattan band. Formed originally as a backup band for David Peel, the band originally consisted of Harold C. Black and Billy Joe White...
), and White Trash
White Trash (metal band)
White Trash was a funk/hard rock/soul band from Queens, New York. They separated themselves from other bands in their genre with their horn section, called the Badass Brass, which gave them a very funky musical sound...
.
Background
At the age of eleven, Clapp began studying tromboneTrombone
The trombone is a musical instrument in the brass family. Like all brass instruments, sound is produced when the player’s vibrating lips cause the air column inside the instrument to vibrate...
in Idaho public schools. He studied privately under bass trombonist Mark Sellman for a number of years, and was awarded the Louis Armstrong Award
Louis Armstrong award
The Louis Armstrong Award is the "top senior jazz award", a highly prestigious award to a musician. It is given out by high schools nationwide to recognize "outstanding musical achievement and an incredible dedication to the program". Typically there is only one recipient per school...
in 1995, as well as performance awards at Boise State University
Boise State University
Boise State University is a public university located in Boise, Idaho. Originally founded in 1932 as a junior college by the Episcopal Church, the university became an independent institution in 1934, and has been awarding baccalaureate and master degrees since 1965...
and the Lionel Hampton International Jazz Festival
Lionel Hampton Jazz Festival
The Lionel Hampton International Jazz Festival is an annual jazz festival, the largest west of the Mississippi, that takes place on the campus of the University of Idaho in Moscow, Idaho in the month of February...
. Meanwhile he was self-learning to play drums; influenced early on by drummers Stewart Copeland
Stewart Copeland
Stewart Armstrong Copeland is an American musician, best known as the drummer for the band The Police. During the group's extended hiatus from the mid-1980s to 2007, he played in other bands and composed soundtracks...
, Lars Ulrich
Lars Ulrich
Lars Ulrich is a Danish drummer, and one of the founding members of the American thrash metal band Metallica. He was born in Gentofte, Denmark to an upper-middle class family. A tennis player in his youth, Ulrich moved to Los Angeles, California at age sixteen to pursue his training; though rather...
, and Dale Crover
Dale Crover
Dale Crover is an American rock musician. Crover is best known as the drummer for Melvins and Men of Porn, Shrinebuilder, and for a brief time, drummer for Nirvana. He is also guitarist and vocalist for Altamont...
.
1993-2001
In 1993, Clapp joined Boise punk band, Haggis, following ex-Septic DeathSeptic Death
Septic Death was a hardcore punk band fronted by artist Brian "Pushead" Schroeder on vocals. Septic Death's music became a major influence on bands like Integrity, Citizens Arrest, Infest, and many other bands tied to the hardcore punk, thrashcore, crust punk etc. scenes...
drummer Paul Birnbaum
Paul Birnbaum
Paul Birnbaum was born July 17, 1967 in Boise, Idaho. He is best known for being the drummer of the early to late eighties hardcore punk band Septic Death with the notorious artist Pushead. During the later years of which he went to drum for the band Attitude Adjustment who by then had changed the...
's departure from the band. The band went on to tour the West Coast, and release a number of singles and compilation tracks internationally, including the vinyl only 1995 release Step Into It, on German record label, Bilharziose. Through the next several years, Clapp was involved with a number of independent music projects in Boise, and went on to collaborate again with members of Haggis - this time with inclusion of Birnbaum
Paul Birnbaum
Paul Birnbaum was born July 17, 1967 in Boise, Idaho. He is best known for being the drummer of the early to late eighties hardcore punk band Septic Death with the notorious artist Pushead. During the later years of which he went to drum for the band Attitude Adjustment who by then had changed the...
. Clapp was a founding member of the Adversives and the Mosquitones, and performed on all of their recorded releases and national tours.
Clapp formed independent record label
Independent record label
An independent record label is a record label operating without the funding of or outside the organizations of the major record labels. A great number of bands and musical acts begin on independent labels.-Overview:...
Spudtown Records in 1995, and released the vinyl only compilation 12 Songs You Won't Like By 12 Bands You've Never Heard of From Boise, Idaho. The label continued working with regional bands to release their EPs and albums under the moniker STMC (Spudtown Music Collective) until Clapp relocated to the East Coast.
2001-present
In early 2001, Clapp moved to New York CityNew York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
, and within months was hired on as drummer for a Warsaw Poland Brothers US tour, performing for the first time with the band in New Orleans with no audition or rehearsal. Later the same year he moved to New Jersey
New Jersey
New Jersey is a state in the Northeastern and Middle Atlantic regions of the United States. , its population was 8,791,894. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York, on the southeast and south by the Atlantic Ocean, on the west by Pennsylvania and on the southwest by Delaware...
and became active in the music scene fostered by legendary promoter/performer Jack Monahan, at the Brighton Bar
Brighton Bar
The Brighton Bar is a famous punk club located at 121 Brighton Avenue in the resort community of Long Branch, New Jersey.The bar is owned by Greg Macolino, former lead singer of hardcore group Chronic Sick...
. He was invited to join the Do Dads, who would then go on to 3 Asbury Park Music Award
Asbury Park Music Awards
Asbury Park, New Jersey, USA has a rich musical history that includes a strong Blues tradition as well as the Jersey Shore sound. Artists associated with the town include Bruce Springsteen, Southside Johnny and the Asbury Jukes, Bon Jovi, and many others. Asbury Park's musical history, however, did...
nominations.
By recommendation from rock photographer Mark Weiss
Mark Weiss
Mark Weiss is an American rock and roll photographer. His most widely recognized photographs capture the look and aesthetic of music and celebrity personalities of the 1980s....
to Twisted Sister
Twisted Sister
Twisted Sister is an American heavy metal band from Long Island. Musically, the band implements elements of traditional heavy metal bands such as Iron Maiden and Judas Priest, along with a style that is similar to early glam metal bands...
frontman Dee Snider
Dee Snider
Daniel "Dee" Snider is an American singer-songwriter, screenwriter, radio personality, and actor. Snider is most famous for his role as the frontman of the heavy metal band Twisted Sister...
, Clapp was introduced to Snider's eldest son Jesse Blaze Snider
Jesse Blaze Snider
Jesse Blaze Snider is a comic book writer, voice over actor, TV/radio host, semi-pro football player, and rock musician. He is the eldest son of Twisted Sister frontman and vocalist Dee Snider, with whom he appeared on the MTV reality show Rock the Cradle. He performs in the band Baptized By Fire...
in 2004, and they went on to perform together as Blazed, and from 2006 to 2008 as Baptized By Fire
Baptized By Fire
Baptized By Fire is an American rock band from the greater New York area, formed in 2006. The band consists of Jesse Blaze Snider, Danny Wacker, Dan Carlisle, and Benjamin Clapp.-Band history:...
. Clapp also joined Erik Sanko
Erik Sanko
Erik Sanko is a bass player from New York who has played in The Lounge Lizards and currently active in Skeleton Key.-Biography:In the past he also worked with notable musicians like Marc Ribot, John Cale, Yoko Ono, Jim Carroll, Gavin Friday, They Might Be Giants, The Melvins, James Chance and the...
's band Skeleton Key in 2004 as their "junk percussionist", and became further recognized for his use of non-traditional percussion: "...the real dirty work's done by brutish showman Benjamin Clapp. He chucks broken cymbals up into the air and slugs them on their way down. He has the worlds most dangerous tambourine: A rectangular frame, I'm guessing 36" x 24", with CIRCULAR SAW BLADES strung on it." Skeleton Key continued to tour the United States and Canada with Clapp in the band, and recorded songs which would eventually go on to limited release as The Lyons Quintette EP.
Among a number of studio projects and touring artists that hire Clapp to perform on stage and in the studio, Phish
Phish
Phish is an American rock band noted for its musical improvisation, extended jams, and exploration of music across genres. Formed at the University of Vermont in 1983 , the band's four members – Trey Anastasio , Mike Gordon , Jon Fishman , and Page McConnell Phish is an American rock band...
lyricist Tom Marshall
Tom Marshall (singer)
Tom Marshall is a lyricist, keyboardist and singer/songwriter best known for his association with Trey Anastasio and the rock band Phish...
and his band Amfibian
Amfibian
Amfibian is an American musical project led by Phish lyricist Tom Marshall.-History:Future members of the band appeared on Marshall's 2000 solo album Amfibian Tales, after which Marshall officially formed Amfibian as a proper band...
feature Clapp's trombone playing on their studio albums From the Ether
From the Ether
From the Ether is the debut album from Amfibian, led by Phish lyricist Tom Marshall and guitarist Chris Metaxas. Marshall released a solo album in 2000 entitled Amfibian Tales, and later formed an official band based around the songs and other original compositions...
and Skip the Goodbyes
Skip the Goodbyes
Skip the Goodbyes is the second album from Amfibian, led by Phish lyricist Tom Marshall and guitarist Anthony Krizan. Marshall and Krizan are the only surviving members from the last album From the Ether Phish leader Trey Anastasio plays lead guitar on the title track.Former Amfibian member Chris...
. Clapp's trombone playing is also a fixture in the current line-up for Elektra Records
Elektra Records
Elektra Records is an American record label owned by Warner Music Group. In 2004, it was consolidated into WMG's Atlantic Records Group. After five years of dormancy, the label was revived by Atlantic in 2009....
recording artists: White Trash
White Trash (metal band)
White Trash was a funk/hard rock/soul band from Queens, New York. They separated themselves from other bands in their genre with their horn section, called the Badass Brass, which gave them a very funky musical sound...
, and is heard on their 2009 release 3-D Monkeys In Space.
Discography
- 1994 - Bitter (with Haggis) credit: drums
- 1994 - Encyclopedia of Post Punk Hits (with Haggis) credit: drums
- 1995 - 20 Bands Trash 20 Songs to Find The Way to Sesame Street v/a compilation (with Haggis) credit: drums
- 1995 - Toiletbowl Epiphonies (with The Mosquitones) credit: trombone
- 1995 - Wade Free Wherever v/a compilation (with Haggis) credit: drums
- 1995 - Step Into It (with Haggis) credit: drums
- 1995 - Drunk and Disorderly (with Haggis) credit: drums
- 1995 - 12 Songs You Won't Like by 12 Bands You've Never Heard Of v/a compilation (with Haggis) credit: drums
- 1995 - 12 Songs You Won't Like by 12 Bands You've Never Heard Of v/a compilation (with the Adversives) credit: vocals, guitar
- 1996 - The Search For Roger Ferris (with Adversives) credit: vocals, guitar
- 1996 - The Dread/The Adversives Split 10" (with the Adversives) credit: vocals, guitar
- 1996 - Wood Panel Pacer Wagon With Mags v/a compilation (with Haggis) credit: drums
- 1997 - Liverache: Tales From the Liver's Edge v/a compilation (with Haggis) credit: drums
- 1997 - Cause/The Adversives Split 7" (with the Adversives) credit: vocals, guitar
- 1997 - Making Human Junk v/a compilation (with the Adversives) credit: vocals, guitar
- 1997 - Mosquitones (with Mosquitones) credit: trombone
- 1998 - Coolidge 50 v/a compilation (with Haggis) credit: drums
- 1999 - Smile Upon The Children (with Diseased Media Society) credit: trombone
- 1999 - Dance of the Dishwasher (with Los Mosquitones) credit: trombone
- 1999 - Shotgun Response - Alliance In Defiance/The Adversives (with the Adversives) credit: vocals, guitar
- 2000 - Adversives (with the Adversives) credit: vocals, guitar
- 2001 - I Can't Sleep and I'm Never Awake (with The Unit Breed) credit: drums
- 2001 - Boise, Idaho v/a compilation (with Mosquitones) credit: drums
- 2004 - Live 1997-2003 (with Warsaw Poland Brothers) credit: drums
- 2004 - From the EtherFrom the EtherFrom the Ether is the debut album from Amfibian, led by Phish lyricist Tom Marshall and guitarist Chris Metaxas. Marshall released a solo album in 2000 entitled Amfibian Tales, and later formed an official band based around the songs and other original compositions...
(with AmfibianAmfibianAmfibian is an American musical project led by Phish lyricist Tom Marshall.-History:Future members of the band appeared on Marshall's 2000 solo album Amfibian Tales, after which Marshall officially formed Amfibian as a proper band...
) credit: trombone - 2004 - Highland at Euclid (with Mosquitones) credit: drums
- 2004 - Live at the Metro (with Skeleton Key) credit: trombone, junk percussion
- 2005 - Mermaid Parade (with the DoDads) credit: trombone
- 2005 - Now The Party Starts (with Blazed) credit: drums
- 2005 - The Lyons Quintette EP (with Skeleton Key) credit: trombone, junk percussion
- 2006 - Butterbrain (with Butterbrain) credit: trombone
- 2006 - Best of Ska and Rocksteady (with Warsaw Poland Brothers) credit: drums
- 2006 - Juggernaut EP (with Baptized By FireBaptized By FireBaptized By Fire is an American rock band from the greater New York area, formed in 2006. The band consists of Jesse Blaze Snider, Danny Wacker, Dan Carlisle, and Benjamin Clapp.-Band history:...
) credit: drums - 2007 - Flesheaters v/a compilation (with Baptized By FireBaptized By FireBaptized By Fire is an American rock band from the greater New York area, formed in 2006. The band consists of Jesse Blaze Snider, Danny Wacker, Dan Carlisle, and Benjamin Clapp.-Band history:...
) credit: drums - 2007 - Eclectric (with Sunny Daze) credit: trombone
- 2007 - Skip The GoodbyesSkip the GoodbyesSkip the Goodbyes is the second album from Amfibian, led by Phish lyricist Tom Marshall and guitarist Anthony Krizan. Marshall and Krizan are the only surviving members from the last album From the Ether Phish leader Trey Anastasio plays lead guitar on the title track.Former Amfibian member Chris...
(with AmfibianAmfibianAmfibian is an American musical project led by Phish lyricist Tom Marshall.-History:Future members of the band appeared on Marshall's 2000 solo album Amfibian Tales, after which Marshall officially formed Amfibian as a proper band...
) credit: trombone - 2007 - First To Fight (with Warsaw Poland Brothers) credit: drums
- 2008 - Code Red (with J-Henry) credit: trombone
- 2009 - Jayder (with Jayder) credit: drums
- 2009 - 3D Monkeys In Space (with White TrashWhite Trash (metal band)White Trash was a funk/hard rock/soul band from Queens, New York. They separated themselves from other bands in their genre with their horn section, called the Badass Brass, which gave them a very funky musical sound...
) credit: trombone - 2009 - Tales From Dirty Jersey (with Barry and the Penetrators) credit: trombone
- 2009 - The Long Evening (with Keith Monacchio) credit: trombone
- 2010 - Tropism (with Jesse Urmey) credit: trombone
- 2010 - Speak Softly and Carry a Big Stick (Vol. 1) (with Steve HonoshowskySteve HonoshowskySteve Honoshowsky is a professional musician raised in Basking Ridge, NJ. He began playing drums at the age of ten, inspired by the likes of Neil Peart, Bill Bruford, and Terry Bozzio. In 2008, Honoshowsky represented the United States at the YMCA Europe Festival in Prague, Czech Republic, giving...
) credit: drums