Draft:Ben Greenberg (musician)

  • Comment: Lots of interviews, a couple of user-generated sources. Please clean up the sourcing and re-submit. Phuzion (talk) 16:34, 31 October 2023 (UTC)
  • Comment: There is an existing article with the same title as this draft, which is about a different person with the same name. If this draft is accepted, the existing primary page should be renamed with a disambiguator, and this draft should be made primary. The hatnote at the top of this draft indicates what the new title of the current primary should be.
    The current primary page is Ben Greenberg. Robert McClenon (talk) 05:06, 27 June 2023 (UTC)

Ben Greenberg
Greenberg c. 2017
Greenberg c. 2017
Background information
BornFebruary 22, 1985
OriginManhattan, New York, U.S.
GenresMetal, hardcore, punk, jazz, rock, indie rock, classical, new music, electronic, industrial
Occupation(s)Record producer, audio engineer, musician, songwriter, composer
Instrument(s)Guitar, bass, drums, keys
Years active1997–present
LabelsSacred Bones, Alter, NNA Tapes, Northern Spy, Matador, Three One G, The Social Registry, Wharf Cat Records, Husky Pants, Wäntage USA, JKSHK

Ben Greenberg is an American record producer, audio engineer, guitarist, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist. He is known as a member of Uniform and for his solo project, Hubble, and formerly of The Men, Zs, and Pygmy Shrews.[1] With Uniform, Greenberg has performed and toured alongside many household names in metal and hardcore, including Boris, Converge, Napalm Death, Mayhem, Deafheaven, and Drab Majesty.[2] Greenberg has also performed for legendary composers Terry Riley and Glenn Branca.[3]

Greenberg is a prolific producer and engineer, having produced and mixed many records from the catalogs of Sacred Bones, Dais, Captured Tracks, Flying Nun, and Toxic State, as well as Fire Records, 4AD, Anti-, Sub Pop, Loma Vista, Relapse, Matador, DFA, Run For Cover, Iron Lung, Luaka Bop, Profound Lore, Amphetamine Reptile, Three One G, and Load Records.[4][5] In the studio, he has worked with musical acts including Danny Elfman, Depeche Mode, Wicca Phase Springs Eternal, Junglepussy, Show Me The Body, METZ, Portrayal of Guilt, Black Marble, Drew McDowall, VR Sex, Beach Fossils, Soft Kill, Algiers, Ceremony, Bing & Ruth, Bad Breeding, CHRISTEENE, Deradoorian, The Holydrug Couple, Pharmakon, and Institute.[6]

Since the mid-2010s, Greenberg has mixed film scores including Mandy, It Comes At Night, Problemista, Blow The Man Down, and Fair Play.

In 2020, Greenberg co-founded the recording studio Circular Ruin with Randall Dunn and Arjan Miranda.[7]

Early life and education

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Greenberg was born in the Chelsea neighborhood of Manhattan, New York City, and raised in Riverdale, in the Bronx.[8] In 2007, he graduated from the School of Jazz and Contemporary Music at The New School, where he studied composition, orchestration and improvisation.[9]

Career

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Music

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Greenberg started playing venues around the Lower East Side of Manhattan as a teenager, performing in countless bands, culminating as Pygmy Shrews in his early 20s.[10] While attending The New School, Greenberg joined Little Women and the New Music band Zs.[11][12]

Greenberg premiered his solo project Hubble in 2010 with a video he soundtracked for NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope images.[13][14] As Hubble, Greenberg has released records on Northern Spy and NNA tapes, and performed at venues including Pioneer Works and ISSUE Project Room.[15]

Upon joining The Men as their bassist in 2012, Greenberg was described by Ben Ratliff in The New York Times as “a good musician [...] and boss of his own one-man guitar project, Hubble.” He wrote, “If you feel a lack of some binding agent in the Men on their record, you might have felt that [Greenberg’s] exactly what they need: a rug to tie the room together.”[16] The Men toured internationally and released several records to critical acclaim.[17]

In 2013, Greenberg co-founded the industrial metal band Uniform with vocalist Michael Berdan.[18][19][20] They have released a number of critically acclaimed albums on Sacred Bones Records including several collaborative albums with The Body, and Boris. They have remixed many other artists including John Carpenter. In 2017 their song ‘Habit’ was featured in an episode of David Lynch’s beloved series Twin Peaks: The Return.[21] Uniform has toured worldwide with the likes of Converge, Boris, Deafheaven, Drab Majesty, The Body, and Noothgrush.[22]

In 2014 and 2015, Greenberg played guitar in Music Blues, a project helmed by the experimental rock band Harvey Milk’s bassist Stephen Tanner. Also in 2015, Amen DunesCowboy Worship EP was released on Sacred Bones, featuring guitar by Greenberg on a cover of Tim Buckley’s “Song To The Siren”.[23][24]

In 2016, Red Bull Music Academy Festival in New York honored avant-garde composer Glenn Branca with a performance of Branca’s 8th, 10th, and 12th Symphonies at Manhattan’s Masonic Hall. Vice Magazine named Greenberg as part of the “all-star cast of guitarists” to play.[25]

In December 2019, Greenberg performed alongside Terry Riley at Pioneer Works’ celebration of the minimalist composer’s 85th year.[26]

Film and Television

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Composer Brian McOmber’s original soundtrack for the A24 2015 film Krisha marked Greenberg’s foray into mix engineering for film and television. Greenberg became the composer’s primary mix engineer, and proceeded to mix McOmber’s scores for It Comes At Night (A24), Kingdom of Silence (Showtime), 16 Shots (Showtime), Little Woods (Neon), Blow The Man Down (Amazon), and Mickey and The Bear (Utopia).[27]

In 2017, Greenberg was the mix assistant to Randall Dunn’s production of the score for Panos Cosmatos’ horror film Mandy, composed by Icelandic composer Jóhann Jóhannsson.[28] The score won numerous awards and nominations, including the Austin Film Critics Association’s 2019 Best Score Award, the Seattle Film Critics Society 2018 Best Original Score Award, and the Fangoria Chainsaw Awards 2019 Best Score Award.

In 2022, Greenberg and Dunn co-mixed the score for Julio Torres’ comedy film Problemista, produced by Emma Stone and distributed by A24.

Greenberg mixed the score by Ella Van Der Woude for Luis De Filippius’ 2022 film Something You Said Last Night, and composed an original song for one scene. He also mixed the score for the theatrical release of 32 Sounds, an immersive sound documentary by director Sam Green and scored by JD Samson of Le Tigre.

Greenberg mixed Brian McOmber’s score to Chloe Domont’s Fair Play, an erotic thriller film and her feature directorial debut, which premiered at the 2023 Sundance Film Festival and was acquired by Netflix for $20 million in 2023.

Filmography

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Production Credits

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References

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  1. ^ "Interview: Ben Greenberg (The Men, Hubble)". Tiny Mix Tapes. Retrieved 2023-05-24.
  2. ^ Heasley, Ellis (2020-10-17). "Uniform: Always Looking Forward". Distorted Sound Magazine. Retrieved 2023-05-24.
  3. ^ Voyce, Keagon (2016-05-16). "Glenn Branca's Really Experimental Music: Why the Composer Is Still Punk After All These Years". Vice (in Danish). Retrieved 2023-05-25.
  4. ^ "Ben Greenberg of the Men". tapeop.com. Retrieved 2023-05-25.
  5. ^ "Ben Greenberg". Discogs. Retrieved 2023-05-25.
  6. ^ "Ben Greenberg | Credits". AllMusic. Retrieved 2023-05-25.
  7. ^ "Five Sounds With Ben Greenberg". Vintage King Blog. 2022-02-22. Retrieved 2023-05-24.
  8. ^ "Five Sounds With Ben Greenberg". Vintage King Blog. 2022-02-22. Retrieved 2023-05-24.
  9. ^ York, The New School 66 West 12th Street New; Ny 10011 (2013-02-28). "Jazz Alumnus and his Band Land Cover of the Voice - New School News". blogs.newschool.edu. Retrieved 2023-05-25.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  10. ^ "Ben Greenberg of Hubble, Pygmy Shrews, and Zs – Impose Magazine". Retrieved 2023-05-25.
  11. ^ Nast, Condé. "Hubble: Hubble Drums". Pitchfork. Retrieved 2023-05-25.
  12. ^ "The Knitting Factory Taught Me How to Be a Musician in New York - AdHoc". 2018-11-07. Retrieved 2023-05-25.
  13. ^ "Ben Greenberg of Hubble, Pygmy Shrews, and Zs – Impose Magazine". Retrieved 2023-05-20.
  14. ^ "Interview: Ben Greenberg (The Men, Hubble)". Tiny Mix Tapes. Retrieved 2023-05-25.
  15. ^ Shapiro, Benjamin (2011-11-17). "Ben Greenberg's New Band Is a Spectral Shredfest". Vice. Retrieved 2023-05-20.
  16. ^ Ratliff, Ben (2012-03-08). "Slouchy Rock Cruisers, With New Bassist in Tow". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2023-05-24.
  17. ^ Tedder, Michael (March 7, 2014). "Reigning Men: Brooklyn's Busiest, Most Restless Band Offers 'Tomorrow's Hits' Today". Spin.
  18. ^ "On learning how to set yourself free". thecreativeindependent.com. Retrieved 2023-05-25.
  19. ^ "Uniform's Ben Greenberg: 10 Songs That've Helped Me Through Dark Times". Revolver. 2018-11-26. Retrieved 2023-05-25.
  20. ^ Dunlea, Reed (2014-03-27). "Elements of The Men, Drunkdriver and a Nervous Breakdown Wrapped Into One: A Conversation With Uniform". Vice. Retrieved 2023-05-25.
  21. ^ "Uniform Albums and Discography". AllMusic. Retrieved 2023-05-25.
  22. ^ Ludwig, Jamie (2018-08-18). "Industrial noise-rock band Uniform are reborn with The Long Walk, their latest for Sacred Bones". Fact Magazine. Retrieved 2023-05-25.
  23. ^ Nast, Condé. "Amen Dunes: Cowboy Worship EP". Pitchfork. Retrieved 2023-05-24.
  24. ^ "Clocktower - Radio". clocktower.org. Retrieved 2023-05-25.
  25. ^ Voyce, Keagon (2016-05-16). "Glenn Branca's Really Experimental Music: Why the Composer Is Still Punk After All These Years". Vice (in Danish). Retrieved 2023-05-24.
  26. ^ "Terry Riley Live at 85". Terry Riley Live at 85. Retrieved 2023-05-25.
  27. ^ "Ben Greenberg | Credits". AllMusic. Retrieved 2023-05-24.
  28. ^ Walsh, Dominic (2020-09-20). "Ben Greenberg of Uniform: Interview". At The Barrier. Retrieved 2023-05-24.