Jay Weinberg | |
|---|---|
 Weinberg performing withSuicidal Tendencies in 2024 | |
| Background information | |
| Birth name | Jay Bradley Weinberg[1] |
| Born | (1990-09-08)September 8, 1990 (age 34)[2] |
| Origin | Middletown Township, New Jersey, U.S. |
| Genres | |
| Occupation | Drummer |
| Years active | 2005–present |
| Member of | |
| Formerly of | |
Jay Bradley Weinberg (born September 8, 1990) is an American musician who is best known as the former drummer of thenu metal bandSlipknot. He is the son of longtimeBruce Springsteen drummerMax Weinberg. He played with thepunk rock band the Reveling[3] and toured in 2009 as a drummer with Bruce Springsteen'sE Street Band, substituting for his father.[4] During 2010, he was briefly the drummer forMadball. During 2011 and 2012, Weinberg played withAgainst Me!. In 2014, Weinberg replacedJoey Jordison as the drummer forSlipknot, and stayed with the band until his firing in November 2023. In 2024, Weinberg was announced as the new drummer forInfectious Grooves, replacingBrooks Wackerman, and is also currently inSuicidal Tendencies.[5]
Weinberg is the son of drummerMax Weinberg, the drummer ofthe E Street Band since 1975;[4] his mother, Rebecca "Becky" (Schick), was a former teacher.[6] He grew up inMiddletown Township, New Jersey.[6] His mother was aMethodist and his fatherJewish.[7][8] His sister is Ali Weinberg Rogin (married toJosh Rogin).[9] As a child, he played travel teamice hockey as agoaltender.[6][3][10] At age 9, he first saw the E Street Band on their 1999–2000Reunion Tour,[3] and saw shows on this and subsequent tours, especially in Europe.[6] Around the same time his father took him toOzzfest to seeSlipknot, which gave him a strong affinity for heavy metal and other intense music genres;[11] his father also exposed him to a wide variety of other music.[6] He began playing guitar at age 9, and started playing bass at age 12 or 13.[6] He then started playing drums at age 14, getting only few lessons from his father without much instruction and being mostly self-taught,[3][12][13] using his father's old gear.[11] By the next year he had performed a guest appearance on stage with bandThe Used and subsequently withpunk rockersthe Bouncing Souls.[3] He played in the New Jersey metal band Chaosis.[10] He attendedRumson-Fair Haven Regional High School where he played on the hockey team for a time, played in a band called Sadie Mae, and graduated in 2008.[6][12]
Weinberg graduated fromStevens Institute of Technology inNew Jersey in 2014.[11][14] He joined the New York punk band the Reveling in August 2008, which plays before small audiences in venues such as the Ace of Clubs nightspot in Manhattan, various spots in Brooklyn, and elsewhere.[6][12][15] With them he does some of the band's songwriting and arranging.[12]
Jay Weinberg's first appearance with Springsteen was in the summer of 2008, filling in for his father on "Born to Run" atGiants Stadium after having watched many other performances during theMagic Tour.[3] Springsteen's 2009Working on a Dream Tour posed a problem for Max Weinberg, asThe Tonight Show with Conan O'Brien in Los Angeles – for which he wasthe Max Weinberg 7 bandleader – was starting at the same time that the tour would be in progress.[16] Springsteen's managerJon Landau viewed Weinberg as the "secret weapon" to substitute for his father without losing fan satisfaction.[3] Both Landau and E Street guitaristSteve Van Zandt attributed Jay Weinberg's skills to a genetic gift.[3][17]
Once the initial portion of the tour began in early April 2009, Weinberg played from several songs to half the show on most of the dates.[11][15][18][19] He received a very positive reaction from both audiences and reviewers as a re-energizing "spark plug"[19] for the much-older band,[20] with his vigorous, long-hair-flying style inviting comparisons toDave Grohl[21] and his potential for replacing his father drawing allusions toWally Pipp.[10][18] He began playing complete shows in mid-May 2009 during the tour's American first leg, as his father went to California to prepare test runs forThe Tonight Show start.[12][20]Modern Drummer magazine's editor said that a college freshman playing on one of the year's biggest rock tours is "certainly a unique story".[12] Weinberg played a number of dates early on in the European second leg of the tour, including at the DutchPinkpop festival inLandgraaf, Netherlands in addition toBonnaroo inManchester, Tennessee. He also played during a few dates of the American third and final leg. When not needed for the Springsteen tour, he continued to play for the Reveling, often before audiences that were three orders of magnitude smaller; he said of the difference, "I liked the duality of it all ... I like doing this just as much as I like doing that."[15]
On June 22, 2024, Weinberg made a surprise appearance on drums for the song "Radio Nowhere" at Springsteen and the E Street Band's show inBarcelona, Spain during their2023-2024 tour.
In February 2010, Weinberg began playing withMadball, ahardcore band based out of New York City.[22] In June of that year, it was announced that he would become the drummer for their upcoming albumEmpire and a tour.[22] However, in September 2010 the group discharged him, with Madball vocalistFreddy Cricien saying, "I'm letting Jay go [mid-tour] in Canada because I just feel he doesn't represent this band well on a character level."[23] In response, Weinberg said that he had already quit the group by that time, and that "while I really enjoyed playing the music, I do not subscribe to their choice of habits and lifestyle. This past August while on tour in Europe, disturbing events within the band indicated to me that it was time for me to move on."[24] In any case, Weinberg said both he and the group should be proud ofEmpire.[24]
In November 2010, it was announced that Weinberg would be playing drums withpunk rock bandAgainst Me! for their upcoming 2011 shows, covering for regular drummer George Rebelo while he toured with his other band,Hot Water Music.[25] As 2011 unfolded, the arrangement looked to possibly be more permanent.[26] Weinberg also sat in a bit with the bandFences during 2011. In late 2011, Against Me! began recording their first album with Weinberg on drums.[27] However, in December 2012, Weinberg announced viaTwitter, without notifying the other members beforehand, that he was leaving Against Me!.[28] Via Twitter, he wished the band well, to which the other three members responded with a picture of adrum machine.[28]
In 2014, Weinberg became the drummer forSlipknot following the departure ofJoey Jordison in late 2013. Although the drummer's identity had not been officially revealed by the band itself, preferring to keep the identity of the new members (a new bassist, confirmed to beAlessandro Venturella, had also joined the band) a secret as they were not official members at that time. Weinberg had been a fan of the band from a young age, and it had given him motive and "a lot to prove" to his bandmates.[29] A former drum technician for the band leaked their itinerary, revealing the drummer to be Weinberg. Venturella was also named on the itinerary, though fans had identified him earlier via his distinctive hand tattoos.[30] Weinberg was eventually officially revealed to be the drummer byJim Root in an interview withUltimate Guitar on May 13, 2015.[31]
On November 5, 2023, Slipknot posted onInstagram that they would "part ways" with Weinberg as part of a "creative decision".[32] Weinberg later said he was "blindsided" and "heartbroken" over being fired.[33] Weinberg was replaced in 2024 bySepultura drummerEloy Casagrande.[34]
In January, Weinberg joined supergroupInfectious Grooves, replacingBrooks Wackerman. On March 23, 2024, Weinberg played his first show with the band. Weinberg was recruited by Infectious Grooves for the band's first live appearances since a one-off show in 2019 due to Wackerman's commitments toAvenged Sevenfold. After Weinberg's arrival, the band entered the studio to record a new song. The track, which was co-written by former guitarist Adam Siegel, will mark the band's first release with Weinberg.[35]
In March 2024, Weinberg joinedSuicidal Tendencies replacingGreyson Nekrutman, who joinedSepultura after the departure of Eloy Casagrande, who later filled the position of Weinberg in Slipknot.[36]
Jay Weinberg currently endorses SJC Custom Drums,Zildjian Cymbals,Evans Drumheads,DW Hardware,Roland, andVater drumsticks.[37]
| Preceded by | Slipknotdrummer 2014-2023 |
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