John Stanier is an American drummer who is best known for his work with

alternative metal Alternative metal (also known as alt-metal) is a genre of heavy metal music Heavy metal (or simply metal) is a genre of rock music that developed in the late 1960s and early 1970s, largely in the United Kingdom and United States. With r ...

band

Helmet A helmet is a form of protective gear worn to protect the head. More specifically, a helmet complements the skull in protecting the human brain. Ceremonial or symbolic helmets (e.g., a policeman's helmet in the United Kingdom) without protect ...

. He currently plays in

experimental rock Experimental rock, also called avant-rock, is a subgenre of rock music that pushes the boundaries of common composition and performance technique or which experiments with the basic elements of the genre. Artists aim to liberate and innovate, with ...

band

Battles A battle is an occurrence of combat in warfare between opposing military units of any number or size. A war usually consists of multiple battles. In general, a battle is a military engagement that is well defined in duration, area, and force ...

and has previously performed with

Tomahawk A tomahawk is a type of single-handed axe used by the many Indigenous peoples and nations of North America. It traditionally resembles a hatchet with a straight shaft. In pre-colonial times the head was made of stone, bone, or antler, and Europ ...

and

The Mark of Cain The curse of Cain and the mark of Cain are phrases that originated in the story of Cain and Abel in the Book of Genesis. In the stories, if someone harmed Cain, the damage would come back sevenfold. Some interpretations view this as a physica ...

, as well as performing on several releases as a studio musician. He is known for his speed, endurance, and precision as a performer. Stanier uses a Tama Artstar II

drum kit A drum kit (also called a drum set, trap set, or simply drums) is a collection of drums, cymbals, and other auxiliary percussion instruments set up to be played by one person. The player ( drummer) typically holds a pair of matching drumsti ...

Biography

Stanier grew up in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and Florida and is a veteran of the local

hardcore Hardcore, hard core or hard-core may refer to: Arts and media Film * ''Hardcore'' (1977 film), a British comedy film * ''Hardcore'' (1979 film), an American crime drama film starring George C Scott * ''Hardcore'' (2001 film), a British documen ...

music scene. He is known for having a drum corps background, but never actually marched a summer season. He played

tenor drums A tenor drum is a membranophone without a snare. There are several types of tenor drums. Early music Early music tenor drums, or long drums, are cylindrical membranophone without snare used in Medieval, Renaissance and Baroque music. They consi ...

for the Florida Wave Drum and Bugle Corps through a few years of their winter/spring camps. He studied orchestral percussion at the

University of South Florida The University of South Florida (USF) is a public research university with its main campus located in Tampa, Florida, and other campuses in St. Petersburg and Sarasota. It is one of 12 members of the State University System of Florida. USF is ...

, but never took formal

drum set A drum kit (also called a drum set, trap set, or simply drums) is a collection of drums, cymbals, and other auxiliary percussion instruments set up to be played by one person. The player (drummer) typically holds a pair of matching drumsticks ...

lessons. Stanier cites

Neil Peart Neil Ellwood Peart OC (; September 12, 1952 – January 7, 2020) was a Canadian-American musician, best known as the drummer and primary lyricist of the rock band Rush. Peart earned numerous awards for his musical performances, including an ...

as his biggest influence. He has also been influenced by drummers such as

John Bonham John Henry Bonham (31 May 1948 – 25 September 1980) was an English musician, best known as the drummer for the rock band Led Zeppelin. Esteemed for his speed, power, fast single-footed kick drumming, distinctive sound, and feel for groove,J ...

Billy Cobham William Emanuel Cobham Jr. (born May 16, 1944) is a Panamanian Americans, Panamanian–American jazz drummer who came to prominence in the late 1960s and early 1970s with trumpeter Miles Davis and then with the Mahavishnu Orchestra. He was indu ...

Bill Bruford William Scott Bruford (born 17 May 1949) is an English former drummer and percussionist who first gained prominence as a founding member of the progressive rock band Yes. After leaving Yes in 1972, Bruford spent the rest of the 1970s recording ...

Terry Bozzio Terry John Bozzio (born December 27, 1950) is an American drummer best known for his work with Missing Persons and Frank Zappa. He has been featured on nine solo or collaborative albums, 26 albums with Zappa and seven albums with Missing Person ...

Carl Palmer Carl Frederick Kendall Palmer (born 20 March 1950) is an English drummer best known as founding member and the last surviving member of the progressive rock supergroup Emerson, Lake & Palmer. He was also a founding member of progressive rock s ...

, and

Lenny White Leonard "Lenny" White III (born December 19, 1949) is an American jazz fusion drummer who was a member of the band Return to Forever led by Chick Corea in the 1970s. White has been called "one of the founding fathers of jazz fusion". He has won ...

. Stanier's drumming with Helmet has been cited as a big influence on a new generation of rock drummers. He endorses

Tama drums Tama Drums, (from Japanese: (Kanji), (Kana), read as ) is a brand of drum kits and hardware manufactured and marketed by the Japanese musical instrument company, Hoshino Gakki. Tama's research and development of products, along with producti ...

, and is also well known for his

Zildjian :''Zildjian leads here. For people with the surname, see Zildjian (disambiguation)'' The Avedis Zildjian Company, simply known as Zildjian (), is a musical instrument manufacturer specializing in cymbals and other percussion instruments. Founded ...

''K'' crash cymbal perched as high as it can go when playing with Battles. The breakup of Helmet in 1998 was supposedly amicable, though Stanier offers few details beyond: "There's no big story or anything. It was just... time to call it a day. We'd been around for 10 years... no drama or fights or anything like that." Stanier has not kept in contact with former band mates

Page Hamilton Page Hamilton (born May 18, 1960) is an American guitarist, singer, songwriter and record producer, mostly noted for his work with alternative metal band Helmet. Most of his work has been in the hard rock and alternative metal styles, though he ...

and

Henry Bogdan Henry Bogdan (born February 4, 1961 in Riverside, California), is an American musician. He is perhaps best known as the original bass guitarist and a founding member of the alternative metal band, Helmet. Henry Bodgan played bass for all of Hel ...

, and Hamilton has commented that Stanier ignored attempts to communicate. With Helmet firmly in the past, Stanier wanted to get involved with other projects after taking some time off. A big fan of hip-hop music, he "accidentally" became a professional DJ for a year and a half. The length of his drumming inactivity was in part due to a broken wrist, as well as the fact that he simply could not find a band he wanted to play with. Since 2000, Stanier has been much more active with drumming. He is currently a member of three bands:

, and

Discography

As a band member

– '' Strap It On'' (1990) * Helmet – '' Meantime'' (1992) * Helmet – ''

Betty Betty or Bettie is a name, a common diminutive for the names Bethany and Elizabeth. In Latin America, it is also a common diminutive for the given name Beatriz, the Spanish and Portuguese form of the Latin name Beatrix and the English name Beat ...

'' (1994) * Helmet – '' Born Annoying'' (1995) * Helmet – ''

Aftertaste Aftertaste is the taste intensity of a food or beverage that is perceived immediately after that food or beverage is removed from the mouth. The aftertastes of different foods and beverages can vary by intensity and over time, but the unifying fe ...

'' (1997) * Helmet – '' Unsung: The Best of Helmet (1991–1997)'' (2004) *

– ''This Is This'' (2001) * The Mark of Cain – ''

Songs of the Third and Fifth ''Songs of the Third and Fifth'' is the fifth full-length studio album by the Australian alternative metal band The Mark of Cain. It was released in November 2012 by Feel Presents and produced by singer John Scott and Tim Pittman. Former produce ...

'' (2012) *

– ''

'' (2001) * Tomahawk – ''

Mit Gas ''Mit Gas'' is the second studio album by the musical supergroup Tomahawk. It was released on May 6, 2003, through Ipecac Recordings, the record label owned by vocalist Mike Patton. ''Mit Gas'' charted in several countries, reaching the top 20 ...

'' (2003) * Tomahawk – '' Anonymous'' (2007) * Tomahawk – '' Oddfellows'' (2013) * Tomahawk – ''Tonic Immobility'' (2021) *

– ''

EP C / B EP ''EP C/B EP'' is a two disc compilation by the American math rock band Battles. It brings together the two previous EPs, '' EP C'', '' B EP'' and the "Tras" single. It was released in 2006 on Warp Records. ''EP C'' was originally released on J ...

'' (2006) * Battles – ''

Mirrored ''Mirrored'' is the debut studio album by American experimental rock band Battles. It was released on May 14, 2007 in the United Kingdom, and on May 22, 2007 in the United States. ''Mirrored'' marked the first album in which the band incorporated ...

'' (2007) * Battles – ''

Gloss Drop ''Gloss Drop'' is the second studio album by American experimental rock band Battles, released on Warp Records in June 2011. Most of the album is instrumental, but vocals are provided by various guests performers, including electronic musician G ...

'' (2011) * Battles – ''

La Di Da Di "La Di Da Di" is a song performed by Doug E. Fresh, who provides the beatboxed instrumental, and MC Ricky D (later known as Slick Rick), who performs the vocals. It was originally released in 1985 as the B-side to " The Show". The song has since ...

'' (2015) *Battles – ''

Juice B Crypts ''Juice B Crypts'' is the fourth studio album by American experimental rock band Battles, produced by Chris Tabron, and released through Warp on October 16, 2019. It is the band's first album as a duo, following guitarist/bassist Dave Konopka's dep ...

'' (2019)

As a studio contributor

Pitchshifter Pitchshifter are an English industrial rock band from Nottingham, formed in 1989. The band was started by lead guitarist and programmer Johnny A. Carter, and bassist and vocalist Mark Clayden. The band’s early material was characterized for ...

– '' Deviant'' (2000) *

Primer 55 Primer 55 was an American nu metal band which formed in Memphis, Tennessee in 1997. The name originated from the combination of Primer, meaning "something that's unfinished", and 55, which refers to Interstate 55, "the road that drugs run on to ...

– '' (the) New Release'' (2001) * Align – ''Some Breaking News'' (2001) *

Cage A cage is an enclosure often made of mesh, bars, or wires, used to confine, contain or protect something or someone. A cage can serve many purposes, including keeping an animal or person in captivity, capturing an animal or person, and displayin ...

– ''

Weatherproof ''Weatherproof'' is the debut EP by American hip hop artist Cage. It was released on Eastern Conference Records on July 29, 2003. It was released between his two collaboration albums with Camu Tao ( Nighthawks, 2002) and Tame One (Waterworld ...

'' (2003) * Melissa Auf der Maur – ''

Auf der Maur Auf der Maur is a surname. Notable people with the surname include: *Melissa Auf der Maur (born 1972), Canadian rock musician ** ''Auf der Maur'' (album), debut album of Melissa Auf der Maur *Nick Auf der Maur Nick Erik Auf der Maur (April 10, ...

'' (2004) * Primer 55 – '' Family for Life'' (2007) *

Prefuse 73 Guillermo Scott Herren is an American producer who has been based in Atlanta, Barcelona and New York City. Herren releases music under the aliases Prefuse 73, Delarosa & Asora, Ahmad Szabo, and Piano Overlord, and is also part of the groups S ...

– ''

Preparations ''Preparations'' is a studio album by Prefuse 73. It was released on Warp Records Warp Records (or simply Warp) is a British independent record label founded in Sheffield in 1989 by record store employees Steve Beckett and Rob Mitchell and r ...

'' (2007) * The Field – '' Yesterday and Today'' (2009) *

Rone Rone is the pseudonym of Tyrone Wright (born 1980), an internationally renowned street artist based in Melbourne, Australia. History Rone grew up in the city of Geelong, Victoria, before moving to Melbourne in 2001. In 2002, he started deco ...

– ''Tohu Bonus'' (2013), in the track "Pool" *

– ''Mirapolis'' (2017), in both "Brest" and "Lou" tracks

References

Micallef, Ken "Up and Coming: John Stanier of Helmet"

Modern Drummer ''Modern Drummer'' is a monthly publication targeting the interests of drummers and percussionists. The magazine features interviews, equipment reviews, and columns offering advice on technique, as well as information for the general public. ''Mo ...

, October 1994.
Farmilo, Troy "band bio"
The Helmet Home Page (defunct), August 2001. * Worley, Gai

Ink 19, January 2004. {{DEFAULTSORT:Stanier, John Living people Musicians from Baltimore American rock drummers Noise rock musicians Post-hardcore musicians Helmet (band) members Alternative metal musicians Battles (band) members Tomahawk (band) members 20th-century American drummers American male drummers 20th-century American male musicians 1968 births