ethan Mentzer
Ethan Mentzer began formal studies in music at age 9. He played trombone, piano, guitar, bass sang in the choir, had a punk band, and became the drum major for his high school marching band all before moving to Boston, Mass to attend the Berklee College Of Music. He graduated in 2004 with a Bachelor of Music Degree and formed the band The Click Five, signing a recording contract with Lava/Atlantic Records that same year. The band toured extensively, performing concerts at Madison Square Garden in NYC, Wembley Arena in London, UK, and the first-ever rock concert at Angkor Wat Temple in Siem Reap, Cambodia (a benefit show for MTV EXIT, aimed at ending human exploitation and trafficking in Southeast Asia). The legendary producer Mike Denneen (Aimee Mann, Fountains Of Wayne, Howie Day) produced all three of The Click Five’s studio albums, which afforded Ethan a real-world education into the craft and business of making records. Later, Ethan formed a songwriting and production partnership with Todd Wright (Celine Dion, Johnny Hallyday, Cazzette) and joined the band Atomic Tom to co-write/produce the 2015 album “ERA.”
2017 saw Ethan complete two-month-long artist-in-residence stays - one in Simrishamn, Sweden, and one in Cerisy La Foret, France - during which he recorded and composed pieces entirely of “found sounds.” Inspired by visual art made from found objects such as Marcel Duchamp’s Readymade art and Noah Purifoy’s Junk Dada collection, Ethan devised his own system of sampling, manipulating, and composing with the sounds of the environment.
In 2018, Ethan mentored and produced songs for Nvak in Yerevan, Armenia and Jerusalem, Israel.
Ethan currently resides with his wife Jacinta in Philadelphia, PA where he writes, produces, and mixes songs for artists; composes music for film, TV, podcasts, and advertising; and mentors both privately and through HalfKing Music. Ethan views his role as a musician in the studio as one part artist (creating from the soul or the unknown), one part craftsman (honing skills, practice, and knowledge), and one part scientist (performing controlled experiments using sonic waves to create or manipulate emotion in the human body or psyche).