DeGreaser's Ben Katzman Is Having the Craziest Year of His Life

At 31, Miami musician Ben Katzman of DeGreaser is having the craziest year of his life.

He toured Europe twice. He met his idol Nicholas Cage — one of his three "spirit guides," alongside Kiss' Gene Simmons and Van Halen's David Lee Roth. He signed a distribution deal with record label AWAL (Sony Music), wrote songs for commercials, played bass with Mannequin Pussy, and is putting out a new album, Transcendental Shreditation, on Friday, December 15.

Before the year's out, DeGreaser will perform at the Miami Beach Bandshell with the Miami Beach Rock Ensemble, made up of students from Miami Beach Senior High. All the members of Katzman's band are alums of the school's musical program and are taking part in the 52nd winter concert as a tribute to their late teacher, Doug Burris.

Katzman also saw Kiss' final live show in New York wearing full Kiss makeup this month.

"There's probably no bigger influence on my personality than [Kiss]. Being a dorky Jewish kid from the suburbs. I remember my mom got me this Jews Who Rock book when I was like 10 years old," he says. "I was like, 'Superheroes who rock, and they've been bar mitzvah-ed?'" He met the band thanks to a contest through Walt Grace Guitars in Wynwood. Katzman says his inner 12-year-old took over as he approached Simmons, who is Israeli and speaks Hebrew. The singer laughed when he finally told him he spoke English too.

He acknowledges these as his Sex and the City days because life does improve in your thirties. By the time he was 22, Katzman had dropped out of college and started promoting other acts, signing them to major labels, watching them go on to play Coachella and snag Rolling Stone write-ups. He wanted to pursue his own projects but didn't have much encouragement. "I found myself kind of living for validation," he recalls. This led to a quarter-life crisis that led him to express himself more authentically.

A pivotal moment for him came when he started to teach at Wynwood School of Music. Katzman says he never had a teacher who encouraged him musically, so this was an exciting opportunity for him to make an impact. "I got to like heal the inner child and become the music teacher I never had," he says.

Connecting with kids who love guitar as much as he does gives him a real high. A former student, Deo Budnevich, joined his band as one of its three guitarists, alongside Katzman and a childhood best friend, Jonathan Rusten. It's like a family band, he says. His other old friends, bassist Lucas Viana and drummer Harry Schwarz, son of famed Miami chef Michael Schwarz, also bring the heat to DeGreaser.
"People forget you don't have to be a superstar, but you can put on a great show and rock somebody's world, even if you're playing a small bar," Katzman observes. "Beyond that, you can rock your own world because you're going to play yourself. If you love playing music, you shouldn't be validating yourself based on the opinions of others. You should be doing it because there's something in you that you want to get done. And teaching brought that back to me."

His journey has him enjoying the small things and being present. That, he believes, will help the bigger things in life pan out. Letting go of the expectations of stardom opened up his world, leading him to play guitar with other musicians who love playing music as much as he does.

"It gives me an excuse to stay a kid a little longer," he says of playing guitar professionally. "There's something about getting to play music at this age after everybody else has quit or kind of given up. There's a breath of fresh air when you don't think about quitting or giving up... We're just grateful to shred!"

For Transcendental Shredidation, he collaborated with some members of Miami metal act Torche, like Juan Montoya, who has designed all his covers and plays on his single "Hall of Mirrors." He also worked with Torche producer and Capsule member Ryan Haft.

"He makes us sound like Kiss at Madison Garden," Katzman says. "When we're in the studio, he never lets me settle. When I tell Ryan, 'What if this sounds like a volcano exploding, there's demons shooting out of it?' And he says, 'Oh, you must mean we're going to use this distortion pedal.'"

One of Katzman's goals was to make this a metal record that "sounds lush like Oasis, crisp like Metallica, but as if it were written by a pissed-off teenager." And they felt they had achieved that lofty goal.

Katzman will continue writing his unique story with his signature panache, vision, and humor. In the new year, Katzman will tour more, perform at festivals, and spend his time making new music. "I just always want to keep doing bigger and better," he says. "2024, I just hope, is 2023 on steroids."

The Last Riff of 2023: Doug Burris Tribute Concert. With the Miami Beach Rock Ensemble, Ben Katzman's DeGreaser, and Magic Tusk. 8 p.m., Saturday, December 16, at Miami Beach Bandshell, 7275 Collins Ave., Miami Beach; miamibeachbandshell.com. Tickets cost $12.36 via dice.fm.