Rob Chapman confirms Dorje have disbanded

Rob Chapman has confirmed that Dorje – a prog-rock four-piece featuring himself, electric guitar player Rabea Massaad, bassist Dave Hollingworth and drummer Ben Minal – have disbanded.

Chapman broke the news on social media, writing, “Hey guys, I am very sad to say that Dorje is no more. I would like to take this opportunity to thank all of the incredible people who supported us on our musical journey over the years.” 

He added, “I would also like to thank Ben, Bea and Dave – it’s been an absolute honour to play alongside such incredible musicians and make such amazing friendships.”

The guitar brand owner said the four would now put all of their energy into their own individual projects. For Chapman, that means focusing on Clockwork Wolf & Co, while Massaad will continue to work on his newly established group, The Totemist.

Minal, meanwhile, will divert his attention solely to Musicisum – an award-winning educational platform that has courses for guitar, singing and music production.

Alongside Clockwork Wolf & Co, Chapman also leads the charge with Chapman Guitars – his own guitar brand that sponsors his former Dorje bandmate Hollingworth and produces Massaad’s signature guitar, the ML3 BEA Pro.

The split was alluded to by Massaad himself earlier this year, when he revealed to Guitar World that “Dorje has been inactive for quite a long time”. He also teased an upcoming project with Liam Kearley and Joe Gosney of Black Peaks, saying the trio “have an intention to turn it into something soon”.