Dan Brenner (born Daniel Abraham Brenner, December 19, 1963) is an American songwriter, composer, and musician.
Brenner was a member of the band Magnet, with Moe Tucker (former drummer in the Velvet Underground) in the late 1990s, and of the rap/performance-art band Razor Magnet with his brother, filmmaker Evan Brenner from 1985-1988.
He was a member of the Boston bands Green Fuse and Gunga Din in the early 1990s, and prior to that, while a student at Harvard College, The Love Monsters, with brothers Matt Wilson and Dan Wilson, who later formed the Minneapolis bands Trip Shakespeare and Semisonic.
Brenner has written the scores for three feature films, including Rhythm Thief (Special Jury Prize at Sundance, 1995), Spare Me (Priz Tournage winner Avignon Film Festival, 1993), and The Riddle (a.k.a.
Sasha’s Riddle, winner Long Island Film Festival, 2010, official selection Toronto Film Festival 1997).
Brenner also co-wrote the script for The Riddle, for which he was awarded the 2010 Mario Puzo Screenplay Award.
Some of Brenner's film composition is credited as "Danny Brenner," while some of his acting work is credited as "Daniel Brenner." He is credited as Producer on the Foggy Notion CD Mission.
In 2011, Brenner released a solo CD, Little Dark Angel, produced by nine-time Grammy Winner Jay Newland.
Little Dark Angel featured Larry Campbell (guitar, pedal steel, banjo, fiddle, mandolin), Will Lee (bass), Shawn Pelton (drums), Brian Mitchell (keyboard, harmonica, and accordion), and former Morphine member Dana Colley (saxophone, bass clarinet).
Several songs from Little Dark Angel received airplay on American college radio stations, reaching the top 10 at 6 stations, and peaking at #2 on WVIC in Ithaca NY.