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The Band |
Tim
Benish exploded on to the music scene with his one-man band, "DIWAG"
(Drunken Idiot With A Guitar) in the summer of 1993. He sold out show after
show at the local library, until he was banned from the children's section
later that year. While working as a test subject for fungal research at
MIT, he managed to produce his first album, "Tales from the Infinite Corridor."
The album was a smashing success, selling over 7 copies in it's first year.
However, living in Boston took its toll, as the songs he wrote began to
lack diversity. These included: "I'm so cold", "I'm freezing", "It's damned
cold", and "I can't feel my toes". In his dispair, he became addicted
to Pac-Man.
In
1996, the strugling DIWAG teamed up with Seth Inbim, a quiet lad
who was the assistant manager of a local fast food restaurant. Seth, who
was conceived on an oil platform in the North Sea, had arrived the U.S.
in 1991 with only his good looks and a willingness to do anything for money.
His didn't know how to play any instruments, but after his 5 years of hard
work, he had saved nearly $500, which made him an obvious choice for the
newly forming band.
Beth
Misin was an actress who was studying to be a waitress in Los Angeles
in 1993. In her spare time, she played the organ at a mortuary, but hoped
to someday audition for a popular band, such as the Partridge Family. But
her dream could never materialize in a city that was not big on music,
so Beth decided to pack up her stuff and move to Boston. The three would-be
partners met in the Fall of 1996 in a dive bar near Fenway Park, and after
discovering that Beth had an instrument, the guys offered her a spot in
their band. After several shots of tequila, she accepted.
On the way home, Seth commented that he felt like
a bloated monkey....and history was made.
Just
a few days earlier, Ben Shimit was released from a maximum security
prison in Waco, Texas where he had served 7 years for breaking into a mattress
store and removing all of the tags. He immediately flew to Boston to see
his grandmother, but having no money to buy her a present, he broke into
a nearby house occupied by three hungover musicians and beat them senseless
demanding their money. They explained that they were starving musicians
and didn't have any money to give him, but did send him off with a can
of ravioli. Ben returned later that day, and asked if he could join the
band. Realizing that they needed a drum player, they welcomed him. Soon
after, Ben claimed Beth's keyboard as his own, so Beth was relegated to
drums.
Two years and 2,200 hamburgers later, Bloated
Monkey completed work on their first album, "I Just Wanted a Piece of Cheese."
After an exhausting 3-hour tour, they relocated to the Texas plains where
they continue to write music and do other stuff.