Brainiac

Brainiac (also stylized as 3RA1N1AC), is an American indie rock band from Dayton, Ohio. It was formed in January 1992 by Tim Taylor, Juan Monasterio (Monostereo), Michelle Bodine and Tyler Trent. They disbanded after the sudden death of lead singer Tim Taylor in a car accident on May 23, 1997. History Brainiac was formed in Dayton, Ohio, United States in January 1992 with vocalist, guitarist and keyboard player (particularly Moog synthesizers) Tim Taylor (July 20, 1968 – May 23, 1997), bassist Juan Monasterio (Monostereo), guitarist Michelle Bodine and drummer Tyler Trent. On March 12, the band played its first show at Wright State's University Cafeteria, under the name We'll Eat Anything. After a slew of singles, they released their debut album, Smack Bunny Baby, on Grass/BMG Records in 1993. Shortly after the album's release, Gary Gersh offered Brainiac a $2 million record deal with Geffen Records; allegedly, the band's response was to tell him to "fuck off." In November 1993, Bodine left the band, and was replaced by John Schmersal. The band's next album, Bonsai Superstar, was released in 1994. In 1995 they played on the Lollapalooza side stage and recorded four songs in the UK for the BBC Radio 1 Peel Sessions. They joined Touch and Go Records and released Internationale, produced by Kim Deal (of The Breeders). The following year, their third album, Hissing Prigs in Static Couture, was released on the Touch & Go label. All three of their albums were produced by Eli Janney (of Girls Against Boys). Brainiac generated buzz as a live act to see that resulted in opening slots on tours for Beck, the Breeders and the Jesus Lizard, and received offers from major labels. The most prominent bids came from Elektra Records and Interscope Records, although it looked like the band would be signing with Interscope. In 1997, they released an electronic-based EP called Electro-Shock for President which turned out to be their last record. On May 23, 1997, while driving back home, Taylor lost control of his vintage Mercedes car and crashed into a lamppost, which burst into flames. According to Schmersal, a post-mortem toxicology report indicated that Taylor had succumbed to carbon monoxide poisoning, and was dead before his vehicle crashed. The group, who were in the middle of pre-production for their fourth album, soon disbanded. A benefit show featuring The Breeders and Guided By Voices took place a few months later.