The story of influential 1990s indie band Brainiac is one of inspiration, heartbreak, and, ultimately, redemption. The 2019 documentary, Brainiac: Transmissions After Zero, which tells the tale of the genius Ohio quartet, will screen at the Orpheum Theater on March 16; following the showing will be a discussion with director Eric Mahoney.
Formed in the Rust Belt city of Dayton in 1992, Brainiac made music that perfectly mirrored their post-industrial place of mutant gestation—snide, shuddering, Dadaist punk noise smothered with a bricolage of junk electronics sourced from thrift stores, yard sales, and pawn shops. After releasing three acclaimed underground albums—1993’s Smack Bunny Baby, 1994’s Bonsai Superstar, and 1997’s Hissing Prigs in Static Couture—the group was set to sign to major label Interscope Records and seemed to be primed for world domination. And then tragedy struck: Lead singer, guitarist, keyboardist, and visionary mastermind Tim Taylor was killed in a late-night car crash, bringing everything to a horrific halt.
Although the group’s remaining members, guitarist John Schmersal, bassist Juan Monasterio, and drummer Tyler Trent, went their separate ways after Taylor’s death, Brainiac’s legend and impact grew and persisted. Along with many younger acts, such widely known artists as Nine Inch Nails, the Mars Volta, Muse, Death Cab for Cutie’s Chris Walla, Hole and Smashing Pumpkins bassist Melissa Auf der Maur, and the National’s Matt Berninger have cited the band as an influence. In 2017 the surviving Brainiac musicians reunited for a series of special guest-fronted tribute concerts, beginning with an event at the Bell House in Brooklyn, which was filmed for Mahoney’s documentary.
Brainiac: Transmissions After Zero will be show at Upstate Films’ Orpheum Theater in Saugerties on March 16 at 7pm. The post-film discussion with director Eric Mahoney will be moderated by yours truly, Chronogram arts editor Peter Aaron. Tickets are $11.50 ($9.50 seniors and students; $7.50 under 16).
