The world was a different place in the fall of 1995. The O.J. Simpson trial/scandal was still captivating millions of viewers, Alanis Morissette was selling copies of her Jagged Little Pill album as if they were tickets to heaven, and no one had ever heard of the Taliban.
Around this time, in a poorly lit, poorly insulated basement in Bloomington, Indiana, Homunculus was born.
Forged in the combined fires of pop sensibility, funk dance-ability, art-house creativity, jam band versatility and rock intensity, Homunculus was staging a grass-roots attack. The target: everyone; everyone who wanted more from their rock music than the post-grunge wannabes could provide; everyone who yearned to sing along to mood-altering melodies without giving in to the glossy pop groups who stood on the shoulders of the one-hit wonders before them; everyone who wanted their music to be visceral, cerebral, primal and, most importantly, vital.
And so it was that Homunculus roamed the countryside from hole to hole, pub to pub, and club to club, until they had amassed a respectable and loyal following. Their extraordinary musicianship was very evident when the band played live-lengthy jams and medleys often grabbed the audiences’ emotions and took them wherever the band damn-well pleased.
The 1997 release of their self-titled debut album garnered modest success and wide acclaim, and they continued to win over new fans with their phenomenal live shows and catchy, unique songs.
In 1998, Homunculus released The Pulse of Directed Devotion, a shorter but more mature-and diverse-collection of songs than their debut. Pulse hinted at many different musical paths for Homunculus to take and committed to none of them. The regional success of the album made even more headway for the band as they began to break into larger markets.
Near the end of 1998, Homunculus moved to Cincinnati and stepped up their touring schedule. They were now headlining clubs from Chicago to New York, and the future looked brighter than ever before. Unfortunately, in 1999, a few lineup changes hindered the songwriting process and the next year saw no new material released by the band. Homunculus did, however, thank their fans for sticking by them with the release of Live from the Wetlands Preserve, a sort of stop-gap between studio albums.
But while 2000 appeared to bear little fruit as far as a new album, their live shows were better than ever. And fortunately, the band found time to write and record what would become their best set of songs to date. With the 2001 release of WORDS, Homunculus has truly capitalized on what makes them great-exquisite and original songwriting and phenomenal musicianship.
But what makes WORDS so brilliant is that, for the first time, Homunculus has captured a sound and a style that is truly all their own. I never had the words to describe Homunculus to people who had never heard them (or heard of them), but thankfully, WORDS gives a better indication. And if a band is to be judged by the progress they make from one album to the next, then Homunculus is currently in the driver’s seat and the road ahead is looking bright indeed.
S.K. Chowdhury
Chicago
Kevin T. Shima - Guitar and Vocals
My name is Kevin Shima and, although I don't remember it, I was born on August 7th, 1974.
I began my music career in 3rd grade playing trombone. In 8th grade I heard the Beatles and completely lost my mind. I started making multi-track recordings of household noises using two boomboxes, trying desperately to emulate "Revolution 9." By 9th grade I'd taught myself to sing, play drums and keyboards, and in 10th grade I bought a 4-track tape recorder and began producing my own songs. By 12th grade I'd recorded 6 solo albums and 2 albums with my high school band "Dolphin Likes Disco."
In 13th grade I was accepted into the Indiana University School Of Music where I studied audio technology. In 14th grade I recorded an album called "Age Before Beauty," in 15th grade I recorded an album called "!" ("The Exclamation Point Album"), and in 16th grade I recorded an album called "A Willow's Weeping." These albums gave me the courage to perform solo shows (on vocals and acoustic guitar) at the local bars and coffeehouses around Bloomington, IN. During that time I met Ben, Chris, Matt, and Gil, and in 16th grade we started calling ourselves Homunculus. The story after this point is accounted for in the "band bio" section of this website.
Please stay tuned for many more years of great music making.
Thank you, Kevin Shima
Adam M. Schoen - Bass and Vocals
Speaking as a child of the 80's...
Born not far outside of Washington, DC on February, 9 1977. Spent much time in Oakland, CA while still holding down the fort in Maryland. Live in the heartland now but will always be a fusion of East Coast intensity and West Coast ease...
Inspired greatly by other musicians such as Mike Watt, Nels Cline, Steely Dan and Bill Evans - and writers such as Charles Bukowski and Michael Chabon.
Enjoy the works of Bill Hicks, audio engineering and following the Oakland A's fanatically.
Graduated from Ohio University with a B.S. in Telecommunications/Audio Production in 1999.
Much Respect to the other guys in Homunculus - the fans - and my family for allowing me to continue creating daily.
Word.
Christopher "Cupcake" Ellison - Drums
In the autumn of 1974, the world witnessed a series of tragedies and setbacks that produced long-lasting implications and repercussions of immense proportions, for the nation and the planet itself. On September 8th, President Ford granted a “full, free and absolute pardon” to ex-President Nixon, confusing and confounding what was already a distraught and muddled political system. Less than two weeks later, on September 20th, Hurricane Fifi devastated the northern half of Honduras, leaving in its wake more than 8,000 dead and 100,000 homeless. And, five weeks later, on October 27th, Christopher “Cupcake” Ellison was born in Louisville, Kentucky.
No one knew at the time what Chris’ birth would mean for society, let alone music, and he had a relatively normal and quiet (unless you ask his parents) upbringing in Fort Wayne, Indiana. Though he’ll still tell you with a straight face what an amazing young baseball player he was, Chris never truly came into his own until he picked up his first set of drumsticks, when he was just thirteen years old. High school soon followed, and Chris felt oh-so-comfortable in his marching band uniform, sticks in his hand and a mullet on his head. His progression on the drums was very fast indeed-he could play prog-rock songs by Rush and Yes AND big band jazz standards by the likes of Buddy Rich. Wow!
The mid-90’s, however, is when Chris really hinted at the musical monster he was destined to be. While “studying” music at Indiana University, Chris met the core members of what would soon become Homunculus. He acquired the nickname Cupcake (attributed to his pretty-boy good looks and dire junk food habit), ditched the last vestiges of a mullet and embarked on a whirlwind tour of haunts and dives everywhere with the Munc. His passions/hobbies/skills include (in order): playing video games, talking on his cell phone, watching movies, listening to hip hop music, dining at New China Buffet, playing the drums, anything that involves McDonalds’ hot mustard sauce, talking on the cell phone and, lately, READING. To hear his awesome drumming and percussion skills, purchase a Homunculus CD or go see them live. Chris currently lives with the other members of the band in Cincinnati, Ohio, where he dabbles in tai chi, scuba diving and drinking for free.
Benjamin P. Doepke - Keys and Vocals
i'm a product
of new richmond, ohio.
born
april 14th, 1975 to eric and rochelle.
trained in
classical and jazz piano.
enjoy
camping, canoeing, swam competitively for many years, bicycling, running, writing/reading, following the local professional sports teams, experimenting with facial hair, sitting in the hot tub for too long, playing any board game and practicing my instrument.
projects
generally trying to slow down the internal conversations so i can listen with a little more comprehension, know my acquaintances, write songs less personally and more completely, finish repairing the organ’s road case.
thankful
to the people that have unknowingly inspired me through their support, impatience and disinterest. i am making it up to you. to the loved ones that just don’t get it, i love you too-- i don’t get it, either. also to the boys for the best job in the world...except for maybe the road manager for rumbleseat–that’s the best job in the world. not everyone can be rich lather, sometimes not even rich lather can be rich lather. what am i *doing* here?
