​

The Story of Solomon’s Wish: Kevin L. Bendix and the 1990s Twin Cities Scene

​

Humble Beginnings: The Living Room Ice Cream Buckets

Kevin L. Bendix’s journey as a drummer began long before he ever sat behind a professional stage rig, rooted in a childhood where resources were tight but musical passion was abundant. Growing up as a young teenager, money was scarce, and a real drum kit was far too expensive to afford. Undeterred, Kevin took matters into his own hands by collecting an assortment of different-sized plastic ice cream buckets. He meticulously arranged them across his family's living room floor to mimic a standard drum layout.

Sitting on the floor, he taught himself how to play by drumming along to his mother’s record collection. While his father, a Lutheran Pastor, was a dedicated country music fan, his mother leaned heavily into classic and contemporary rock. This exposure to driving rock albums shaped Kevin’s early musical style. He is entirely self-taught, developing his technique purely by ear and intuition. Though he is naturally a left-handed drummer and sets up his kit accordingly, his self-taught background allowed him to develop ambidextrous coordination, leaving him fully capable of playing right-handed when a performance or shared kit requires it.

Early Rhythms, Love, and the Path to the Military

This unique foundation eventually led to his very first experience accompanying another musician, which took place at Hardin High School in Montana. There, he anchored the rhythm for a female Brazilian exchange student performing on the piano. This early taste of collaborative performance sparked a lifelong passion for the drums.

By the time he enrolled at the University of Minnesota Duluth (UMD), Bendix was deeply embedded in the local student music scene. He frequently took to the stage for open mic and open stage events, drumming for a pair of raw, energetic campus bands that he helped to launch: first an outfit aptly named "Screamer," which was shortly followed by "The Village Idiots."

It was during his time at UMD that Kevin was introduced to Naomi, a student from the Nara prefecture of Japan. Initially, Kevin wanted to strictly avoid getting into a relationship, choosing instead to focus all of his energy entirely on his music. However, fate intervened through John Adrian, the guitarist for Screamer. John loaned Naomi some cassette tapes from Kevin's personal music library, effectively forcing the two to meet up again so she could return them. As they talked, Kevin discovered that Naomi shared his exact, distinct tastes in music, and she was an accomplished guitar and piano player herself. Her charm and shared musical soul eventually won his heart. The couple was married, and Naomi stood by his side as a major life transition arrived: Kevin made the decision to leave the university and Duluth behind to enlist in the United States Air Force (USAF), and the newly married couple prepared for a move across the Atlantic.

From the Skies to the Stage: The Military Background of Kevin L. Bendix

That precise, rhythmic mechanical energy developed during his early drumming days found a different kind of application high above the ground. Serving honorably as a Sergeant (Sgt) and Aircraft Crew Chief in the Air Force, Bendix and Naomi relocated to Germany, where he spent much of his enlistment stationed at the strategic Ramstein Air Base. Because of his exceptional technical discipline, he was selected to be a vital part of an elite Distinguished Visitor (DV) Launch and Recovery Team. In this specialized role, he was responsible for ensuring the absolute safety, rapid mechanical turnaround, and absolute flight readiness of high-priority aircraft carrying top-tier military officials and international dignitaries.

His resilience under pressure was severely tested on August 28, 1988, when he was called upon to assist in the grueling crash, rescue, and recovery operations following the tragic Ramstein Flugtag '88 airshow disaster. For his exemplary dedication to duty, mechanical expertise, and honorable conduct throughout his enlistment, Bendix was decorated with two Air Force Achievement Medals, a National Defense Service Medal, and the Air Force Good Conduct Medal. This foundation in technical mastery and rigorous engineering followed him into civilian life, fostering a lifelong fascination with aerospace mechanics.

During his time in service, his military duties also gave way to an extraordinary Cold War crossover event. Kevin made a trip past Checkpoint Charlie and inside the Berlin Wall into East Berlin. While exploring the Soviet-controlled sector, he wandered into an East Berlin music store. In a remarkable moment of cultural and political boundaries melting away through a shared language of rhythm, the young American Air Force Sergeant crossed paths with a couple of Soviet soldiers. Right there in the shop, completely ignoring the geopolitical tensions of the era, Kevin and the Soviet soldiers spent around an hour messing around on the instruments together, jamming out and sharing a mutual love of music on whatever gear was on the floor.

In his personal time, this same meticulous eye translated into a deep passion for maritime and landscape photography—most notably tracking regional landmarks like Minnesota’s iconic Split Rock Lighthouse—and a dedication to family genealogy, where he carefully preserved the history of early rural Minnesota communities in Brown and Nicollet counties.

By the early 1990s, his military service was complete, and Bendix returned to Minnesota to redirect his focus into a heavy-duty set of Tama drums in the thriving Minneapolis-St. Paul independent rock circuit.

The Sound and the Lineups: Mandrake Scream and Solomon’s Wish

Bendix first brought his driving rhythms to the local three-piece gothic-alternative group Mandrake Scream, collaborating alongside bandmates Darran LaNoue and Jay D. Nelson. Tracking raw, atmospheric local cuts like "Shadows", "Pennies From Hell" and wrote lyrics for "Hell In A Limousine," Bendix experimented heavily with sound-effects mixing and layered traditional African percussion, proving early on that he was far more than a standard 4/4 timekeeper.

However, his most enduring musical legacy took root when he joined forces with guitarist Brian G. Evans (known fondly by his pseudonym, Donny Trodden) and vocalist/bassist Chris Brown to form the ultimate lineup of the alternative rock band Solomon's Wish.

Behind his signature Tama kit, Bendix crafted a highly unique sonic identity. He customized his rig with high-cutting Zildjian cymbals and a complex, hand-fitted array of auxiliary percussion bells. These bells allowed him to weave sharp, syncopated metallic accents directly into the band's heavy alternative grooves. But the trio's creative chemistry thrived on a complete lack of musical boundaries. Despite being the powerhouse drummer, Bendix was a formidable multi-instrumentalist. In rare, revered live session clips, the band playfully mocked him as a "Drummer With A Guitar," a joke proven entirely accurate during a performance of their track "Way Down," where Bendix stepped away from the drums completely to take over the live bass guitar duties while the members fluidly swapped roles.

Even more remarkably, Bendix proved to be a self-contained one-man band project on his solo tracking runs. On the independent tracks "Never Make It Home," "Gitchi-Gami Come-A Git-Cha," and "Anti-Haters Can Hate The Best," Bendix single-handedly tracked 100% of the instrumentation—playing all the guitar hooks, building the bass lines, engineering the drum tracks, and singing all of the lead vocals himself. To achieve these rich multi-layered arrangements on his own, he relied heavily on classic Tascam multitrack equipment behind the console, meticulously tracking, bouncing, and mixing his own vocals and multi-instrumental parts to craft a massive, fully polished studio sound out of a completely solo performance.

Landmark Gigs, Crossovers, and the Biker Following

Solomon’s Wish quickly became a staple of the local circuit, commanding a remarkably diverse fanbase through high-energy, unpredictable live gigs.

In a standout industry showcase, the band brought their massive sound directly to the public by performing an intimate live in-store set at the renowned Northern Lights Music store in Bloomington, Minnesota, cementing their status among local gear enthusiasts and tape traders.

Their versatility was proven even further at a grassroots charity gig. The band volunteered to play a live benefit concert for a local Minnesota chapter of the Humane Society. While the cause was all about animal welfare, the band's raw, heavy alternative rock delivery completely captivated an unexpected segment of the audience: a local biker and motorcycle club. Blown away by the sheer energy of Kevin's driving rhythm section and Evans' blazing guitar work, the motorcycle club walked out of the benefit show as die-hard fans, establishing a fiercely loyal biker following that would passionately track the band across Twin Cities venues for years to come.

But perhaps the most legendary live crossover occurred in downtown Minneapolis at a massive outdoor neighborhood block party. Co-sponsored by the historic Origami Downtown sushi restaurant and The Loon Cafe, the street festival drew a massive North Loop crowd on the hot asphalt. The billing was an absolute masterclass of 90s Twin Cities music pillars: the powerhouse R&B/gospel dynasty The Steeles headlined the night, supported by reggae-rock legends Ipso Facto and the alternative punch of Solomon's Wish.

Because loading multiple drum kits onto a tight festival street stage was a logistical nightmare, the bands utilized a shared "backline" kit provided by the anchor acts. For Solomon's Wish's set, Kevin L. Bendix—utilizing his natural ambidexterity—climbed up and performed entirely on the personal, high-end drum kit belonging to Ipso Facto’s legendary drummer, Greg McFarland. The resulting performance—featuring Kevin putting his own hard-rock spin on a kit tuned for heavy, infectious reggae-rock—became a legendary snapshot of the collaborative, tight-knit spirit of the 1990s downtown Minneapolis music scene.

The MTV Prank and the 1996 Cable TV Award

The mid-1990s brought national attention and regional accolades to the group, driven heavily by their independent, DIY work ethic.

In 1994, the band decided to enter the national MTV Beach House Band Search. At the time, the MTV Beach House was the global epicenter of sunny, radio-friendly pop-punk, mainstream hip-hop, and heavily stylized commercial alternative music. Knowing their raw, gritty, hard-hitting style completely clashed with the network's beach-party aesthetic, Solomon's Wish submitted their driving, heavy track "Fire Lake" as a total tongue-in-cheek joke to mess with the casting directors. To the band's absolute delight, the prank succeeded: the sheer quality of the songwriting and the undeniable power of the track cut through the noise, earning them official recognition as search participants despite being a total genre anomaly.

Two years later, "Fire Lake" would secure an even bigger victory closer to home. In 1996, the band produced an accompanying music video for the track. True to their collaborative nature, it was a completely self-contained project: Brian G. Evans took the creative lead as the producer and director of the visuals, while Kevin L. Bendix stepped behind the soundboard—once again utilizing his signature Tascam gear—to track, record, and masterfully mix the entire audio soundtrack to ensure it hit with maximum sonic impact for the television broadcast.

When the video aired on a local Twin Cities cable television station, it beat out higher-budget regional acts to officially win the award for Best Music Video of 1996.

While frontman Chris Brown handled the bulk of the lead vocals on the band's catalog—including live staples like "City," "On And On," and "Why Can't You Hear Me"—this era highlighted the band's willingness to share the microphone. On lighter, offbeat recordings like "Sandwich Song" and the original, highly sought-after Sierra Whiskey Demo version of their hit track "Hundred Dollar Bill," Bendix stepped up to the front mic to track the definitive lead vocals alongside his heavy drum parts.

A Lasting Twin Cities Legacy

Today, the legacy of Solomon's Wish remains beautifully preserved in the digital archives of the Minnesota indie scene. Decades after they first plugged in, fans can still look back at multi-camera live concert footage of the trio tearing through "My World" live on stage at Ryan’s in St. Paul, or rocking the outdoor stage at BobStock ’94.

From the raw "S'Wish in the Bunker" rehearsal sessions to the comprehensive 48-minute documentary montage "Sol-Wish Minutes From History," the footage stands as a permanent testament to a time when a highly decorated Air Force veteran—who started out drumming on ice cream buckets and jammed with Soviet troops behind the Iron Curtain—a legendary guitarist, and a powerhouse bassist came together to define the gritty, brilliant heartbeat of 1990s Minneapolis rock.