The band released Sickness and Health on Shimmy Disc in 1995 and Three Pawns Standing on Seattle’s C/Z label in 1997, both produced by Mark Kramer and recorded at his Noise New Jersey studio.
Playing numerous shows at the City Gardens club in Trenton, the group disbanded in 1999 to pursue other interests.
Joseph Baker and Keith Monacchio became friends while attending Notre Dame High School in Lawrenceville, New Jersey, during the 80's.
Keith who was known around school as having a great singing voice had aspired to get involved with music himself, but had never had the opportunity until he discovered Joe's secret.
However, Keith had the voice but couldn't play any musical instruments, while Joe had the creative ideas and wrote the songs but as a musician he was technically limited so it was inevitable that Pat should join.
At the time bands recorded “demos” which were usually cassette tapes consisting of 2 to 4 of the group's best songs to send around to clubs or labels for potential shows or interest.
The band's first album was the self-titled “The Semibeings” released in early 1992 and which contained 8 songs followed later that year by the 17 song An Emotional Buffet both self-produced and recorded at SS Sound Studios in Hamilton, N.J. under the tutelage of the studio's owner and engineer John Bailey whom the band affectionately nicknamed “Mama”.
An unsigned local band opening up for national acts at the club was fairly unprecedented at the time, The Semibeings over the ensuing years opened for various national band's at City Gardens including Jawbox, Shudder To Think, The Poster Children, and Superchunk as well as headlining at the club.
In early 1994 local label “Inkling Records” released a vinyl EP of new Semibeings work, which Keith promptly sent to legendary eccentric indie producer Kramer who immediately booked the band for sessions at his Noise New Jersey studio.
The songs that the singer Joe Baker yowled were hazy, psychedelic rockers imbued with a touch of blues and a dash of dissonance; the numbers sung by the gentler-voiced Keith Monacchio droned instead of rocked and were usually supported by the chiming and ringing of three acoustic guitars”.
The band played various Shimmy Disc showcases with Hugh Hopper and King Missile as well as making the rounds of east coast clubs like New York's Brownies or The Stone Pony in Asbury Park, N.J, playing shows with Amandla, Chris Harford and regularly with Laura Dawn and her first band Fluffer as well as Shimmy Disc label mates Tin Ear.
The band also played the West Beth Theatre in New York as a part of C/Z's showcase in the 1997 CMJ music festival along with Gerald Collier and Moonshake.
The album was originally to be put out by C/Z but the label essentially dropped the band due to its own financial hardships.
In reference to The Semibeings work, RollingStone.com stated “Their intricate, dreamy songs have a propulsive and hard-edged quality that at times sounds like a non-distorted Screaming Trees or a more varied, faster Codeine.