The Misery Science has a classic story: Boy met boy and rock ‘n’ roll ensued.
Bass player Andy Attebery met vocalist and guitarist Christian Dyer while working in the same building. “Andy had the yin to his yang (or guitar to his bass, as it were) and Misery Science was born,” reads the band’s Web site.
The duo added Dyer’s former bandmate Eric Olson on drums and Stephanie Beauchamp on piano, keyboards and guitar.
Based in Portland, The Misery Science formed in November of 2006 and has already made a name for itself in the Oregon scene.
Last year, the band’s first single, “Keying Cars,” made it onto several Northwest radio stations, and the band was featured twice on PDX49.
The Misery Science also made it through two rounds of the widely popular Bodog Battle of the Bands.
Attebery said one of the biggest challenges the band faces is balancing work, family and music.
“Managing to work a 12- or 14-hour day, squeezing in practice at some point during the week and keeping the family happy does get really trying,” he said.
“Luckily, we don’t have any issues with personality conflicts.”
Attebery said sometimes Dyer can be a diva, but the other band members have a special way of dealing with it.
“It’s like riot control except we just throw rocks at Chris,” he said.
Attebery has been playing bass guitar for seven years. He likes playing the bass now but was not initially drawn to it.
“In the first band I was in, I started out playing guitar. But we got a new guitar player, so I had to switch to bass,” he said.
He cites his favorite bassists as Les Claypool and Rob Wynia of Floater, adding, “Do you know how to spell his last name?” just to be a smart-ass.
Attebery is a huge Floater fan, boasting how he has seen the band perform live more than 200 times.
The other members of The Misery Science also bring experience to the equation.
Dyer and Olson were members of the successful group Barbarella that opened for bands like Goldfinger, The Bloodhound Gang and The Alarm.
At one point, Barbarella ranked higher than favorites Everclear, Death Cab for Cutie and Pink Martini in local album sales.
All the band’s influences and experiences make for an interesting mix of hard rock, power pop and alternative, being compared to the likes of Coldplay, The Cure and Smashing Pumpkins.
“We’re the kind of a band that takes our influences from a lot of difference types of music. So, we can sound very different from one song to the next,” he said, adding that it is impossible to describe the band’s sound.
Last summer, The Misery Science recorded a five-song EP.
The band is probably at its best on softer, piano-driven songs like “Again” and “Mr. K,” but the most dynamic song on the EP is “Battle of the Sexes.” It has extremely catchy riffs, solid vocals and a sweet hint of vulnerability.
The band plans to record a full-length album as soon as it can secure funding, Attebery said.
“We’ve got the material for it, but we just don’t have the cash to get in the studio again,” he said.
Lack of funds can be an incredible obstacle to independent bands, but the members of The Misery Science do not let it get them down. Though the band has not stooped to offering bikini car washes or exchanging organs for new equipment, they are playing a wedding in May.
“That should be really freaking interesting,” Attebery said.
Fortunately, the band will not be slipping any “Hungry Eyes” or Bryan Adams into the show this weekend.
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What: The Misery Science with The Party Tigers, One Star Storey and Kill Your Ex
When: Saturday, Feb. 23 at 10 p.m.
Where: Diablo’s Downtown Lounge, 959 Pearl St.
Cover: $6
For more on The Misery Science, visit the band’s Web site at www.miserysciencetheater.com.
The Misery Science
Daily Emerald
February 20, 2008
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