If you didn’t know, back in 1998 I started a band called Roy with my friend Paul. We played a lot of shows in Portland back then and released a few songs and some albums. After a very long hiatus we’re back and I’m posting about the new album here and I hope you are into hearing about it. If not, feel free to skip this for the video game and film stuffs you usually come here for.
Misery Accomplished is an album about achieving your goal and it not turning out the way you thought. Some people might call it a concept album but it might be more appropriately thought of as a reality album. When I started writing the songs for Misery Accomplished a year ago we were mid pandemic and I had no idea I was going to go through a divorce. I thought the concept of Misery Accomplished was for someone else, and in a way I was lauding my political and social thoughts that were for people that had nothing to do with me. Thing is, when my life took a turn for the horrible, Misery Accomplished became something I thought about a lot and only recently realized is the most autobiographical thing I’ve ever created.
A new Roy album is something I’ve thought about for a few years but decided to actually do when my friend Will gave me his old Casio LK-100 keyboard. To-date we’ve only used one Casio keyboard and an acoustic guitar to write all Roy music. A new-to-me Casio keyboard felt fresh and I liked the idea of Roy dueling with Casio keyboards, which is a sound featured on nearly every track on the album. One day when I was with my son I plugged in the new keyboard Will gave me and started writing an early chorus for “If JJ Abrams Rebooted the Little Mermaid.” Finley immediately started singing it with me and it was one of the most fun moments I’ve had in my life. I don’t think Misery Accomplished would exist if he didn’t keep singing the song over the next few days. Finley is featured on the chorus to “If JJ Abrams Rebooted the Little Mermaid” and I hope to do more songs with him.
When I initially wrote the song “Chris Hemsworth Abs” I thought the song was a joke about things other people experience. Darkness? Pain? Grief? It was a song where the punchline was what other people experienced but as time passed I realized it was everything I was going through. During the worst parts of the divorce I listened and played that song a lot. It was a song written by a much happier me and it felt like he was time traveling to sing it to me when I was at my worst. Literal time travel? No. But it’s a song that makes me feel better when things feel like shit.
When we were writing songs for Misery Accomplished Paul decided to take front and center singing and writing duties on two songs in “Mammoth Army” and “Freedom (Freight Train)”. “Mammoth Army” is a song he’s been working on here and there for over 10 years and I’m glad he finally finished it. The song recklessly flies down the track as it musically smashes into everything and to-date is one of the most involved and well constructed Roy songs we have. It feels like a full journey start to finish and it’s nothing like a song I’d write.
I wrote the song “Netflix and Die” on my iPad and didn’t think of it as much more than a funny take on the popular phrase Netflix and chill. But recontextualizing the song for where I am now, it’s a song wondering if I'd ever experience a relationship in the way others do. It’s hard to process the loneliness of a relationship in its ending death march that takes years without end.
Start to finish Misery Accomplished was only eight songs and after the worst parts of life happened we added two more to it. After the song “Misery Accomplished II” the bullshit ends and I take a breath and we wrap the album on two songs Freedom (Freight Train) and Freedom (Hurricane). A few weeks after my wife told me she wanted a divorce, in one of the lowest points in my life I wrote a song and recorded it on my iPhone and sent it to Paul. I was going through some heavy feelings and I wrote something in all of that. I want to be really clear here, I absolutely did not want to put Freedom (Hurricane) on Misery Accomplished. Over the months we worked on the album Paul said I should record it and I went through several drafts of the song, changing it to be a bit more upbeat. He kept suggesting I record a version like I did when I was at my lowest point and that’s what’s on the album. Me at the lowest point I’ve ever experienced writing a song about the only thing that mattered, my relationship with my friend. Paul decided to take that concept and wrote a completely different version of the song called Freedom (Freight Train). Thing is, even though his version came after and is a variation on mine, I think his is a better song. That said, I really enjoy that it’s two perspectives on the same relationship. I think that’s what relationships are or should be, two people saying the same thing in a way where both messages become something better, unique and also the same.
You can listen to Misery Accomplished today on nearly all the music and streaming platforms. Head over to our website to get all the links to Spotify, Apple Music, Amazon, Bandcamp, YouTube and more.
https://royband.com/misery-accomplished.html
Misery Accomplished is an album about achieving your goal and it not turning out the way you thought. Some people might call it a concept album but it might be more appropriately thought of as a reality album. When I started writing the songs for Misery Accomplished a year ago we were mid pandemic and I had no idea I was going to go through a divorce. I thought the concept of Misery Accomplished was for someone else, and in a way I was lauding my political and social thoughts that were for people that had nothing to do with me. Thing is, when my life took a turn for the horrible, Misery Accomplished became something I thought about a lot and only recently realized is the most autobiographical thing I’ve ever created.
A new Roy album is something I’ve thought about for a few years but decided to actually do when my friend Will gave me his old Casio LK-100 keyboard. To-date we’ve only used one Casio keyboard and an acoustic guitar to write all Roy music. A new-to-me Casio keyboard felt fresh and I liked the idea of Roy dueling with Casio keyboards, which is a sound featured on nearly every track on the album. One day when I was with my son I plugged in the new keyboard Will gave me and started writing an early chorus for “If JJ Abrams Rebooted the Little Mermaid.” Finley immediately started singing it with me and it was one of the most fun moments I’ve had in my life. I don’t think Misery Accomplished would exist if he didn’t keep singing the song over the next few days. Finley is featured on the chorus to “If JJ Abrams Rebooted the Little Mermaid” and I hope to do more songs with him.
When I initially wrote the song “Chris Hemsworth Abs” I thought the song was a joke about things other people experience. Darkness? Pain? Grief? It was a song where the punchline was what other people experienced but as time passed I realized it was everything I was going through. During the worst parts of the divorce I listened and played that song a lot. It was a song written by a much happier me and it felt like he was time traveling to sing it to me when I was at my worst. Literal time travel? No. But it’s a song that makes me feel better when things feel like shit.
When we were writing songs for Misery Accomplished Paul decided to take front and center singing and writing duties on two songs in “Mammoth Army” and “Freedom (Freight Train)”. “Mammoth Army” is a song he’s been working on here and there for over 10 years and I’m glad he finally finished it. The song recklessly flies down the track as it musically smashes into everything and to-date is one of the most involved and well constructed Roy songs we have. It feels like a full journey start to finish and it’s nothing like a song I’d write.
I wrote the song “Netflix and Die” on my iPad and didn’t think of it as much more than a funny take on the popular phrase Netflix and chill. But recontextualizing the song for where I am now, it’s a song wondering if I'd ever experience a relationship in the way others do. It’s hard to process the loneliness of a relationship in its ending death march that takes years without end.
Start to finish Misery Accomplished was only eight songs and after the worst parts of life happened we added two more to it. After the song “Misery Accomplished II” the bullshit ends and I take a breath and we wrap the album on two songs Freedom (Freight Train) and Freedom (Hurricane). A few weeks after my wife told me she wanted a divorce, in one of the lowest points in my life I wrote a song and recorded it on my iPhone and sent it to Paul. I was going through some heavy feelings and I wrote something in all of that. I want to be really clear here, I absolutely did not want to put Freedom (Hurricane) on Misery Accomplished. Over the months we worked on the album Paul said I should record it and I went through several drafts of the song, changing it to be a bit more upbeat. He kept suggesting I record a version like I did when I was at my lowest point and that’s what’s on the album. Me at the lowest point I’ve ever experienced writing a song about the only thing that mattered, my relationship with my friend. Paul decided to take that concept and wrote a completely different version of the song called Freedom (Freight Train). Thing is, even though his version came after and is a variation on mine, I think his is a better song. That said, I really enjoy that it’s two perspectives on the same relationship. I think that’s what relationships are or should be, two people saying the same thing in a way where both messages become something better, unique and also the same.
You can listen to Misery Accomplished today on nearly all the music and streaming platforms. Head over to our website to get all the links to Spotify, Apple Music, Amazon, Bandcamp, YouTube and more.
https://royband.com/misery-accomplished.html
If you want to join this conversation you need to sign in.
Sign Up / Log In
I've listened this album several times over the last few days and I just wanted to let you know how much I appreciate the music and all that went into it. I'm glad you've persevered in general, let alone enough produce a new album.
Anyway, I'll see you all on the 30th!
❤️
Yay a new Roy album! I can't wait to listen! ❤️ What you've written here and the lyrics of the embedded song speak to me and I just want to say "THANK YOU!!!" This all speaks to me very much!
As for Chris Hemsworth's abs, it's time to write a sequel, check out Natalie Portman's biceps!!! (Thor Love and Thunder) https://youtu.be/tgB1wUcmbbw
I haven’t said anything publicly because I wanted to sit with it for a while.
Your version of Freedom has not left my brain ever since listening to it. I’ve made like 10 people listen to it. It’s so damn good.
The album as a whole is a sort of comedy/novelty type of thing I wouldn’t generally listen to a lot but there’s charm here that makes it stand out.
And I’m impressed with how complex some of the composition is considering it’s two Casio keyboards usually 😂
I think you two would be amazing at writing kids music. Not that your stuff is juvenile but your energy is infectious and Finley singing along kinda proves that (and btw kudos to Finley for being on pitch at his age).
“If JJ Abrams Rebooted the Little Mermaid" we'd see a LOT of lens flares! LOL
I've had folks mention writing kids music before, that's not a bad idea at all. When I sit down no kids songs come to mind but I guess I could write a few about ice cream or something.
> And I’m impressed with how complex some of the composition is considering it’s two Casio keyboards usually 😂
The root of all the songs are Casio keyboards and some songs acoustic guitar. With that, we've added some modern keyboard sounds to help back the songs and I think they fit in nicely. If I had 10 Casio keyboards we prob wouldn't need to do that. That's said, it's fun to do something that is very old school Roy but pair with a some more modern synth samples.
This album gets it.
Chris Hemsworth Abs made me think about how, when someone is in a dark place, the same advice can be many different things. It can be genuine but unhelpful, it can be mocking / patronizing, or it can be a light to change one's perspective. Sometimes a positive distraction is what it takes to remind us the world is still turning, and Thor's abs are... wait, I'm being told I should watch Endgame. Brb in a couple of hours.
Freedom was so good (both halves). I love the positivity, shining through the heartache, one's own or from someone we deeply care about. Having seen a number of people I care about struggle, Freight Train moves me to persevere on their behalf. Having struggled at times myself, Hurricane moves me to persevere on my own behalf, and has made me tear up a little every time I've listened to it.