History
Formation (2002–2003)
Misery Signals was formed after the disbandment of several bands, including 7 Angels 7 Plagues, Hamartia and Compromise. Having played briefly with 7 Angels 7 Plagues, former Compromise vocalist Jesse Zaraska was approached by Ryan Morgan and Kyle Johnson for a new project, which would become Misery Signals. Jeff Aust from Hamartia joined on as second guitar, and Ryan Morgan's brother Branden joined as the bands drummer. Aust soon left the band and has since gone on to join With Honor, he was replaced by Stu Ross - a friend of Jesse Zaraska's from St. Albert, Alberta.
Signing to Ferret Music (2004–2009)
The band eventually signed to New Jersey's Ferret Music, releasing their first full-length album, Of Malice and the Magnum Heart. After extensive touring, Zaraska decided to leave the band to focus on a smaller, less aggressive project named Sleeping Girl, at which point the rest of the band decided to put up an instrumental song on their MySpace page, encouraging anyone who wanted to take over the spot of vocalist to record their own voice over the instrumental and e-mail it to the band. This was the way they found new vocalist Karl Schubach, with whom they recorded the album, Mirrors. In July 2008 Misery Signals released their third full-length entitled Controller. After extensive touring in support of Controller in early 2009, members of Misery Signals wanted to pursue other musical directions outside of their band.
Focus on side projects (2009–2010)
Schubach is involved in a heavy metal side project called Solace. He is the sole member of the band, recording guitar, bass and vocals in a D.I.Y.-fashioned home studio. The drums are added in digitally, through the use of a program on his Macbook.
The hardcore/punk band Burning Empires consists of members from Misery Signals, Fall Out Boy and 7 Angels 7 Plagues. Ryan Morgan does the vocals, Kyle Johnson plays bass, Stu Ross and Matthew Mixon play guitar, while Andy Hurley plays the drums. Andy Hurley is an avid supporter of the Wisconsin hardcore scene. The quintet also have a clothing line/record label called Fuck City. In October 2010, Kyle Johnson also announced his departure from the band.
There is also a pop punk/hardcore band named Lowtalker that consists of Branden Morgan and Stuart Ross of Misery Signals. They team up with Casey Hjelmberg and Matt Keil of Comeback Kid to complete the four piece project. Lowtalker are set to release their EP People Worry About Everything in the spring of 2010 through FC records.
In 2010, Stuart Ross became the frontman of a pop-punk band from Vancouver, B.C. named Living with Lions. Ross officially left Misery Signals on September 25, 2010 to put his focus on this new project, and was reportedly tired of performing heavy metal.
New album (2011)
After an extended period of inactivity with a heavy focus on side projects, Misery Signals made an official statement about the state of the band in November 2010. The press release addressed the loss of Ross and Johnson, and also announced that the band had not, in fact, broken up.[3] Ryan Morgan commented that, "In the next few months, we'll group back up and return."[3] Despite losing two of the founding members of Misery Signals, the remaining members did not consider changing the name of the group. On maintaining the continuity of the band's style and keeping the same name, Morgan said, "Stu and Kyle made awesome contributions, but the trajectory of the band remains the same in their absence. If the time came that our sound took a drastically different course, then it wouldn't be Misery Signals anymore, and we wouldn't pretend that it was.
On October 19, 2016, rumours of an original lineup reunion tour and album were confirmed by vocalist Jesse Zaraska. When reached for comment by Nic Huber of www.metalinjection.net, Zaraska had the following to say: "It is the truth, sir. We are in the midst of writing new material together and will be playing some show over the coming year. It has been very cool thus far. We will definitely be doing a proper US tour in 2017."
On March 24, 2018, at the event Midwest Meltdown in Iowa City, Iowa; Misery Signals frontman Jesse Zaraska, announced the band had been holed up on Boise, Idaho over the previous few weeks. He stated that they are, indeed, working on a new album. Zaraska stated on stage, that he believes their newest album "will be the BEST Misery Signals album yet." When asked about the style of the new album, Zaraska replied "It will probably be a lot like of Malice."
On the "Death to False Metalcore Tour 2019" with Darkest Hour and Unearth, the band played a song titled "Sunlifter" from their Absent Light B-Side vinyl release. Zaraska also stated November 2019 as the release date for their new album.
On May 8, 2020, a 26 second fixed-camera video of ocean waves, with only the date "05.15.2020" appearing center screen at the end of the video, was posted to Misery Signals’ social media accounts, suggesting that new music, or a new album, is set to be announced, and/or released, on that date.
On May 14, 2020, Misery Signals announced their upcoming fifth studio album, Ultraviolet, to be released on August 7, 2020, along with the release of the single “The Tempest”
Members
CURRENT LINE-UP:
Ryan Morgan – lead guitar, backing vocals (2002–present)
Branden Morgan – drums (2002–present)
Jesse Zaraska – vocals (2002–2006, 2014–present)
Kyle Johnson – bass guitar (2002–2010, 2013–present)
Stu Ross – rhythm guitar, backing vocals (2002–2010, 2014–present)
Former Members:
Jeff Aust – guitar (2002)
Karl Schubach – vocals (2006–2014)
Gregory Thomas – rhythm guitar, backing vocals (2011–2014)
Kent Wren – bass guitar (2011–2013)
Discography
Studio albums:
Of Malice and the Magnum Heart (2004)
Mirrors (2006)
Controller (2008)
Absent Light (2013)
Ultraviolet (2020)
EPs:
Misery Signals (2003)
Migrate
Misery Signals Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
We went the fast way out
You can see the marks left on my clothes
From where she came undone
You want me to hurt like you, to shadow the pain
Away with my sympathy
And the comforts I abused
Away with dishonesty
I don't care, I just don't
And winter came to hide the sun behind the gray
And erase her
What's done is done
My warmth has gone
Carried by the birds of fall
I don't care, I just don't
It doesn't feel like anything
And winter came to hide the sun behind the gray
And devastate her
What's done is done is done
Misery Signals' song "Migrate" speaks about a past love that has left its mark on the singer. The lyrics begin by acknowledging that the worst is over and how they went the "fast way out." The singer tells us that there are visible marks on their clothes from where their past partner "came undone" - this could refer to a physical fight or emotional distress. The partner wants the singer to feel hurt to share in their pain, but they are done with lies and fake love. The singer does not care for sympathy or any truth that was manipulated to make things better; the singer is not here for that. The lyrics take a melancholic turn when they talk about how winter has come to hide the sun behind the grey and erase her. The warmth is gone, carried away by the birds of fall. The lyrics repeat the refrain, "I don't care, I just don't. It doesn't feel like anything." This line signifies the numbness and detachment that the singer feels towards their past love. The song ends with the acknowledgment that what's done is done, and they have moved on.
Line by Line Meaning
The worst is over
We have already gone through the hardest part and survived
We went the fast way out
We took the easy way out of the situation
You can see the marks left on my clothes
I still have physical evidence of the damage caused by her actions
From where she came undone
From the breaking point she reached due to her own internal struggles
You want me to hurt like you, to shadow the pain
You wish me to suffer the same pain and misery that you are going through
Away with my sympathy
I no longer have any feelings of compassion or empathy towards you
And the comforts I abused
I have taken advantage of the things that used to bring me comfort before all this happened
Away with dishonesty
I am done with being deceitful and hiding the truth
And my manufactured truth
I have been creating a false reality for myself to avoid dealing with the real issues
I don't care, I just don't
I have no emotional attachment to this situation or to you anymore
And winter came to hide the sun behind the gray
A metaphorical representation of the darkness and despair that has consumed me
And erase her
I want to forget her and everything she put me through
What's done is done
The past cannot be changed or undone
My warmth has gone
I have lost the love and happiness that used to fill me up
Carried by the birds of fall
A metaphorical depiction of nature and the passing of time
It doesn't feel like anything
I am numb to the pain and emotions of this experience
And devastate her
I want to cause the same level of destruction and pain in her life
What's done is done is done
The events that have taken place cannot be reversed and must be accepted
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
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