Misery Loves Co.

Misery Loves Co.

Misery Loves Co. is a Swedish metal band from Uppsala, Sweden, active from 1993 to the present. The group is known for combining thrash metal riffs with electronic sampling associated with industrial music, and its lyrics often focus on bleak sexual imagery and pain in troubled relationships. Its main members include Örjan Örnklkoo, Patrik Wirén, Michael Hahne, Olle Dahlstedt and Jim Edwards.

Formation and early line-up

The band forms in January 1993, with Patrik Wiren on vocals and Orjan Ornkloo on guitar, bass and programming. Wiren previously plays in Midas Touch, which records an album for Noise Records, while Ornkloo works with several bands in his hometown of Uppsala. The first recorded track is “Sonic Attack”, which appears on the metal compilation Extreme Close Up.

Albums and label work

Following the response to that single, the group works with MNW Zone to release its self-titled debut album in 1995. After independent success, the album is reissued across Europe by Earache Records. The debut becomes widely regarded as one of the stronger records from the 1990s European metal scene.

The album includes tracks such as “Need Another One” and “Kiss Your Boots”, both of which gain attention in club scenes. The band’s second album is moodier and darker, with less of the heaviness of the debut. On that record, “Not like them” becomes a notable track in the emerging metal market.

Later work and live line-up

The final Misery Loves Co. album is Your Vision Was Never Mine to Share, released in 2000. It is seen by many listeners as a more up-to-date record, while still following the band’s earlier work. The group stops after that release, before later activity resumes, and remains listed as active.

For live performances, the band adds Jim Edwards on guitar, Marre Ericksson on bass and Olle Dahlstedt on drums. Dahlstedt is later replaced by Niklas Gabrielsson before the band’s first UK show, at the Camden Underworld.

After Misery Loves Co.

After the group ends, Patrik Wiren forms Alpha Safari, formerly called Washoe, with some former live members of Misery Loves Co. and Entombed’s Uffe Cederlund. Alpha Safari releases one album, Commercial Suicide.